Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
Excellent work by David Poland and Home Theater Forum these last few days. Now we've got a spy of our own to weigh in on how Sam Raimi has done with SPIDER-MAN, the first big shot of the summer. I'm deliriously in love with the imagery I've seen, and the people I've talked to personally who have seen it sound like they liked it a lot. Let's hope that's true, and let's see what Project Rage has to say about it...
SPIDERMAN review with spoilers
I am Project Rage
This film has it's faults, but delivers on the love from a director to his actors, and his love of the pages of Comic ink.
It sounds lubby-dubby of me to say that, or absolutely crazy. I fell in love with the work of a director named Sam Raimi many years ago during Army of Darkness. Like many of you, I was proud to discover that his not perfect films of CrimeWave to Darkman were crackerjack jewels to me. But this is not an action movie, yes there is action but it didn't deliver on that. What is delivers on is the love of the character. In the first Superman film, there is the first half with Clark on the farm and him racing the train in Smallsville. If you're the sentimental freak like me then this quality of quaintness is what will deliver.
RANT
Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is a high school nerd that falls in love with literally the girl next door Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst), but gets bitten by a genetically engineered spider and turns into Spiderman, while living and growing through Spidey-puberty he learns life and justice through the death of his father figure Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson), he fights crime and works as photographer at the Daily Bugle, while his friend Harry Osborne (James Franco) loves Mary Jane while Harry's farther a millionaire/professor Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe) injects himself with some green goo and gas and his split/personality becomes the evil Green Goblin who destroys competing Govt. contract work and any businessman that gets in his way, but he likes Spidey, finds out who he really is and does a showdown on a bridge in New York, Goby dies, Spidey loves the girl, "Little Osborn wants to revenge his father's death, opening up for an uber-cool-sequel. Yep, that was one sentence.
RAVE
The Marvel logo opens the film with flipped pages, and for the rest of the time you can see that the director is in love with the comics, ever since he was a little dude. Raimi has always loved his actors, but it hasn't hit me till now. This film is not an actor's film; if you want that, go see Godsford (I'm the director-shoot-the-movie-and-I'll-take-a-shat) Park. But it's more like how John Ford, geeked over his actors. It's very hard to describe. OK this is not young Dutch-angled Sam Raimi, or super-mature last three films Sam Raimi. It's new Raimi using what he's newly learned and developing his style. Tobey Maguire is great and he polishes his Tobey-trapped-in-headlights-smile that works for him. What is great is internally, is that Spidey has more to him than; I have to say Batman or Superman. Willem Dafoe is subtle and over the top great. His look at Mary Jane at Thanksgiving is golden. James Franco is just O.K. but doesn't get in the way, while the newspaper editor AKA Law&Order headshrinker (J.K. Simmons) is over the top in a hilarious way. Kirsten Dunst is great in the acting department too, way better than last summers Crazy Beautiful. Thank you Kirsten for the alley scene!
Spidey shoots web from his wrist, not mechanical. The swinging scenes were great, but C.G. really noticeable bad when Goblin is leaping on his skiff, doesn't match well. Bruce Campbell's, Brother Raimi's, and Stan Lee's cameo were great. Uncle Ben's scene of death was very well done, and Parkers growth with being Spidey is truly what makes the film for me. I was uncomfortable with the Times Square scene and you could feel some parallel with what's happening in N.Y. Also I don't remember seeing any Twin Towers, but there is a scene with a rescue worker talking about spidey with what I believe is the rubble. Thank you Kirsten again for the alley scene!
Visual: 1:85:1
Audio: SDDS 8 channel
RAGE
The action and cgi were the week point of this film. Maybe if the lighting approach wasn't so lit, it could have covered up the apparent mistakes. If you want action go see Shaolin Soccer. I enjoyed the film more than Superman but fails in certain areas compared to Batman. Especially the Times Square scene. Macy Grey? What the f*$k! And also Mary Jane is about to fall for what feels like hours. My major beef is with Elfman. I am a HUGE FAN of Danny Elfman, but there is no major theme in this movie. You can kind of hear something, but it's like a dog hiding behind a tree. Come here main theme, come here! When you heard Batman you heard his theme, Superman = theme. X-men ……no theme (M.K you bastard!!!). Elfman you're the best, come on back and play. Plllllllllllllllleeeeeeeeeaaaaaassssssseeeeee. And my ultimate beef is the suits, the join the dark side scene after spidey gets captured, I want to take an Otis axe to it. That scene looked like bad Mighty Morphin Power Rangers action. You can barely see their jaws move, but you're so tempted to add bad Japanese dialogue over it. My favorite comic film is still Unbreakable.
Go see the movie, bring the annoying little nose-miners, have a fun time, but on the popcorn film scale it's low. But go see the webslinger!
I am Project Rage
Yikes. Both good and bad in there. All I know is, I can't wait for May 3 so I can lay eyes on it myself.
See all of you there.
"Moriarty" out.
