Raimi wisely and avoid putting the focus on the special effects. He values the most different characters and relationships between them

Rating: 8/10 (4 April 2020)

After the resounding success of the original film, Spider-Man 2 came to Brazil taking almost 8 million people to the movie theaters in the country and many millions more around the world. After the positive reviews of the fidelity and style transported to new media, the director Sam Raimi was called again to take control of the second part, produced just two years of his predecessor. Raimi reassembled the same cast and inserted specific holdings. In this production, one of the bases of the writers was the famous edition of the Spider, known as " Spider-Man No More "(originally published in the journal" The Amazing Spider-Man # 50-51-52 "), where Peter Parker realizes he is pressured by popular pursuit (caused by Jameson and his editorials), and is setting aside their personal life, friends, family and studies. He decides to abandon everything and stop being the superhero and ends up generating for fans of the comic with the iconic image of the uniform Spider in the trash and Peter leaving. In the movie, the hero goes through the same dilemmas and realize that there is something wrong when their powers are disappearing gradually. Convinced involuntarily by Aunt May and seeing that the city needed a symbol to protect her, he decides to return to wear the uniform of the arachnid.
The film begins two years after the first film, when Spider-Man defeated the Green Goblin. Peter Parker is still trying to reconcile the superhero with his personal life without much success. Parker, due to heroics, is always changing jobs for its constant delays, is always neglecting his studies with the notes increasingly low and can never meet the expectations of his Aunt May going through difficult times after the death of his uncle Ben. Also still hiding her love for her friend / love Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) and keeping away from it to not run risks by being with him. He still has to deal with his best friend Harry (James Franco), who feeds a growing anger at Spider-Man because he considered him as the murderer of his father, and with the appearance of Dr. Octopus (Alfred Molina) , a brilliant scientist who after having an unsuccessful experiment that killed his wife and he did have tentacles attached to the body that just manipulating your mind, making it a gentle person with an unstable, causing it to try to finish his failed experiment at any cost.
Unlike other productions blockbuster success, Raimi did not fall into the traps and famous does not sin by excess, correcting some mistakes earlier and expanding personal conflicts of Peter Parker, torn between the life of a young student and the responsibility to defend the people, and well developed and iconic scenes action of the highest quality. Spider-Man 2 was the main cast, and brought a much more interesting villain menacing Dr. Octopus. Raimi and screenwriters show new elements that will please the most ardent reader of comic books to the average viewer, with a generous dose of action, adventure, comedy, romance and suspense. It is clear here the successful attempt to make that character as human as possible, focusing on the dilemmas of teenager Peter and clashes with situations adulthood. The sub-plots, which began in the previous film, gained more prominence and depth in this sequence. The friendship between Peter and Harry is in play, the passion of Peter and Mary Jane is threatened when she announces that he will marry another man, Peter has to talk seriously with his Aunt May on the fact in the death of his uncle Ben, not to mention the conflicts of the Spider and its difficulty maintaining dual identity.
Spider-Man 2 already like in the opening credits, showing a well-made opening that makes a kind of homage to the world of comics and the previous film, mixing striking scenes of the original film with images using the language of comics. As a result we see an interesting transition from face Mary Jane in a commercial giant Peter always having to look at her even trying to forget it at least a little. After this, we see many comedic moments as well explored as the dialogue scenes with Parker Mr. Aziz, the pizza shop owner to whom he makes deliveries, and especially in unusual pizza delivery taken by Spider, culminating in the scene where he clumsily tries to push some sponges into the closet and listening to the pizzas were delivered after hours and would not be paid. And beckons Spider-Man talking to someone wearing a man in a scene in the elevator after embarrassing the powers of the hero failing in the air, and the two stand there like a man dressed in a costume building was the most normal thing in the world and the two are unsure what to say or do. Perfect scene that makes anyone rolling with laughter.
The jokes, incidentally, are much more constant in this part of the work, but they end up not taking the attention of adventure. The first hour contains a lot of comedy. Besides the aforementioned pizza delivery, we have scenes where Peter walks by the college to the tune of "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head", the scenes at the party where the marriage of Mary Jane with John Jameson Parker would be announced and is trying all the time grab a glass with drink but never get, and all the scenes in which it appears the great great J.Jonah Jameson, played by JK Simmons with the classic phrase end in marriage he asked not to serve caviar.
The action scenes are even better and grander compared to the original film. Raimi has already reached the first film a great balance between the language of comics and its transposition to the screen and kept the same kind of framework and scenarios, aided by a technology far superior just two years after the original film and were led once again by John Dykstra. In this film, the director makes the actions of Spider occur mostly at night, but still using many plans in close, as in the original, avoiding using the camera still. Speaking of technology, we have to take your hat off to the stunning visual effects used. Are far superior to the first film and bring fluidity and credibility essential to the work. The fight scenes in the bank between Spidey and Dr. Octopus, the fight scene between the two climbing one of the tallest buildings in New York is that Aunt May hostage, and the enigmatic scenes of the subway and the grand finale are perfect examples of the use of computer graphics. The appearance of Dr. Octopus is an evolution to the stark armor worn by Green Goblin in the first film and the work is impressive, further increasing the fear of the villain. Deservedly the work of John Dykstra led the Oscar statuette in 2005.
In contrast to the technical creativity to such scenes left a little to be desired. The repetition of ideas is very present: Mary Jane is kidnapped again and participates in the final climax of the film having his life threatened once more. Even Aunt May appears in danger at the hands of the villain of the movie and there is again a fire in a building almost identical to the 2002 film. There are moments of great importance and lack of creativity left a little to be desired. Fortunately, following the spectacular scene of the subway, the car scene invading the cafeteria, and climbing and fighting in high rise buildings always excite with an efficient use of slow motion in key moments.
Over the stretch, the film presents its best scenes and merges with the special effects mastery with touching scenes. At the scene of the subway, for example, the spider has to save the passengers of a train wreck, and when Spidey ends up having to show his identity secret after his mask on fire, passengers end up holding the hero and lead into the train. One then says "It's just a kid ..." taking the words from the mouth of every one on that train, we were surprised to be a really skinny teenager responsible for the heroic act. Even better is when the passenger support and say they will not tell anyone your identity, returning his mask because the admire and recognize it in fact a true hero.
The scene where Mary Jane kisses her current boyfriend upside down trying to simulate the kiss he had given with spider in the previous film and her disappointment when she felt it was not the same love she felt the hero was also marked. In another scene is when Mary Jane goes after Peter, after leaving her future husband astronaut on the altar. After the couple Parker and Watson declare themselves and be together and Mary Jane claiming to know the risks they run and they still wanted to stay with him, a close relation closes production in a close-anguished face of Mary Jane to have to watch your from beloved to save the day once again. It's a beautiful picture and it shows very well the difficult relationship that would have to go together from that moment on.
The photography Bill Pope, the art direction of Neil Spisak Bob Murawski and editing seem to be one thing in the construction of the language of comics to the big screen in a way rarely seen. Impossible not to say that all the action scenes and romance were conducted by master Danny Elfman ("Alice in Wonderland"), again repeating the partnership's first feature. themes were reinforced and marked again a soundtrack unforgettable and touching. Despite having defects such as recycling ideas cited, Raimi has no obligation to tell the origin of the friendly neighborhood, and takes viewers right into the action without losing any time. In Spider-Man 2, he acts wisely and avoid putting the focus on the special effects. Raimi values the most different characters and relationships between them. Could be a blockbuster which balanced well the various genres present in the scenes and is undoubtedly one of the best superhero movies of recent times.