The Latest On SPIDER-MAN

Folks, I've been doing a lot of phoning about SPIDER-MAN... And it seems that the rumors are going to end up being true. It looks very much like Mr Casablanca's gossip throwaway about Chris O'Donnell running through the halls at Sony screaming that he was Spider-Man... well... That would be a true one. Count on Chris O'Donnell being Spider-Man... Also... Count on Sonnenfeld directing. Also... count on the mad scientist angle, but it seems set to be Doc Ock... and the word is currently.... that Sony is going to offer more money than God has to get Arnold Schwarzeneggar to play him, thus reuniting Chris and Arnold for the first time since BATMAN & ROBIN.

I've had a decidedly negative tone about this whole SPIDER-MAN movie information as of late. I have read that some feel it's some sort of vendetta from Sonnenfeld's press decree against folks like me. Quite frankly, Barry can bellyache all he wants... My critics in Talk Back are far more vicious and vocal.

The reasons I am not a Sonnenfeld fan go back long before WILD WILD WEST... I'm not a fan of MEN IN BLACK... And for me, once you get past Scott Frank's script for GET SHORTY... I found the film soulless. The only film of his as director that I like is ADDAMS FAMILY and the Wednesday segments in ADDAMS FAMILY VALUES.

You see... Sonnenfeld's films just feel emotionally empty for me. And a film where ya cast someone like Chris O'Donnell as Peter Parker... when you could be going with a Wes Bentley, Ed Norton... hell one could even make Leo really really dorky looking with a crew cut and bad glasses... turning him into Puny Parker without too much work. Chris O'Donnell is closer to the guys that were always hanging out with Flash Thompson. How good he looks with his shirt off is unimportant because... frankly... The guy in the Spidey costume can be either Ray Park or Jet Li or a host of Woo-Ping Yuen's trained stuntmen from Hong Kong... Of course Chris O'Donnell is an actor... he's even been a good one in the past. But frankly... Ya see... this is a story about a guy with amazing abilities that comes home every night to see his ancient widowed aunt staring at photos of Ben... And it tears at him. He's racked by guilt, the costume, the web-slinging... it's an escape... He puts on that mask and becomes Don Juan Demarco... he's no longer Peter Parker... He's the amazing Spider-Man. That's what I want.

Also... this stuff about Arnold and Dr Octopus... Sony... fans dealt with this years ago. Folks didn't want to see Arnold in this role... He's much better as Sandman or Venom... However.... Anthony Hopkins would be fantastic, in my opinion. Or... Lance Henriksen. If BATMAN AND ROBIN taught us anything, it was that going waaaay over the top was... Baaaad... Arnold is simply not right for this. The idea of Arnold with four metal tentacles coming out from his waist is just... not good.

If you go with Sonnenfeld... well... best of luck. His action scenes are often times muddled and uninvolving. His character moments... weak. He makes great trailers though. He's the sort of director that gets ya a $55-60 million opening weekend with a 45% to 65% dropoff your second week. This movie done right... Buries the grosses for SUPERMAN and BATMAN. Not because the character is intrinsically better... He's simply... Dashing... Adventurous... appealling to the waaaay young and the older age groups as well. He's not so invincible that you cease to care for him, yet he's able to do more than mortal man... He's a kid... struggling to pay the bills... He's beaten down at work. Gets turned down for dates. HE'S REAL. It's what defined the 'MARVEL AGE'.

I've been wanting to see this movie since Cannon took out that 2 page ad in Variety way back in the mid-eighties. Before that I watched SPIDER-MAN AND HIS AMAZING FRIENDS.... before that it was "he's got radioactive blood..." and the comics. When I got my sister her first bicycle.. it was a Spiderman bike. I had the magnetic grip Spidey toy... I thought ELECTRIC COMPANY was the coolest because Spider-Man was just... awesome there.

From a kid that has easily spent over $3000 on Spiderman toys over the years, and well more than that on the comics... I'm just asking that for once in Hollywood's life... READ THE COMIC... If while reading it you feel like you need to... PUNCH IT UP A BIT TO MAKE IT COOLER.... then leave the project now. You don't get it. Begin with AMAZING FANTASY 15... and read the entire comic. This movie could be the biggest cash cow Sony has ever seen... Make all the money... I want to buy tickets to see this movie 40 times.... I want to line up a week ahead of time. But ya have to make the best movie possible... not the quickest.