• Writen/Directed by Sam Raimi
• Running time: 2hr 20 mins.
• Rated PG-13
• Also released widely in Imax

Go see “Spiderman 3”

Usually it's the second movie in a trilogy that can't hold up to the hype. Then the third movie comes through with the goods. In this case it would have been impossible for a movie to have lived up to the level of buzz this movie had.

Let's take it a piece at a time. The special effects are incredible. The acting is good right up to the end. The plot falls victim to the monumental task this crew gave themselves. Tobey has been pretty vocal about not thinking there should be a third movie--much less a third or fourth. When they were going to go ahead with the project even without him, (spidey would have been Jake Gillianhall), he did the right thing and signed on. Still everyone on this project seems to have suffered from the syndrome I call, “there can be only three.” As a result they tried to cram everything into this last piece.

At times it works and the aggressive pace keeps the action going despite the dramatic relationship stuff. Then at the very end its just a little much going on. For the most part this is a really great movie with a lot to offer. I wouldn't hesitate to go see it. It just won't go down as the best of the trilogy.

What about the “PG-13” Rating?

Standard stuff. Lots of action.

What if I hate Tobey Maguire?

Lots of people do. He's really good for this role though. Spiderman should be a little skinny, a little nerdy.

Larger Story

The Spiderman trilogy, in my opinion comes in second only to the Lord of the Rings Trilogy for larger story allegory. The “there's a little hero in all of us” speech in Spiderman 1 is awesome.

Now in Spiderman 3 we have the struggle to deal with our own dark side brought to a head. Where the superhero ends and vigilante begins is a common theme for comic books, but the struggle to live free from thoughts of revenge is a struggle we can all empathize with. It's dealt with very tenderly in this film. There are some great lines. “First we attack his heart,” and “when you say that I hear my father,” are really great.