I didn't see the first Spider-Man but I really enjoyed the second!

Rating: 8/10 (9 August 2004)

Possible spoilers...
As I wrote in the title, I didn't watch the first Spider-Man when it was released in 2002. But a friend invited me to go and see "Spider-Man 2" at the movies and I honestly don't regret it at all. I was surprised to discover that Sam Raimi made this sequel (as well as the first Spider-Man movie). I found out later that he is a big fan of the comic strip; so he seemed to be cut out to shot the adventures of Peter Parker alias Spider-Man. It's better this way because this blockbuster has got plenty of qualities that worth the detour.
The movie owes its success partly thanks to the nearly constant humor that are in the dialogs and also in the character acted by JK Simmons. For him, it is the opportunity to offer a delightful performance.
Spider-Man 2 also enjoys quite stunning special effects which are never intrusive and used only when necessary, mainly in action or bravery sequences. But these sequences don't seem to be the most important ones in Raimi's eyes. We can't say that "Spider-Man 2" is a pure action movie from the beginning to the end. Indeed, the director rather put the accent on the psychology of his main character, Peter Parker. He doesn't introduce him as a perfect super hero but as a clumsy young man torn between his private life that he can't manage to assume and his doubts about being Spider-Man. In short, Raimi goes against the clichés generally attributed to super heroes and offers a more complex and ambiguous view of a super hero. He also had intuition by choosing Tobey Maguire for the first role because he's truly talented and perfect. Moreover, he's got a nice personality which makes him likable straightaway. There's also an excellent choice for Kirsten Dunst whose beauty and face light the film up.
With "A simple plan" (1998), Sam Raimi had achieved a tour de force in the thriller. Here, in another extent, "Spider-Man 2" can be taken for a new success in Raimi's work and his efforts are widely rewarded because the movie is already a huge commercial success in France. Even, if you can find faults in the film (when Spider-Man flies in the air, the movie resembles pictures taken from a video game. The film also follows a classical outline typical from Hollywood scripts with a scientist acted by Alfred Molina who wants to use his power through his latest discovery to control New York. So, it seems that Spider-Man can be the only one to save the city. Then, the end of the movie which sees Maguire and Dunst united together lets suggest that Hollywood has been through that), you can only find pleasure in watching Raimi's film which should logically lean on to a third opus in the Spider-Man series. If it's the case, let's hope that Raimi will shot it and as far as I'm concerned, the success of "Spider-Man 2" made me want to watch the first movie. But at the moment, for once that a follow-up is really successful, let's take advantage of it!