FILM: Spider-Man 3

FILM COMPANY: Laura Ziskin

Productions, Marvel Studios, Renaissance Pictures

DIRECTOR: Sam Raimi

PRINCIPAL ACTORS: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Thomas Haden Church, Topher Grace, James Franco

DATE OF RELEASE: May 4^th 2007

GENRE: Action/Adventure

FILM LENGTH: 2 hr. 20 minutes

RATING: PG-13

WEBSITE: http://spiderman3.sonypictures.com/

3 stars/5 stars

REVIEWED BY: Emily Axelson

Going in a very different direction than the other Spider-Man movies, some people would enjoy this film, others wouldn’t. Personally, I preferred a change in the storyline instead of the repetitiveness that occurred in the other movies. However, it still keeps its spark and manages to surprise as well as entertain. In some ways it measures up to the two previous films, in other ways it doesn’t; for instance, not only is it action packed, it also has some feeling to it. The characters go through real psychological problems, instead of mindless continuous fighting. I liked that there was emotion as well as action, but the creators may have gone a bit overboard.

Life’s good for Peter Parker (Maguire); working his way to the top of his local paper as a photographer by day, and as the secret super hero Spider-Man by night - Peter seems to have it all. He has a beautiful girlfriend Mary Jane (Dunst), and he’s about to ask her to marry him. Just when everything seems to be going great for Peter; things end up going terribly wrong. Mary Jane is having some personal issues, and he doesn’t feel the timing is right for the proposal. His long time friend Harry Osborn (Franco) is enraged after discovering that Peter (Spider-Man) was responsible for his father’s death (Spider-Man 1). Harry seeks revenge, creating YET another conflict for Peter to overcome. This is a Spider-Man film after all, so the villain “The Sandman” (Church) takes over the town, and Spidey is the town’s only hope. With Peter having to deal with all these difficulties, things begin to fall apart. It seems that Spider-Man isn’t the perfect and unbreakable hero like everyone thought.

When you compare it to the two other movies, the third installment is almost there, but not quite. If you don’t compare it and just see it as a movie, it’s decent, but not phenomenal. I admire Raimi for trying to go in a different direction for his third installment directing, but it felt overdone a bit. To me, it felt very sappy - everyone cries! Yes, people have feelings but it was over the top. I have to admit, this movie has something for everyone; the non-stop action, romance, drama, and some comedy make it a movie that everyone would enjoy at least in portions. It was interesting to see something new and fresh happen opposed to the continuous fighting and action of the two last films. If Spider-Man 3 wasn’t quite as long, I would have enjoyed it much more. But what really sets this film apart from the other two is that at one time or another, every character has a little villain in them and at other times a little hero. It was interesting to find out in the end who were the real heroes and who were the real villains. If you liked the previous Spidey movies, I recommend this. If you didn’t, I still recommend it; It’s the same yet different, and definitely worth a rent. You’ll have to make up your own mind about this one.