An Empty and Boring Action Flick

Rating: 4/10 (30 August 2010)

Spider-Man was a surprisingly entertaining action flick with touches of humor and suspense. Spider-Man 2 was one of the best films of the past decade, with its alarmingly believable emotion and fantastic characters. But then came this disaster. This movie brings back plot details from the 1st film, making it feel as if the crew ran out of ideas for the story. This then results in Spidey hunting down Flint Marko, played by Thomas Haden Church in a talent-wasting performance. The love triangle between Dunst, Maguire, and Franco has zero sizzle. The action sequences are merely attention-grabbing instead of tense. Spider-Man's dark side is not terrifying, mainly consisting of stealing other people's girlfriends and wearing thick black eyeliner. Instead of being emotionally complex, the subplots this time feel sappy, forced, and manipulative. Church and Topher Grace (as Venom/Eddie Brock) are talented, but not as effective as Willem Dafoe (as the original Green Goblin) and Alfred Molina (as Doc Ock). The endless story lines and melodramatic speeches make this film bland, excessive, and boring. Even the behavior of the characters (leaving boyfriends, assaulting friends, not calling the police) is implausible. If quality ran the box office, this film would not even cross $100 million.