Greg's Review: Spider-Man 3 is a must-see!!!
Saw "Spider-Man 3" at an early screening in Westwood last night and had a blast! Invited my pal Evan, who went to the "Spider-Man 2" premiere with me three years ago. We managed to seat ourselves in the middle of an assortment of odd people. One guy kept handing his business card out and introducing himself to people like some kind of used car salesman; nearby, two twin brothers were speaking a strange language to each other that I think they made up, and as is usually the case for me in a non-stadium theater, the dude sitting in the seat in front of me had a head the size of Jupiter! OK, I'm exaggerating a bit: let's make it Montana. As if that wasn't wacko enough, Evan gets goofy and starts tossing popcorn at me whenever he says something he thinks is funny. I do what any mature man who was raised right would do: I start tossing popcorn back!
We dissolve in laughter.
Then the movie starts. I position myself in such a way where Montana-head does not block much of my view and from the start, we are in for one helluva time with Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) facing off against Sandman and Venom plus his old friend Harry all while trying to propose to Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) and deal with this suit turning black when a strange black substance attaches itself to it...
Spider-Man's battle scenes with Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), Venom (Topher Grace) and Harry (James Franco) in this movie are jaw-droppingly spectacular and you will have a great time watching them. And when Spidey's suit turns black and increases his power, it's even more exhilarating.
So you have all this great action with Spidey saving lives and fighting off the bad guys but it is also mixed in with the film's heart and humor which is the key to the phenomenal success of the "Spider-Man" franchise.
Rosemary Harris as Aunt May is a welcome presence and this gifted actress shares some tender scenes with Peter - the kind of scenes I prefer her in rather than have her placed on the window ledge of a skyscraper as in "Spider-Man 2."
Maguire is still sweet as the guy who loves Mary Jane but is getting a bit of a big head as Spider-Man's fame grows. But when the suit turns black and Spidey's dark side emerges, this is where Maguire really gets to shine both as Peter and his superhero alter-ego. Peter turns into a cocky jerk and Maguire is hilarious in these scenes from the new way he combs his hair to the walk. Loved it! The film's comic scenes are also elevated by the casting of Topher Grace as rival photographer Eddie Brock who turns into..Venom!
It's a lot packed into one movie which means it never drags. I guarantee you will have a terrific time watching "Spider-Man 3."
Just be careful where you sit!
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in Hollywood
Greg Hernandez, Page 2 "News Lite" columnist for the Los Angeles Daily News, gives you a fly-on-the-wall account of the Oscars and other awards show, movie premieres, film festivals and various star-studded events. He also shares his celebrity interviews as well as specially-selected videos and photos. He writes about all things pop culture through a gay man's eyes ...
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There are two possible sensations after you see the movie:
a) If you go to the movie as a movie and comic book lover, you will enjoy it.
b) If you go to the movie as a Venom’s fan (even is possible that Venom’s fans are much more than Spidy ones), you will be severely disappointed. Why?
• Venom is just seen in the very last 30 minutes of the movie
• Raimi Venom is nothing compared with the look of the Venom in comics. One or two scenes worth it nothing else.
• Venom has a very unworthy ending.
We knew Sam Raimi didn’t want to include Venom in his very own movie, but his revenge against Avi Arad for the imposition, became the most important Spiderman’s foe into a second hand villain.
Great review. I agree with you that Rosemary Harris is a gifted actress. One nitpick, it bothered me the the she was totally out of focus in the background during her soliloquy. There was no expense spared on cinematography, with lots of expensive "hero" orbital camera moves. But there was Tobey Macguire in the foreground in close-up, with Rosemary Harris delivering her lines as a fuzzy blob in the background. Shouldn't an actor always be in focus when speaking?