Product: Spider-Man: Triple Feature 3-DVD Set (Spider-Man + Spider-Man 2 + Spider-Man 3) (2007)
Rating: 5.0
As a whole, tipping into the 5 range
I was a minor comic book geek as a kid (Marvel primarily, not DC), and I have to admit, I was fairly pleased when the Raimi-envisioned Spiderman series went into production. The actual comic book was a decent mix of drama, action, and humor, and I was pleased that Sam Raimi did a good job of infusing a lot of those same elements into the movies.I bought the "Spiderman Trilogy Blu-ray" series just a few weeks ago, after having never purchased ANY of the single movies either on DVD or Bluray (which is actually surprising for me as I enjoyed them for the most part), so there has been a fair amount of time between the recent purchase and my last viewing of most of the series. I decided to watch all three again over a week, and I have to admit I was pleasantly surprised. I honestly didn't remember that the whole series was as good as it is. Is it phenomenal? No, but it is a solid, interesting, and entertaining presentation of the Peter Parker / Spiderman story.I'm not one of those nitpicks who lambasts every little detail that's different from the actual comic book. I try to consider the bigger picture, the spirit of intent, so to say, and take the movie production as a whole. For the most part, this trilogy hits the target. Tobey Maguire delivers a nuanced but impacting Peter Parker, and Kirsten Dunst delivers the right balance of emotion and spunk as Mary Jane Watson. The other supporting characters (the Green Goblin, Doc Ock, the Sandman, Venom, Aunt May, etc) deliver with variable impact, but all still carry their weight in the series. The weaker of the three films is number 3 (as most reviewers, myself included, seem to think), but it's still good enough to ably support the series as a whole.Not sure I would give any of the individual movies a solid 5, but the series as a whole is, for me, a definite "4.5 with a roundup to 5" rating.Pluses would be the story and character development, with weighty-enough performances delivered by the various actors in the series (especially the mains) and the well-balanced delivery of light and heavy plot lines. Even when the story gets serious, there's a comical element to the whole delivery.Minuses would be the "everything and the kitchen sink" approach to the third installment. There's really just too many story elements that distract from a central theme to sink your teeth into. It almost works...but not quite.Again, having never watched the entire series in quick succession, I was impressed by how well it held up as a whole. If for some fluky reason, like me, you haven't purchased any of the previous single titles, this is way worth the buying the series a whole. Though I somewhat enjoyed the newer 2012 re-imagining of Spiderman, I admit, this interpretation of the story offers something the newer delivery didn't.