Spider-Man 2 (Widescreen Special Edition)

'Spider-Man 2' continues the story of Peter Parker, a young man that has been gifted, and cursed, by having been bit by a genetically altered spider. The spider bite infected Parker with magnificent powers, and at the same time, made Peter make a difficult choice on how to best use those powers. In the first movie, the audience watched as Peter gained his powers, accepted his responsibility, and made tough choices on how to run his life.In the sequel, Parker, played by Tobey Maguire, still hasn't learned how to make his life as Peter Parker the student, photographer, and nephew coexist with his life as Spider-Man the super hero. While he excels at being Spider-Man, he doesn't do such a good job being Peter. He has fallen behind in paying his rent, has lost contact with his best friend, the millionaire Harry Osborn (who is convinced Spider-Man killed his father), if failing in college despite being exceptionally smart, and has put a relationship with the girl of his dreams, Mary Jane Watson (played by Kirsten Dunst) on hold.To make matters worse, a new super villain has emerged. Much like the Green Goblin from the original 'Spider-Man,' Doctor Octupus gains his abilities through an accident while pursuing an otherwise admirable goal. Doc Ock, played by Alfred Molina, in some respects, is a very sympathetic villain. In addition, Spider-Man finds that his powers are frequently failing him. So, he makes a choice: whether or not to be Spider-Man any longer....This movie is an exceptional story. Like its predecessor, it remains true to the spirit of the comics thanks to the direction of Sam Rami. I did not care for the angle of Spider-Man losing his powers because of self doubt and discomfort with his role in life as it was never an angle explored in the comic, but it was a great plot device to explore the dual life of Peter Parker.Some of the actors were better than others. Personally, I really like Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker. Kirsten Dunst does a fine job acting, but just doesn't strike me as the knock out that Mary Jane was portrayed as in the comics. I'm not sure who I would have replaced her with. Alfred Molina was a truly excellent choice for Dr. Octupus. His performance as the brilliant scientist and loving husband turned eight limbed super villain is first rate. However, perhaps the best performance is that of J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson, the Editor of the Paper that Parker sells pictures of Spider-Man to. The role could not have been cast better and Simons has JJ down to a T.The action scenes were first rate. The battles between Spider-Man and Doc Ock easily eclipsed those between Spider-Man and the Green Goblin. Raimi and the writers of the film developed some truly creative ways for both the hero and the villain to employ their powers. The FX department did a wonderful job bringing the action to life and making Doc Ock move as one would expect.In addition to the plot line of Spider-Man fumbling with his powers, my other gripe is how Spider-Man's identity was handled. Quite a few people seem to know who Spider-Man is now. Parker's alter ego was always a closely guarded secret in the comics, and it just seems to be discarded too carelessly in the films.I highly recommend this film. Spider-Man and comic book fans will enjoy it for its true to spirit adaptation of the comic (although not 100% faithful to the comic book). Next to 'X-Men 2,' it is one of the best translations ever. Action fans are in for a treat as well. Besides the violence, parents don't need to be overly concerned about what their children are seeing as there is no sex and hardly any language. The movie excellently blends action, story, character development, and humor. DVD enthusiats will be thrilled with the generous amount of extras. I highly recommend this film.

My 2 year old has been fascinated with the Toby Maguire Spider Man films. She probably spends most of her time watching the first one, but she finds this equally captivating.Really, this is one of the better super hero films out there. Spider Man is an interesting character because he is usually portrayed as a high school teen or a college age kid. What this means is that he doesn't have all the answers, so it's typical for Spidey to do something stupid like think he should deny himself time with the woman he truly loves.In Spider-Man 2, Spider-Man's denial of his love for Mary-Jane Watson manifests in a loss of powers. The first time I watched this film, I thought that plot device was just a gimmick, but after watching this film more than 100 times (because my 2 year old keeps calling for it), the power loss makes sense. Before Dr. Octavius goes bad, he has a line about how "you can't keep something as complicated as love bottled up inside" and that's clearly what Spidey's power loss is meant to represent.Rosemary Harris has the sequence of dialogue that the screenwriter was probably most happy with, and she does a good job delivering it as Aunt May. She has kind of a Morgan Freeman moment with her "I think there's a hero in all of us" speech, and the scene where she is rescued by Spidey is effective.The best part of this film is the revelation of Spidey's identity to Mary-Jane. This is the culmination of two films of heart-ache in the romance between Peter and Mary, and the release that is felt when Mary-Jane realizes the truth is palpable. Actually, that's one of the better screen moments that I can remember. Poor, foolish, noble Spidey has been trying to protect Mary-Jane...but it's true that something as powerful as love can destroy you if you try to bottle it up.The various action sequences are very good. Rami's camera mimics the acceleration and deceleration of a man swinging on a wire, which is probably the only way to shoot spider-man. This one is superior to the first in all aspects except for the lack of Williem Dafoe (he appears in one scene). A must-watch for all superhero fans.

I'm so glad I finally got this on DVD for my collection.

Parfait

This was a horrible film. Dont waste your time, even though I know you love Spiderman. Hopefully they do a better remake like they did for Batman with this superhero.