Spider-Man 2

I didn't get to see "Spider-Man 2" in the theaters because I was serving as a missionary in the Philippines at the time of its release. Upon returning home, I enjoyed this sequel. I think the biggest reason why I enjoy the original film a little more is because of its originality. Another reason would be that "Spider-Man 2" lacks a balance between action and drama. I do however like the villain in this film more than the Green Goblin.

This movie's opening credit sequence is quite similar to its predecessor except we have an illustrated montage of first movie. I enjoy connecting elements like that in sequels. In terms of the story, we find Peter Parker a hero to most as Spider-Man, a menace to some and a lazy, undependable kid when he is not Spider-Man. His life is not cake unlike the lives of other superheroes. He can't live two lives. I love how Peter uses the bad guys' car to get to the play. Bruce Campbell, the wrestling announcer from the original movie, plays the usher in this scene. Another funny moment is when Spider-Man has to use the elevator. Due to his soul being torn between being Peter Parker and being Spider-Man, Peter is loosing his powers. He desire to be just Peter Parker stems from his love for Mary Jane. His phone call to Mary Jane is important because we need to know exactly why Peter can't be with Mary Jane. We knew from the end of the first movie that he wants to be responsible for her safety but now we know that Peter is thinking about what happened last time. The Green Goblin almost killed her and Spider-Man's future enemies will try the same thing if they can. As mentioned, I really enjoy the super villain in "Spider-Man 2". Octavius has a lot of similarities to Norman Osborn from the first movie in that they both require redemption. They choose a path of evil because of an obsession and a tragic event. Octavius' experiment fails and his wife dies as a consequence. The scene at the hospital is very well done in terms of editing and the line "Anybody take shop class?" kicks it off so well. This is where director Sam Raimi's experience with horror comes in handy. There are quite a lot of zooms and other decisions in post-production that make the scene memorable. Another great scene is where Octavius goes from being a good man to bad but this time, the screenwriting and acting is the star. The robotic arms of Doctor Octopus are like tempting serpents and they use Octavius' despair to corrupt him in order to save themselves from being sunk in the river. The bank robbing action scene is really cool. I like the line "Here's your change" and that Spider-Man gets to save Aunt May. Stan Lee has his cameo here as he saves someone from being hit with debris. I really love the shot where there is no music, just sound effects.

The shot where Peter throws away his suit is replicated very well from the comics. This contrasts the subsequent musical montage, which is the best one in the whole trilogy. The use of the Oscar-winning song from 1969, "Raindrops Keep Failing on My Head", was perfect. I get a big kick out of the freeze frame at the end. The montage is funny and it makes us happy because Peter is happy. When Mary Jane rejects the old Peter Parker, it becomes hard for Peter to walk away from not helping someone. He remembers his great responsibility to the city because of his great power. Speaking of that, we get a dramatic moment when Peter tells Aunt May the truth about Uncle Ben's death. We think she will never forgive Peter but it ends up being just shock. The scene where Aunt May is moving her stuff offers great resolution. When Harry tells Doc Ock not to hurt Peter, it proves that Harry still is friends with Peter. This is important for the sake of the climax. Peter goes into the burning building because he still can't decide between being just Peter or something more. Without Mary Jane, his desire to be Spider-Man again is a little more appealing. He saves the girl but as Spider-Man, he could have saved everyone in the building. Peter learns from Aunt May that Spider-Man is worth existing for the sake of others. Peter wasn't being responsible when he gave up being Spider-Man and he must give up his dreams. Consequently, Peter rejects Mary Jane at the cafe because now he wants to be Spider-Man and must once again give her up. Mary Jane is now more confused than ever and must kiss Peter in order to know something. We might think that she wants to know if he is Spider-Man but I think that she wants to know exactly how Peter really feels about her. The set up to the climatic battle against Doctor Octopus is really cool. I love when Peter steals his suit back from Jameson. There is some great acting from J. K. Simmons here and I also love the musical build up. Then Spider-Man bursts through the newspaper and we are all ready to see Spider-Man take on Doc Ock. I love the moment when the people on the train stand up to Doc Ock but just like on the first film, it could have been handled better. It would have been better if just the first guy spoke to Doc Ock instead of three people on the train. I think a big reason why I like Doctor Octopus better than the Green Goblin is that Spider-Man redeems Ock and he dies a hero. Octavius sacrifices himself to drown the reactor and ends up at the bottom of the river like he wanted in the first place. He made a mistake and does the responsible thing this time by taking control of the robotic arms. When Mary Jane finds out who Peter is, it all makes perfect sense in her mind. She is no longer confused. Harry's obsession to kill Spider-Man becomes just as strong as his father's obsession to his work. There is a camera tilt when this happens during the diminuendo. Then Harry discovers that his father was the Green Goblin and Harry obsession over Spider-Man is what drives him to follow his father's path. There is obviously going to be a third film. As a final note (no pun intended), I enjoy the orchestration of the wedding march as Mary Jane runs in the park in her wedding dress.

I like the final script because earlier versions sounded really foolish such as a love triangle between Ock, Mary Jane and Peter. I had seen Alfred Molina in "Maverick" before this movie but "Spider-Man 2" was the first time I took note of him as an actor. He did so well. Future Oscar nominee James Franco didn't do as well as on the first movie but that is not his fault. The character of Harry in this movie seemed too young to be running a company like Oscorp. In his obsession/anger scenes, he resembled a weak boy instead of a man but maybe that was on purpose. Rosemary Harris did a great job as on the first movie and I really loved her scene when Aunt May gives twenty dollars to Peter. I also liked the performance of Donna Murphy who would later be in "Tangled" as well as that of Elya Baskin from "Air Force One". "Spider-Man 2" was another smash hit. It broke quite a few box office records. It won the Oscar for Best Visual Effects and was nominated for both sound awards. The special effects still look amazing today, especially the shots were Doc Ock is competely CGI. The story has similarities to "Superman II" and that aspect seemed more dominant than the action. The first film had a better balance between fun and drama.

4 Stars