media consumption

Spider-Man 2

Okay, so Spiderman is a different kind of superhero. Today's generation can identify with his bouts of self-doubt and angst-ridden identity crises. Maybe it's because I didn't see the first Spiderman movie, but the whole long-winded introspection and unrequited love thing started getting on my nerves. And hey, is it just me, or is there a double-meaning behind the name of the character Mary Jane? I mean, the main acting requirement for Kirsten Dunst (and Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker, for that matter) was to wander in and out of scenes with droopy eyelids half-concealing bloodshot eyes.

So but anyway, I still liked the flick, because of the special effects, obviously. And Alfred Molina's massive, barrel-chested Dr. Octopus. But mostly because of Sam Raimi's direction. Here's a guy who knows how to translate a comic strip story to the big screen. The wacky camera angles (think of the car flying over Peter and Mary Jane in the café), extras in the background (mostly gaping open-mouthed, or with their heads poking into the frame), the use of stylized tableuax at dramatic moments (Peter sitting alone at the table after telling Aunt May the truth about Uncle Ben's death), and the effervescent sense of humor (Spidey stealing his costume back from beneath Jameson's nose) combine to soften the rough edges and sweep us along through the slower moments. Anyone who's seen Raimi's work in the Evil Dead movies and the more recent The Quick and the Dead will recognize Raimi's gift for combining toungue-in-cheek visual excess with a deadly serious storyline.

Oh yeah, the screenwriting efforts of Michael Chabon probably helped too. The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is still buried somewhere deep in my reading list.

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