Peter Parker Picked A Peck of Pickled Peppers

I just watched Spiderman 2. Yeah, I know. I'm a bit behind the times.

I really enjoyed it and felt that it was even better than the first. There were massive improvements to the villain, by making him someone whose face is actually seen. As well cast as Willem Dafoe was, all impact was lost in SM1 when he put on the Green Goblin mask and looked like a minion of Lord Zed (Please, somebody get that.). The casting was great again with Alfred Molina as Doc Ock. He manages to get the entire range of the character from nerdy scientist to menace to pain all down almost perfectly. The terror caused by a character such as Doc Ock was also played up in this film, which allowed Sam Raimi to let a little more his horror sensibilities come through (to good effect). I was also very pleased at how the internal conflict between doing what it right and doing what you want was brought to the forefront for this movie. It's something that applies not only with web-slinging superheroes but to people in all walks of life who must sacrifice their hopes, dreams and desires for the benefit of others. That's right, I just watched a comic book movie, and I'm talking about life lessons that can be gleaned from it. Sure it's a popcorn flick, but if you are willing to look, profundity can be found in the most surprising of places.

There were some things I didn't love about the movie. It was very highly dependent on computer animation, but I am pretty forgiving of it. After all, it's hard to have a man with 4 mechanical arms and a guy that shoots webs from his hands fight on the side of a skyscraper or on top of a moving train without it. I really have to admit to disliking the opening scene of Peter/Spidey trying to deliver pizzas on time. It just didn't seem to fit right with the tone of the movie. Just as with the first, I still have problems with Tobey Maguire as Spiderman. Spidey is a boy trying to become a man, but I have a hard time taking male heroes seriously when I'm still waiting for their voices to change. To date, the only time Tobey has appeared onscreen with a costar whose voice wasn't deeper than his was when he shared scenes with Don Knotts in Pleasantville.

The biggest problem with the movie, like the last had to do with the costume given to the villain. Last time it was the aforementioned expressionless mask. This time the problem can be summed up in one word: Manboobs. I have already said that I like the casting of Alfred Molina. However, when the person cast as your menacing villain has saggy man breasts, it will help if you do not keep making him appear sans shirt. I kept waiting for Frank Costanza to offer him a manzier.

The verdict: Highly enjoyable. The best comic book film I can remember (though I'm sure someone will correct me).