Good

Rating: 8/10 (18 September 2008)

The dread franchise film has killed off many a potentially interesting character (Superman, Batman, Ripley, Rocky) & given leases of life to characters that are paper-thin (Indy Jones, Jason Voorhees, Catwoman). The latest franchise film is Spider-Man 2, directed by Sam Raimi. The 1st Spider-Man was probably the best comic book film ever made- mostly because its leads- Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, & Kirsten Dunst as his love- Mary Jane Watson a) can both act (unlike, say Christopher Reeve as Superman), b) are well cast (unlike Michael Keaton in the 1st 2 Batman films). & c) have chemistry (unlike Reeve & Margot Kidder in the Superman films). Maguire, especially, is so good an actor that he is 1 of those rarities that can run a panoply of emotions through just his eyes. He is almost irresistible to watch on screen. All in all, a very good film, & along with the 1st film, simply the best superhero films ever made. I hope the writers from this film stick with the whole series because, next to Batman, Spidey probably has the best pantheon of villains in comic book lore. Future baddies could include Dr. Doom, Venom, Carnage, the Sandman, Rhino, the Lizard, & Electro, among others. But, what makes good writing in such a film valuable are the little moments- like Peter's confession to Aunt May about how & why Uncle Ben really died, a surreal moment on an elevator between Spidey & a shocked citizen, references to other characters in the Marvel Comics universe, allusions & parallels to Oscar Wilde's The Important Of Being Earnest, & a street musician singing the old Spider-Man TV cartoon series theme song from the 1960s. Such touches are what invigorate this franchise above the others & what killed off the increasingly dark & directionless Batman franchise. Sam Raimi proves he is a director who knows how to milk a proved commodity without imposing his own distorted 'vision' on it- unlike Batman director Tim Burton.