Movie Review: Spider-Man 2

Stars: 3 out of 5
Pros: Acting, special effects, action sequences

Cons: Emotional story, climax

The Bottom Line:

A well praised sequel

That I think is overhyped

Good but first better

I Feel Like I'm in the Minority, but I Like the First One Better

It's funny. I'm usually very forgiving of sequels. I love to revisit the same characters, so I overlook some flaws. Spider-Man 2 is one sequel that most people seem to think is better than the original. Personally, I like the first better.

Peter Parker (Tobey McGuire) is having a hard time balancing his priorities. Thanks to his secret identity as Spider-man, he's lost his job, his grades are failing, he's lost his best friend Harry (James Franco), and he lost the girl of his dreams, Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst). While he still sees these friends occasionally, Harry is obsessed by his desire for revenge on Spider-man and Mary Jane has a new boyfriend. Things are even a struggle for his Aunt May (Rosemary Harris), who can't seem to pay her mortgage.

All this is enough to make Peter rethink his superhero ambitions. And, since he seems to be losing his superpowers, maybe he can put everything behind him.

All this couldn't come at a worse time, however. The brilliant Dr. Octavius (Alfred Molina) is conducting a dangerous experiment with fusion. When it goes wrong, he winds up with appendages wired into this nervous system, giving him four extra arms. The arms also begin to control his actions, and the newly named Doc Ock soon becomes a danger to the city. Can Peter pull himself together to save the day?

The problem with this movie is the emotional storyline. Now don't get me wrong, I liked it in the first movie. I thought they played Peter/Spider-man off villain Green Goblin very well. Here, they over did it. The emphasis during the first half of the story is how bad Peter's life is. Okay, we get it. Move on. Especially since we can guess how this part of the story is going to come out. I like giving these larger than life characters some emotion and struggle, but not this much.

Especially since it really slows the story down in the first half. Frankly, we could have used more of Doc Ock. He just doesn't seem like as much of a menace as he could have been.

Now this may sound like I don't like the film at all. That's far from true. While there are fewer action sequences this time around, they are outstanding. Even when I know how they have to end, I am still on the edge of the seat. And the special effects have improved as well. Only once or twice does the CGI look fake. Most of it looks so real I forget I'm supposed to be impressed and instead get lost in the story.

The actors do a great job of keeping it real for us. Tobey McGuire is perfect as Peter Parker. He's the right mix of power and vulnerability to make it work. Kirsten Dunst keeps Mary Jane likable even when she treats Peter poorly. And, once again, J. K. Simmons makes us laugh playing the slimy newspaper owner J. Jonah Jameson.

I do have one final complaint about the film. What was up with the climax? After all the build up, it felt like something from a weaker film. Again, the climax was much better in the first film.

The acting, special effects, and action sequences are still top notch. But the pacing of the plot and the bad climax seriously weaken my enjoyment of Spider-Man 2.