Enjoyable, but flawed.

Rating: 7/10 (31 May 2007)

Warning: Contains major spoilers.
Spiderman 3 was a frustrating experience. It was a movie that had a lot of fun elements, but also a laundry list of problems. I don't feel this was due to the stacked nature of the story, but rather the fact that certain scenes either didn't work or required too much of a leap of faith from the audience.
Let's take the infamous Butler scene. The Butler tells Harry that Norman's wounds were self-inflicted. How on earth could he come to such a conclusion? It was a poor way of bringing about Harry's change of heart. Similarly, Eddie Brock tells the Sandman that he knows about his daughter. How did he acquire this information? These two scenes were rather critical moments(Harry putting aside his revenge and Sandman teaming up with Venom, respectively), yet the logic behind them was poorly explained.
Spiderman 3 is easily the most emotional film of the trilogy; however, there are moments when the characters display a complete lack of emotion or response to the surrounding circumstances. In the aforementioned Butler scene, Harry isn't the least bit annoyed that the "information" regarding his father was kept from him for so long. Harry's manipulation of Mary Jane - getting her to break up with Peter - isn't referenced again, despite it having a significant impact on their relationship. And when the Sandman tackles "Spiderman" in an alley-way, only to be met with the screaming face of Venom, he actually turns around and begins to walk away! He is completely unfazed by this monstrous creature he's just encountered in a dark alley.
The film continues the annoying trend of Spiderman frequently losing his mask, taking it to gratuitous levels at the end. Peter loses his mask during his first confrontation with Venom, manages to put in on again when fighting Venom and Sandman, only to have it torn and eventually knocked off completely by Venom once again. The use of the black suit is restricted as well, in favour of Peter in street clothes, with the black suit just about visible at collar level. Raimi clearly has reservations about conveying a masked Spiderman and it's annoying to see the lengths he goes to in order to cause Spiderman to lose his mask.
Criticisms aside, the film did have its good points - good points which I think outweigh the bad overall. In terms of the characters, we have the reliable comedy from J Jonah Jameson and other co-stars, and Bruce Campbell once again getting the time to shine. The Sandman is an excellent addition to the series - his backstory is unoriginal, but he's not a cookie-cutter villain and the special effects (particularly when he first tries to maintain human form) are impressive at times. Eddie Brock, whilst being completely different from the character in the comics, receives a limited but well performed role as Peter's rival. Gwen Stacey is a breath of fresh air, in the few scenes she's in, as an alternative to Mary Jane. Though I really feel that Gwen should have been the damsel-in-distress at the end.
The overall story of the film was also enjoyable. Spiderman 2 and Superman Returns excelled at presenting how difficult it is to be a superhero. The formula continues in Spiderman 3, shifting from Spiderman's newfound celebrity status to the problems in Peter's personal life. There are also some nice nods to the first film, such as the hallucination of Norman telling Harry "We attack his heart!" and Gwen giving Spidey an upside-down kiss. Little touches like that go a long way towards making the series seem like a trilogy. I disagree with the general view that too much was packed in - there were problems with certain scenes, but they were problems from the get-go, rather than being the result of trying to tell too much. For goodness sake, the Butler obviously has an advanced medical degree or psychic powers, while Harry and Mary Jane spontaneously decide to dance whilst preparing a meal! The only point in the film where I felt things were a little rushed was when Peter first donned the black suit. We could have seen a little more of his crime-fighting efforts in his new threads, perhaps testing how his abilities had changed, before moving to Peter's growing attitude problems.
There are a number of action scenes in the film. The first fight between Peter and the New Goblin should be familiar to many, as it was released on the internet in its entirety. It's a fun scene, though the night-time setting and frenetic pace makes it difficult to make out what's going on. Peter's wedding ring, however, clearly exists outside the laws of conventional gravity. My favourite fight scene was actually Spidey's first meeting with the Sandman, in the armoured car. It was a nice portrayal of Spidey having a chip on his shoulder ("I'm the sheriff in this town" or words to that effect), and being completely unprepared for a man who could turn into sand (followed by a funny "Where do these guys come from?" pondering after the fight). The tag team battle at the end was very entertaining, and made all the more special by a cheering crowd rallying behind the heroes (a setting which I think is sorely lacking in superhero films). I could have done without the overly-British reporter commenting on the action, however.
Overall, I'd recommend this to fans of the first two films. There are flaws which I could not ignore, which made it a disappointing experience. But it's worth checking out, and I'll still be getting it on DVD when it arrives. For those of you who are not fans of the Spiderman film franchise, or were not bowled over by Spiderman 2, I would advise you to keep away; the problems of the film will no doubt be intensified by a dislike for Raimi's general "wacky" style.