Empire magazine Comparing spiderman 1,2 & 3

Superman and Batman are our conventional superhero films with some terrific spectacles; Spiderman however has terrific spectacles but is quite dissimilar to the conventional superhero films Superman and Batman. How is it different? Well … In all the Spidey films dorky, geeky, nerdy Peter Parker doesn’t always get the girl. In Spiderman 1 several scenes show Peter practicing with his new abilities in his room, he designs a stupid costume. The next day, as Peter heads out, his Uncle offers him a ride. Peter has a talk with him in the car, Uncle Ben expresses concern for him (hammered home by Raimi’s successful camera angle an over the shoulder shot) and says, "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility", but Peter does not listen, and having lied to his Uncle saying he would go to the library, Peter instead goes to a Wrestling match, in an attempt to win the 3000 dollar purse to buy a car and impress Mary Jane. Raimi uses mis-en-scene elements such as Spiderman’s custom made costume to portray infantile Spidey as very naïve, vulnerable and weak. Surely this isn’t a good example of a hero! Also in Spiderman 2 Raimi manages to weave this illusion theme into his idea of what it means to be a hero. Parker several times tries to give up the Spider-life to fulfil his emotional need for Mary Jane. But EVERYONE aspires to be spiderman sometimes, what a letdown. Sam Raimi really thumps his heroism fists into our brains with the classic hero speech, complete with the tremendous close up reaction shots and stirring of the non diegetic romantic violin composition throughout the speech, Cheesy or what! So it was time for Spidey to become the neighbourhood hero everyone wanted back in the crime filled town. Raimi used the obvious cinematographic effects to emphasize Spidey coming back in Spiderman 2 by the symbolism of the fallen glasses of the old Peter Parker and the extreme close up of the clenched fist symbolizing strength, emotion and revenge. Peter Parker is a very selfish individual in Spiderman 3 this is obvious because in Spidey 1 and 2 his costume, hair and makeup is very nerdy and pasty as good peter parker, yet in Spidey 3 his bad Peter Parker costume, hair and makeup gives out a venomous approach with his darker eyes and slicked hair. We thought your friendly eponymous whatsit was a hero not an evil, venomous villain! Do we really want an evil hero? Nuh uh! This is why Spiderman 3 was so unpopular. There are some good elements of the film though while Raimi takes his time getting there, the exploration of Peter’s unleashed ID sends the character into unexpectedly mature territory, as his relationship with Mary Jane comes under immense strain. There’s a genuine emotional intensity here, with one scene on a bridge proving particularly painful. Maguire, in particular, carries the film: more convincing now at the heroic stuff, he also clearly relishes Peter’s descent into hell, skilfully turning Spider-Man into a sleaze ball while still making him sympathetic. Spiderman 3 was still a very good film based on the magnificent Spectacles and the classic jeopardizes. So Spiderman is very dissimilar from other action adventure films because of its human qualities. