Best comic book movie ever

Rating: 10/10 (25 February 2020)

This installment of the Tobey Maguire Spider-Man movies pulls out all the stops. The original cast returns where they left off, with Peter Parker in a happy relationship with Mary-Jane, and for his grand finale, he has to battle not one, not two, but three comic book villains! Audiences waited patiently during the first two movies for the most popular Spider-Man bad guy to show up: Eddie Brock and his alter-ego Venom finally join the big screen. In addition to Venom, Gwen Stacey, Sandman, and the New Goblin make appearances as well.
Thomas Haden Church guest stars and will tug on your heart strings even though he's one of the bad guys. My brother had never seen him in a movie before, and he thought the studio had made an entirely digital character. He really does look like he was peeled off the comic book pages and digitally enhanced to look like a 3-D human actor. It's a fine line to walk when you're trying to personify a comic villain with a sad backstory, and Thomas nails it. You'll be reaching for your Kleenexes and marveling at how Sony Pictures created a digital actor with such lifelike expressions. Just kidding. But if you're expecting the most impressive digital effects of all three movies, you won't be disappointed. Thomas's character literally disintegrates into grains of sand in nearly every scene! How do they do that? How do they get the slimy symbiote to crawl in and infect Topher Grace? The special effects in Spider-Man 3 are truly incredible.
This one is the best of the three, and since everyone knows origin stories are usually the best, this one's got to be fantastic to wear the crown. Every plot point moves quickly, and you'll feel as harried and exhausted as Peter Parker by the time it's all over. Topher Grace, who plays Eddie Brock, is given a slightly different backstory than the comic books, but it makes so much sense, it won't bother even the biggest fans. He's a rival photographer at the same newspaper, headed by the hilarious J.K. Simmons, and when he loses his job, his girl, and his respect, he vows to get even. The evil in his heart is quickly joined by Venom, and the rest is history.
Those of you who miss Willem Dafoe and believe all other villains to be inferior will be happy that he still makes appearances in later movies through mirrors and memories. Before his son, James Franco, can avenge him, he gets a pretty bad bump on the head and forgets everything. Kirsten Dunst wants to help her old friend, and as she's nursing him back to health, they grow closer. This is the movie and the moment you've been waiting for, folks: the omelet scene. How cute are they? It's such a cute scene, and in a full, entertaining movie with action scenes galore, songs and dances, and everyone's favorite villain dominating the screen, the omelet scene might be my favorite. The "I'm the other guy" diner scene is close second.
With all the drama included in this movie, there has to be quite a bit of comic relief to counteract it and make audiences feel better. Thankfully, there are tons of jokes to keep you laughing. Kirsten Dunst tries her hand at a Broadway musical, but bad reviews write up that her voice can't be heard past the first row. Tobey defends her, insisting he heard her perfectly. "You were in the first row!" she sighs. There's a proposal looming over their heads, as Tobey borrows his aunt's ring and tries to plan a perfect evening, but it ends in comic disaster. So rest assured, even though this one has some very sad moments-what's a conclusion without some tears?-you'll have plenty of laughs to cushion the blow.
Everyone gets his day in the sun in this movie, so no matter who your favorite character is, he or she will get a gem or two as they close out the franchise. If you love Tobey Maguire, he gets to break out of his shell and find out how much fun it is to be the bad guy for a change. If you love Kirsten Dunst, your heart will break for her as she tries to sort out her relationship troubles with her very complicated boyfriend. Rosemary Harris fans will appreciate her wise wisdom, and J.K. Simmons fans will appreciate his secretary Elizabeth Banks's efforts to calm him down. If you like James Franco, you'll fall in love with him all over again in this one; if your tastes run more rugged, you'll root for Thomas Haden Church to get a second chance. You'll even feel sorry for Topher Grace as he's utterly humiliated, and you won't hold any grudges against sweet Bryce Dallas Howard, who innocently causes trouble.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. When Spiderman flies, there are some swift camera movements that will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"