Go see it!

Rating: 8/10 (5 May 2007)

As a word of caution, you must be open minded when you watch this film. Yes, Venom is in the film. BUT you'll have to remember, story wise, the film strays away from the source material as well as the cartoon show. So if you're a die-hard venom fan (I am) there's a good chance that you're going to be disappointed. Heavily disappointed.
The appearance of Venom is fantastic. The CGI is great and the character looks so cool. My only gripes are that Venom didn't have his slobbering tongue (how could they forget that?!), menacing voice (still Grace's gentle voice) and didn't refer to himself as "we" or "us". Alas, it was nice to see him on film... well, whatever few glimpses of him we received.
Moving along, the story is entertaining, the characters are fresh and different and the whole feel of the story is one of progression. There are some obvious deviations in this film, as compared to the first two series. While they are interesting, to say the least, they are too early, too risqué and out of the context of this film. I'm surprised they made the final cut. Nevertheless though, they are pretty funny.
If you can sort out through these deviations and the general lack of Venom, the story in itself is quite interesting. I won't bore you with a rehash of the plot, but will say that it's a nice update in the Spiderman films. The regular cast and crew do an amazing job (better than the first two films) as do the new additions, especially Bryce Dallas Howard. What a FOX (she looks great as a blonde)! **SPOILER** Maybe James Franco can come back in flashbacks as Uncle and William Defoe have. And Brock? Well, I doubt this is the last we've seen of him.
**END SPOILER** I should hope that they don't stop at this one. Forgive the Crew and encourage Marvel/Sony to make another one with Maguire, Dunst, Howard, Aunt May, Conners, Brock, JJ and all the other familiar characters. I leave you with the following quote: "We've all done terrible things to each other, but we have to forgive each other. Or everything we ever were will mean nothing." Incidentally, that quote is not in the film, but is in the trailers. It's good advice though. And considering the choices made in this film and the way the majority of the fan base has responded to the film, I'll say it's good to take MJ's advice. Forgive the cast and crew.