Does Whatever a Spider Can

Rating: 7/10 (8 June 2016)

After Spider-Man's success there were naturally high hopes for its sequel. Raimi showed with the Evil Dead trilogy that he knows how to tweak and develop a continuation within his films. That turns out to be one of the films strongest suits, it continues to grow and build onto the themes established in the first film whilst adding new layers of material. By this second outing Raimi and his cast are so comfortable in their roles that it does become a genuinely enjoyable film. The film is often claimed to be the best of the trilogy and that is something I'd have to agree with. It's far from perfect and shares some of its predecessor's flaws, but when it hits the right notes it is great entertainment.
Story: Peter's struggle to balance his two lives hits breaking point when his powers appear to be fading and Mary Jane becomes engaged to someone else. Elsewhere a failed fusion experiment leaves scientist Otto Octavius psychologically damaged and with four mechanical arms, which he uses in an attempt to recreate the experiment. I was really impressed by how well the film balanced out both of these stories, giving them appropriate time and space to breathe. I certainly think Peter's emotional journey is one of the films highlights and there is a great deal of emotion to those scenes. It's also nice that Doctor Octopus isn't simply a mad man, but a very intelligent and conflicted person with his instability causing his actions.
Hero: Tobey Maguire is excellent as Peter here. He sells every emotion with subtlety and makes some shaky dialogue sound very natural. There is an honesty and warmth in his performance which makes the Peter so endearing. His Spider-Man suffers in comparison as he does lack wit and confidence, but I still think he does okay in the suit and it still manages to fit the character.
Villain: Alfred Molina is a standout as Octavius because he balances both sides of the character to perfection. At first he's very thoughtful and charming, but after the accident there is a ruthlessness and cunning that he manages to get across with his expressions alone. By giving the character so many dimensions it makes it easier to be invested in his struggle.
Support: Kirsten Dunst is good as Mary Jane and brings charm to the role, yet the character is frustrating. Her anger at Peter's apparent lack of support is understandable, but she once again becomes a plot device for Peter to rescue. It's annoying by this point. James Franco is fine as a more vengeful Harry Osborn, even if he does overplay the part at times. Rosemary Harris is a great Aunt May and her elegant delivery gives the dialogue a real zest. J. K. Simmons is simply wonderful as Jameson, his comic timing is perfect and he delivers constant laughs whenever on screen.
Action: The action sequences are much improved over the first film. We again get plenty of shots of Spider-Man swinging through the city and intervening in police chases, with the refined CGI adding intensity to those pieces. Both the climax and the fight at the bank were well constructed. The highlight however is certainly the train sequence. It's a fight that is both wildly creative and appropriately hard-hitting with a great deal at stake for our hero.
Music: Danny Elfman's score is more of the same. It lacks any new sounds, but it definitely fits the films tone and always provides the correct amount of bombast or calmness.
Production: Sam Raimi directs the film with a flair and imagination that surpasses his work on the original film. He captures the vastness of the city well and gives an identity to a lot of the places we end up visiting. Visually the film is very impressive too, with a great number of scenes resembling images you would expect to find on the comic book page (Peter discarding his suit being just one of them). The writing and tone is where the film really splits for me. Much of the material involving Peter's struggles with Mary Jane and the guilt he feels over Uncle Ben's death is excellent, both in its acting and the grace with which it is pulled off. The scenes that Peter and Aunt May share are always so naturalistic. However, the film has too many ill-fitting or goofy moments that clash with the more honest tone. Peter has to deliver some really bad lines, his interactions with Harry get more clichéd throughout and even the Mary Jane dilemma feels weak by the end. The also extras have to be mentioned as I have no idea what's going on with them. It feels like way too many get unnecessary screen time and they all seem to act in a stilted, robotic way that is extremely unnatural.
Conclusion: Spider-Man 2 is an example of a film that improves upon the previous film and adds onto what that film was trying to get across, but it doesn't quite reach the heights that it could have reached. My issues with the film are nearly all down to writing and tone. The film does have a playfulness and sense of fun that frequently works well with its more sober moments, yet it pushes itself into silliness a few times too many and that dilutes some of the more serious material. I certainly think Raimi's direction is as stimulating as ever, whilst the action is better and the acting (especially from Molina and Maguire) is impressive all round. It's by no means flawless, but I do think it's a very entertaining entry and one that is easy to get wrapped up in.