Spidey spins a web of entertainment

Rating: 7/10 (3 July 2004)

I liked it a lot. Much better than the first. However, I had a few problems with it.
First and foremost, What is with him taking his mask off constantly? It's like half the city knew who he was after the movie. Secondly, he started to lose his powers because he was lovestruck and didn't want to be Spider-man anymore? Lastly, while I loved all of the character development and the fact the movie was more about Peter Parker than Spider-man - they went overboard with driving it in that his life sucked due to his responsibility of being the webslinger. At one point, I just let out a sigh of depression having to watch Peter go through so much s***. It didn't ruin the movie in any way, but I felt some editing might have been in order to relieve some of the unnecessary melancholy. Nothing that ruined the film - just a few things I would have done differently.
As for the good points? A lot of 'em. The introduction credits were brilliant. Possibly the first time I've ever considered credits to be a contributing factor to the overall entertainment of a film. They were that well done. I wasn't a huge fan of the original movie due to some very cheesy dialogue. This time around it was a huge improvement. It retained the comic book feel while refraining to make me cringe. I think there were only a few lines I wanted to roll my eyes at, but held back because I was thoroughly enjoying the film. Major props in that aspect.
The action scenes were awesome. Mainly the train scene. I could go into great detail on how much I enjoyed that scene, but the number of expletives needed may offend some. Orgasmic will have to suffice. The operating room scene was equally as impressive. Not in terms of overall excitement, but in that it accomplished expressing the terror these AI constructed arms were. I've never seen the Evil Dead series, but have read this particular scene was influenced by Raimi's previous work in said series. I will certainly have to give those films a look.
Humor. The film had it in spades and I'm very hard to amuse in that regard. Most humor in films pass me by without the hint of a smile, but Spider-man used it effectively and there were several times I even gave a chuckle. J.J. was spot on. Absolutely hilarious and JK Simmons was able to pull of the character from the comics in stride. The elevator scene was another one of my favorites and I wish it hadn't been spoiled for me in one of the various commericals on the TV.
A lot of people seem to have complaints with Kirsten Dunst's performance as Mary Jane. I agree to an extent. She didn't seem like she was putting much effort into the role - at least not as much as the first film. This is certainly not the MJ we know from the comics, but it doesn't detract too much. Her last scene in the film makes up for the shortcomings previous to it. Molina was good as Doc Ock, but hardly a standout as some reviews have claimed. It was his tentacles that were the villain in this film and I can't say I didn't enjoy the different approach to the character. As far as Harry goes - I think with his limited development in the film, he came off as being needlessly whiny. We all know why, but it's hard to really care. Either they spend a good deal of time with his character in the 3rd film or limit the significance of his findings. I have mixed feelings of him being the 'main' villain in the next film.
Well, I could go on and on about all the different things I liked about the movie. It really was a big surprise for me after only semi liking the first one. I think I'll watch the first film again to see if there is any new found appreciation after having seen the excellent sequel.