With one phrase, a hero is born: "With great power comes great responsibility." After smashing records and legitimizing comic-based movies, Spider-Man returns to fight crime and super-villains in "Spider-Man 2."
After the first movie set the stage and introduced the main characters, writers were allowed to develop the known characters, as well as introduce new friends and foes to this top-notch sequel.
Tobey Maguire returns as Peter Parker and Spider-Man, and Kirsten Dunst reprises her role as Mary-Jane Watson. "Spider-Man 2" introduces the classic Spider-Man rogue Doctor Octopus, aka Doc Ock, played by Alfred Molina.
The story picks up with Peter Parker struggling to juggle the lifestyle of a superhero by night, student and photographer by day. This ultimately interferes with his personal life, as he cannot make his rent payments and continues to wrestle with his feelings for MJ.
To compound the problem, Harry Osborn, played by James Franco, has become obsessed with unmasking Spider-Man to avenge his father, the Green Goblin. His business, Oscorp, helps bring Peter and famed scientist Dr. Otto Octavius together and eventually leads to his transformation to Doc Ock. And with this, the central conflict is born.
Overwhelmed with combating a new enemy, the city turning against him and his powers becoming suspect, not to mention MJ's impending marriage to someone else, Peter decides to give up the mantra of Spider-Man to try and live a normal life. After deep soul searching however, and understanding "with great power comes great responsibility," he returns to the mask to try and save the day.
The premise of the movie really deals with Peter Parker as a person, rather than as Spider-Man. The tightrope he walks finally catches up with him, and he is forced to deal with his competing personal needs and superhero drive. This complicated relationship interweaves through much of the movie and helps drive the story.
Take everything the first movie offered and double it to get a sense of how carefully and excitingly "Spider-Man 2" was orchestrated. We get to see the characters develop and get to see how dynamic their relationships have become -- from Peter and MJ's love to Aunt May's struggles with Uncle Ben's loss, and even the conflict inside Dr. Octavius.
Although the first movie had much to offer, fans moaned that Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin was too long winded and corny. Personally, I did not share this opinion, although his outfit certainly did not come from the Men's Warehouse for Villains. Molina's portrayal as the intelligent but psychotic Doc Ock is superb. Not to mention the ultra-cool tentacles he employs to terrorize the city.
Even the special effects received an upgrade. Spider-Man looks even better flying through Manhattan and making death-defying acrobatic maneuvers. Doc Ock's tentacles are menacing and quickly remind the viewer that this villain plays for keeps. Although the first movie's effects were great, the people behind the scenes in "Spider-Man 2" raised the bar another notch.
The battle scenes received extra treatment -- all are intense and keep the theatre patrons on the edge of their seats. Spider-Man and Octavius duke it out in every location from a bank office with money bags flying to the top of a clock tower, to a moving subway car. That scene, above all, really demonstrates the limits the film pushed to provide a thrilling and entertaining sight.
The film does not overload on drama and action, as Spider-Man still cracks on burglars and presents a comedic side. He even uses his spider powers to help deliver pizza. One scene has Spidey using an elevator to get off a building after his webbing fails him. Suffice to say, the conversation between him and the person riding the elevator with him garnered more than a few laughs.
Being a comic book fan, I greatly anticipated this movie and was not disappointed. They say that sequels are never as good as the original, but "Spider-Man 2" proves this wrong and takes the series to a whole new level. With every aspect in the film enhanced, any fan should be pleased.
By being a great movie, even teetering on being the best superhero movie of all time, "Spider-Man 2" has already shattered records with its $180 million take in its first six days. And with an ending that foreshadows interesting plots we can be sure that Spider-Man will be web-slinging in to save the day for years to come.
The third installment is already in the making and has a tentative release date of 2007. But for the time being, we have "Spider-Man 2" to enjoy.
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