Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is back slinging webs across skyscrapers while fighting off New York City's crime. The much-anticipated "Spider-Man 3" kicks off the beginning of the summer blockbuster season, giving audiences worldwide the very best of what Hollywood has to offer these days. Sam Raimi's stylish direction, well-written drama and respect for the original Marvel comic books combine for another wildly entertaining trip to the movies.
Peter Parker's (Tobey Maguire) troubled life has settled down a bit since he's learned to deal with the overwhelming responsibilities of his superpowers. His relationship with Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) has blossomed into true love, his grades at school are excellent and the whole city has finally embraced him as a hero. However, tension quickly rises with his best friend Harry Osborn (James Franco), who vows to avenge his father's death and kill Spider-Man.
Unlike the first two installments in the series, Spidey now faces not one, but three villains - the new Green Goblin (Harry), Sandman and Venom. After escaping from prison, Flint Marko (Thomas Haden Church) is on the run from the police and accidentally falls into a physics test site, where his body transforms into fluid sand molecules. Meanwhile, a strange black substance from outer space finds its way into Peter Parker's hands and attaches itself to him, giving him a powerful but dark force. Eventually, it latches itself onto Eddie Brock (Topher Grace), a cocky photographer at the Daily Bugle, turning him into Venom. Once again, Spider-Man struggles to save the day while the new army of foes wreaks havoc.
"Spider-Man 3" delivers lots of action and dramatic storytelling, though the plot can seem convoluted at times. The loaded script stands in the way of Sandman and Venom's character development, but doesn't prevent the movie from bringing new depth to the main story. Spider-Man's internal conflicts remain the central focus of the film, along with his romance with Mary Jane and friendship with Harry.
The black alien suit brings out the evil that lurks deep in Peter Parker's heart. Not only does he start looking more and more like an emo kid (which is evil enough), he also grows increasingly violent and arrogant. He shows no mercy against his enemies, flirts with women in front of Mary Jane and breaks into fits of anger around his friends. Maguire's performance succeeds at mixing the superhero's cocky attitude with his nerdy and innocent characteristics.
The exhilarating action scenes on the tops of giant buildings are visually impressive thanks to the fast-paced cinematography and fantastic CGI. Only certain scenes featuring the Sandman rely too much on green-screen technology. The film as a whole might have been better had the entire Flint Marko subplot been cut out of the screenplay. His role feels somewhat unnecessary, as it never really connects with the recurrent themes.
The film's denouement wraps up the loose ends set up in the previous movie, playing out a final conclusion to the story (or is it?). The drama is neatly tied together at the end, though it feels extremely cheesy at times. There are several scenes where Spider-Man acts more like a crybaby than a courageous superhero. The sense of closure in the movie is an indication that Sam Raimi, Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst will probably move on to different projects after "Spider-Man 3." The continuation of the franchise, which is almost guaranteed given the box-office success of the series, will most likely fall into the hands of new direction. However, if he decides not to return, it will be difficult for any filmmaker to match the quality of Raimi's adaptation of the Spider-Man saga.
"Spider-Man 3" does not live up to the brilliance of the first and second, but it does offer some good thrills and crafty screenwriting. The film should please anyone with a soft spot for Spidey, even with all of its flaws.
