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Spider-Man 2 Reviewed [updated]

Posted by timothy on from the bonch-abalone-is-right dept.

Update: 06/30 15:42 GMT by T : This article has been pulled; the Spider-Man 2 review which appeared here was reposted without credit or permission from chud. (Read it in its original context.) We welcome original feature-length articles, but not plagiarism.

13 of 443 comments (clear)

  1. Kirsten in Spider-Man by SIGALRM · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Spider-Man 2 seems like the next step in the slow death of the career of Kirsten Dunst

    OK, she's not Meryl Streep, but she doesn't have to be; Kirsten has tremendous sex appeal--which more than compensates for her somewhat mediocre performance in Spider-Man.

    Besides, I thought she was intense and believable in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

    --
    Sigs cause cancer.
    1. Re:Kirsten in Spider-Man by rudeboy1 · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Yeah. I'm not a big fan of Dunst either. I'll tell you what though, as far as GOOD actresses with sex apeal goes, this makes me wonder what Claire Forlani would look like with red hair... Rawr! She'd be an amazing Mary Jane! She plays off this sort of humble, quietly stunning character so well in some of her movies. I was watching the director's comments for Mallrats a while ago, and they were showing some of the outtakes where she let her outrageous British accent bleed through. I didn't even know she was British! Since then, I'll hear it every once in a while in her lines. Kind of like the droopy eye thing, I guess. You don't notice it till it's pointed out, then you can't avoid it. Still, I would KILL to see her as Mary Jane.

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  2. Re:Raimi and CGI by ConceptJunkie · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I'll go one step further... this is not a trade-off, it's exactly the right way to make a comic book movie. Back in the early sixties, characters with depth and humanity is what created the Silver Age of comic books and Spider-Man was at the front of the pack. "Spider-man 2" sounds like the anti-"Spawn", a movie about someone you care about with some good action on the side.

    While I thought "Superman 2" was the best superhero movie ever until the latest generation of superhero movies started coming out (ironically, all based on Marvel characters), the level of special effects has advanced to the point where the action can match the action of the comics, and when combined with thorough and good character development, will make some my favorite movies ever.

    When the special effects help create an immersive reality (hello, Peter Jackson) without overwhelming the story or actors (George Lucas, call your office) then you have the best combination.

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    You are in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike.
  3. Forget the game by zakezuke · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I didn't really find the game all that exciting... It takes about 4hours to complete or so and it seemed to have alot of training wheels. For example web slinging is dependent on specific web spots clearly marked throughout the city, and you get a popup when you fight an arch foe showing you what moves you need to do to defeat 'em. Also your web fluid is unlimited, and your number of lives is unlimited. Dispite being geared tward the inexperenced gammer, I did find the Mysterio sequence to be the best, where you must navigate New York in the clouds broken up into levitating islands. All and all as far as theme games go it was acceptable, almost worth the $15.00 it's presently being sold for.

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  4. Re:Seen it, liked it, but # 3 doesn't look good th by Osty · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I cant remember 100% my storyline progression but doesnt Harry become the Hobgoblin instead?

    I don't remember the exact progression (which came first, GG or HG?), but I do know that Harry takes up the mantle of the Green Goblin. The Hobgoblin was someone else (Googled for it). I thought there were only three Green Goblins (though I couldn't remember other than Norman and Harry). It looks like there were four of them. There were also four different Hobgoblins. Apparently villains in the Spider-Man mythos like to recycle old ideas (see the page above, there are several different iterations of a number of villains).

  5. A differering opinion regarding Kirsten Dunst by nobodyman · · Score: 5, Interesting
    From Ebert, no less. To wit:
    Dunst is valuable, too, bringing depth and heart to a girlfriend role that in lesser movies would be conventional. When she kisses her astronaut boyfriend upside-down, it's one of those perfect moments that rewards fans of the whole saga; we don't need to be told she's remembering her only kiss from Spider-Man.

    True, she's been a lot of mediocre teen-movie fare, but to claim that she hasn't had a better performance since Interview with a Vampire indicates to me reviewer hasn't seen Drop Dead Gorgeous.
  6. Re:Raimi and CGI by mblase · · Score: 5, Interesting

    While I thought "Superman 2" was the best superhero movie ever until the latest generation of superhero movies started coming out (ironically, all based on Marvel characters)

    It's not ironic; Warner Bros. (owner of DC Comics) has all but dropped out of the comic-book-movie business since the fourth "Batman" film, and if that was the best they could pull together I'm glad for it. On the other hand, Marvel doesn't have a big media company like WB owning it, so they're making up for the lack of comic book sales since the mid-90s by selling movie scripts (or, to look at it another way, cross-promoting their comic books to increase sales).

