Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) gets her name in lights and Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is right there supporting his woman, clapping and singing and preparing himself to pop the question. But there’s trouble brewing in their relationship as MJ gets dumped from her Broadway show and wants someone to listen to her whine, and Peter’s not fulfilling his duties as a sounding board. Instead he’s busy soaking in all the adoration being lavished on Spider-Man by the citizens of New York.
Meanwhile Harry (James Franco) still wants revenge for his father’s death at Spider-Man’s hands. After a sweet chase scene in and out of the streets and alleyways, the New Goblin develops a medical condition and for a while everything is hunky-dory. But things don’t stay that way…
While Peter’s dealing with Harry and MJ, Flint Marko escapes from prison bent on helping his sick daughter. In a strange twist of events, he’s chased into a particle physics chamber and becomes Sandman. Then to make things even more complicated for poor Peter, a new photographer named Eddie Brock (Topher Grace) shows up at The Daily Bugle and wants Peter’s job – something that doesn’t sit well with the normally even-tempered Parker. And speaking of Parker’s easygoing personality, a black goopy thing crawls out of a meteor which just happens to land right next to where Peter and MJ are making out. After hitching a ride on Peter’s scooter, the gooey substance attaches itself to Peter, turning Spider-Man’s red and blue suit black. It also turns Mr Average Geeky Guy into an arrogant, self-centered creep.
The Good
The action sequences are, for the most part, spectacular. The fight scenes live up to the standards set by the previous Spider-Man films, yet it’s when Raimi allows Maguire as Parker a few quiet moments to reflect on life that the film really comes close to matching Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 in tone. Maguire has grown into the part and Spider-Man 3, while not the best of the lot, features his best performance of the series. The same can be said of James Franco who redeems himself after a series of bad film choices (Flyboys, Annapolis) by making Harry into a multi-layered character such as we haven’t seen in the previous two outings.
Bruce Campbell steals the film as a French restaurateur who tries to help Peter pop the question. Topher Grace and Thomas Haden Church are also terrific, with the totally buffed up Haden Church selling the part of a desperate dad without the benefit of much dialogue. Grace is given a lot to say and as the film’s comic relief, he seems right at home spewing one-liners and lightening the mood.
The Bad
Bryce Dallas Howard is pretty however her Gwen Stacy got the short end of the stick when it came to character development. But at least there is a real spark between Howard and Maguire, which can’t be said of Dunst and Maguire onscreen. The total lack of chemistry this time out is startlingly apparent, and Dunst’s MJ isn’t even fun to watch (or listen to). MJ’s too needy in Spider-Man 3 and it’s a real downer when she’s onscreen.
Some Spidey fans are going to love it when Peter Parker breaks out in his best John Travolta/Saturday Night Fever impersonation, but seeing the beloved character disco dance his way down the streets was unnerving and completely silly. And when Peter hits the dance floor to strut his stuff, Raimi pushed things too far. It’s corny and out of place, and a really bizarre way of showing the character’s darker side. Actually, other than a scene with Grace, the whole depiction of Parker’s inner battle is bland. Most of it’s done by having Maguire part his hair on the other side and let a few wisps hang down in his face, while flirting with various women in a totally harmless manner. The 'evil' turn Parker takes doesn't get dark enough.
The Bottom Line
Spider-Man 2 is one of my all-time favorite comic book-inspired films. Spider-Man 3 doesn’t even rank in the top 10. The first Spider-Man did a fantastic job of telling the origin story. I’ve never picked up a comic book and with Spider-Man I understood the hows and whys of the webslinger. Spider-Man was fun. With Spider-Man 2 Raimi allowed us inside Peter Parker’s head, delivering an emotionally gripping story along with a few incredible action scenes. But Spider-Man 3 is crammed full of mini-plots, most of which aren't allowed to play out completely. Even 140 minutes isn’t long enough to do justice to three villains, a love triangle, and a Peter Parker who takes a walk on the wild side.
Spider-Man 3 is critic-proof and will no doubt make a ton of cash, but it doesn’t deliver enough bang for the buck. The film actually leaves you hoping Raimi and Maguire will return for one more shot at making the definitive Spider-Man movie, because 3 isn’t it.
Grade: C+
Spider-Man 3 was directed by Sam Raimi and is rated PG-13 for sequences of intense action violence.
