Static Zombie

Spider-Man 2

If you're the kind of person who has his ear to the ground for this type of thing, you've probably been hearing a good bit of positive buzz for Spider-Man 2. Lots of plaudits and praise along the lines of "better than the first one," "best superhero film ever," that sort of thing. Over at Rotten Tomatoes it's got an absurdly high rating of 96%. Big hype, in other words.

For once, it's all true.

This film gets it all right. From the dynamite opening credits featuring Alex Ross artwork recapping the events of the first film, Spider-Man 2 hits the ground running and never misses a step. The CGI in the film is top-notch. Spidey looks more real than ever as he swings through Manhattan, and Doc Ock's tentacles come alive with personality as no inanimate object has since Pixar's Luxo Jr. Alfred Molina's villain is more nuanced than the laughable Green Goblin from the first film, creating a compelling and well-realized foil for Spider-Man.

The script is solid, with great attention paid to the human side of Peter Parker's double life. The character development isn't mere filler-- angst, moral struggle, and working class problems have always been at the core of the Spider-Man comics, and this movie embraces that legacy. As good as the action scenes are-- and they're very, very good, especially Spidey's first encounter with Doc Ock and an extended fight atop a runaway train-- the rest of the film is equally strong.

I especially liked how much time Spider-Man spends without his mask on this time around. The mask is part of the character, but it's hard for Spidey to look like more than a action figure in that getup. Remove the mask, and suddenly he's human. The climax of the train sequence wouldn't have been nearly as effective had Spider-Man been masked, and director Sam Raimi was very wise to rid the character of the mask during key sequences. In fact, a working title for the film at one time was Spider-Man Unmasked, and at times it seems like everyone in New York but Aunt May finds out about Peter Parker's secret identity.

That's another of the film's strengths. The whole secret identity thing builds a lot of tension. When will the supporting characters discover the truth? How will they deal with it when they do? In most superhero films, those questions are left unanswered. This movie addresses them head-on, and in doing so allows the audience to achieve a welcome dose of closure and catharsis. Bravo.

Superhero series haven't fared well past the first sequel (Richard Pryor in Superman III; the many excesses of Batman Forever and Batman & Robin). If the franchise continues to treat its characters with the same level of respect shown in this film-- and if they can keep Joel Schumacher far, far away-- we're in for a real treat with Spider-Man 3.

Posted by Peter at June 30, 2004 03:32 AM