The rumors are true - Spidey 3 is the best of the lot!

Rating: 9/10 (26 April 2007)

By now you've all probably heard the rumors about the quality of Sam Raimi's latest addition to the pantheon of big-screen adaptations for comic book classics (aka Spider-Man 3). If not, let me give it to you straight and simple: they are all true.
Spider-Man 3 is the best film of the Spider-Man trilogy to date. In fact, it's bigger and better than its predecessors on so many levels; I don't even know where to begin. It's in this third installment of the series that the director allows the now matured and established characters to fully realize themselves. By doing so, Spider-Man 3 becomes a plot-driven piece of film, alongside being your lovable big-budget summer uber-buster as well. It is this cinematic achievement that'll make future audiences admire this film long after its initial box-office impact will worn off. And trust me; this will be an enormous hit from a mile if I've ever seen one (note that this review is typed on Thursday, April 26th, 8 days before Spider-Man 3's US premier, after I had the pleasure of attending a special press screening in Ramat-Gan, Israel).
The thing is, I've never been a big fan of the first Spider-Man. The second one was much better, in my opinion, but only after seeing it I realized how much the original was required in order to establish the three main characters - Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire), Mare Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst) and Harry Osborn (James Franco). This time around, this impossible love triangle finally dukes it out, as other character building devices, such as Osborn's oath to avenge his father's death, Parker's long yearning for MJ and his deterrence in finding anyone linked to his Uncle's death in part 1 - all reach a staggering crescendo, with some extremely dramatic consequences. On top of this all, Parker also has two brand new enemies to fight off - one of them being the alien form commonly referred to as Venom (Topher Grace in a nice change of style from his usual shenanigans) and the other being a small time escape con who by chance enters a scientific facility and is transformed into the Sandman (the always wonderful Thomas Hayden Church).
At the end, it all comes down to a battle between good and evil, with messages of redemption and remorse playing a crucial role in the way the plot unfolds. The digital effects are at the top of their game as well, and entertain at the purest level of awesomeness (sorry, couldn't find a more subtle word). At some point, I remember telling my girlfriend what a great time I'm having - something I don't remember saying at the theater for some time now. Also, I am very glad the writers tried to close as much arcs as they could, making the trilogy as a whole smarter and more satisfying.
As expected, Spidey 3 is not without its flaws, with many dialogs being somewhat cheesy and mostly clichéd (although it is a comic book adaptation, so don't expect Shakespeare), and a lot of the religious/patriotic themes were a little too much to bear. However, this all doesn't really matter that much when you're watching a film like Spider-Man 3. The main idea here is to sit back and enjoy, and hope Summer 2007 can maintain this level of quality throughout its upcoming blockbusters.