Spider-man 3

the battle within...

Spider-Man 3 is a perfect example of how a trilogy should be when you keep all the same actors, writers,  and most importantly the director.  After each of the first two films, small layers of story were planted that were going to be resolved in this final film. It’s extremely satisfying to see all these threads come to a head finally after the first two films. Peter’s relationship with Mary Jane grows more mature and Harry’s resentment towards Peter comes full circle.  Some would say the movie tried to take on too much. However, each new and old villain had a purpose and melded at the end to the theme of the movie; really the same theme of all the movies: responsibility and forgiveness.  The best part of these movies is that the death of uncle Ben which is the very reason Peter becomes spider-man is still affecting the overall plot even still in the third movie… and I hope that it continues to in the fourth movie in three years. lol

Eddie Brock was basically a mirror image of Parker. They look similar, act similar, have the same job, and eventually were the same suite. They both make very bad decisions. Brock tries to cheat his way to the top and Peter lets his new found confidence get to his head and mistreats MJ. The Venom suite feeds off the dark side of humanity. Peter, because of the tragedy of Uncle Ben, sees his mistake and gets rid of it, while Brock embraces it. The pain of Peter losing his father figure actually built his character and gives him the ability to deal with hardships of life.

The sandman in the comic was a very generic thug, just with a really cool power. The movie actually improves his character, which is rare, and somehow ties him back to uncle Ben’s death.  The action scenes between the sandman and Harry lived up to the aerobatics of the first of two. Sam Rami really came up with creative ways to use sandman’s powers. The scene at the end when Peter forgives him for uncle Ben’s death is really touching and a deep scene for a comic movie.

The backbone of all three movies has always been Harry, Peter, and MJ. The tension has been building and when Harry and Peter finally face off and face their demons it was a huge payoff. It was kind of sad to see MJ and Peter take a step back, but it was plain to see that they both still had a lot of growing up to do.

It has been stated that Sam Rami ( the director) was talked into adding Venom into the movie and it was great seeing such a fan favorite finally on the big screen, but it did take a little way from sandman a bit; and will make people who only saw the movie just to see venom feel a little let down. However, Rami did a masterful job making Venom fit in the overall theme and put together a very “deeper than the surface” comic book trilogy of one greatest super heroes of all time.

4.5 stars