Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Spider-Man 2: 2004, dir. Sam Raimi. Seen at Gateway (July 17).
It’s hard for me to start writing about Spider-Man 2 because I’m not sure what to say. It’s a summer blockbuster. It busted its blocks, or at least a couple of box-office records, quite capably. It was entertaining, occasionally clever and amusing, and didn’t treat the audience with contempt. I had a good time and if Sam Raimi directed a third Spider-Man movie, I’d be there.
Isn’t that enough of a review?

We saw Spider-Man 2 at Gateway because we wanted the big picture and the big sound that this kind of movie really needs. Alamo Village doesn’t quite have the size and the equipment. We paid the price by having to sit through the horrible crap that Regal inflicts on audiences before movies.
And I will say that a big loud sound system has its advantages. Just as the movie itself started, two older women tiptoed into our row and asked us to move down a bit so they could have room to sit. My boyfriend and I moved, they sat next to me, and proceeded to start what I feared would be a distracting and annoying running commentary on the film. Fortunately, the movie was loud enough that I only heard them once or twice during odd moments.
(I rarely have problems with noisy kids in movie theaters. It’s noisy grownups that irritate me.)
Spider-Man 2 was a fun movie. It wasn’t hampered by the necessity for background and setup like the first movie. The story could start right away—partly a standard bad-guy-takes-over plot with Dr. Octopus, partly a story about Peter Parker’s everyday woes, everything in balance.
I admit I probably would not have been anywhere near as interested in either Spider-Man movie if the director had not been Sam Raimi. I’m very fond of Sam Raimi and you know I have three or four copies of Army of Darkness around the house in various formats and various edits. I think his particular directorial style is perfect for these movies. The DeadCam has been successfully replaced with the WebCam (well, what else could I call it).
Plus, if you’re a Sam Raimi fan, you get all these little rewarding moments that don’t detract from non-fan enjoyment of the film, like the bit with the chainsaw in the operating room, and looking for Bruce Campbell, looking for Ted Raimi …
and am I crazy, or does Toby Maguire in his Peter Parker guise look amazingly like Ted Raimi? I mean, even down to the glasses. I think one reason why we don’t see Ted Raimi very much in this film is because the resemblance is downright spooky. Sam Raimi has made Peter Parker look like his little brother. I love it.
I liked seeing Alfred Molina as Dr. Octopus. He’s come along way since Raiders of the Lost Ark (you don’t remember him in Raiders? “Throw me the idol, I throw you the whip!”) but he’s been excellent in many movies I’ve enjoyed, from Prick Up Your Ears to Chocolat.
And I was pleased to see that Kirsten Dunst looks better in this movie than in the last one. Last time her hair color clashed somehow with her skin tone and her complexion looked weirdly red and blotchy as a result. This time, much better. Also, I like it when women in movies don’t just stand there and scream but actively fight their attackers. Thank you. Rosemary Harris is always a pleasure to watch.
(Hey, I was looking up Rosemary Harris in IMDb, and did you know Jennifer Ehle—who played Lizzy in the Pride and Prejudice series with Colin Firth—is her daughter? Cool.)
Anyway, all this digression and babble still boils down to Spider-Man 2 is a fun movie, smarter and funnier and generally more pleasing than your standard summer movie, so you should see if it you haven’t already. And you knew that.