    Now, Marvel knew going into the game that comic book movies have a terrible track record, so they spent a lot of time and effort getting good scripts and directors for the first X-Men and Spider-Man films, and it paid off. Hulk was a good film, IMO, although not a lot of people loved it. Punisher I never saw. Daredevil I did see, and I frankly regret it. That last movie alone proves that just because Marvel's spending a lot of effort on these films doesn't always mean they're succeeding.

    I think Marvel's known all along exactly what you've stated: that good, believable, three-dimensional characters are what brings people back again and again. (Okay, so they probably forgot it for a while back in the 90s, but they're trying.) I'm as glad as you are that they've pushed hard to keep that aspect of their stories in the recent crop of films.

  7. The Importance of Being Earnest by aethera · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I don't know if the movie touches on the significance of MJ being in this play. It's one of Oscar Wilde's famous comedies, and it's all about the dangers of living a double life.
    The short of it; a young country gent(Algernon) goes to city to flirt around and cause trouble, but when in the city goes by the name of Ernest so that no rumours of his city life make it back to his home in the country. One of Algernon's city friends, Jack, travels to the country to dally with Algernon's young ward, and he also uses the name Ernest. Combined with some witty dialogue, a good does of sarcasm, and some smacks at the upperclass, its probably one of Wilde's best works. And Oscar Wilde, along with GB Shaw should probably be up there with Shakespeare among England's finest playwrights.
    Summary here
    Full text here

  8. Re:Seen it, liked it, but # 3 doesn't look good th by Artifakt · · Score: 4, Interesting

    If it follows the usual pattern for superhero flicks, Spiderman 3 will have several villains and not just the 2nd Green Goblin. Remember how many bad guys show up in Batman and Robin or Batman Forever? Let's see, we have the Rhino, Sandman, Mysterio and Electro from the early Spiderman comics, or Venom the living spidy suit from the later years. Or maybe Spiderman 3 will also be X-men 3.
    Earrghh! I thought I'd outgrown this stuff 20 years ago. Why do I even remember the names of a bunch of Spiderman villians?

    --
    Who is John Cabal?
  9. In my experience, pretty good actress by Goonie · · Score: 5, Interesting
    I'd have to say that as well as being cute, she has been a convincing performer in a number of films playing different types of characters:
    • The Virgin Suicides: hard to judge, given her main job was to sit there and look stunningly beautiful in a just-post-Lolita kind of way.
    • Drop Dead Gorgeous: She played an ambitious small-town goody-two-shoes teen for comedy; was pretty effective in perhaps not the most challenging role.
    • Dick: playing a very dumb blonde teenager in a slightly more exaggerated manner; also very believable.
    • The Cat's Meow: playing comic actress (and mistress of Randolph Hearst) Marion Davies on a cruise where their relationship came under strain, slightly miscast (she was too young) but did a fair job in a role that required a fair range.
    • Spiderman: serviceable in a wallpaper role.
    • Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind: meaty supporting role of a naive secretary; makes a major plot twist look convincing. Good work.

    So, overall, in the things I've seen her in she's been a pretty good performer. I certainly can't recall a performance where she's been a shocker.

    In any case, bad directing can make even the best actor look bad. Natalie Portman, besides being achingly beautiful, is a fine actor, and let's consider just how wooden a performance she gave in Attack of the Clones. It'll be interesting 20 years from now to interview her about working with Lucas; I think she might be less than complimentary.

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    Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from a rigged demo
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  10. Just saw the movie, question for the by Pfhor · · Score: 2, Interesting

    fellow Spiderman fans.

    Did anyone else catch Jameson's son doing that huge leap to get to MJ near the end?

    I am convinced its a nod to showing him having the symbiot in him (from the cartoon, not the comic books) where I believe he contracted it while in space.

    Anyway, I think for a sequel (or triquel?) now that we have:
    A) love interest issues resolved (no more harping over MJ)
    B) identity issue resolved

    We need something to spice it up some more. We obviously have the green goblin 2 coming in the next one, but what about Venom? Any thoughts on this? (i may have the names mixed up, it's been a while since i've read the comics / cartoons).

  11. My favorite character is ... by JoshMKiV · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Stan Lee (As) Man Dodging Debris.

    I'm glad he made it into the film again.

  12. Re:Raimi and CGI by ConceptJunkie · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Marvel's success probably has something to do with Stan the Man running things and him making sure that the movies remain true to the books. After all, most of those classics were created by him in the first place.

    I'd love to see a movie homage to Jack Kirby... a character with no fingernails. ;-)

    --
    You are in a maze of twisty little passages, all alike.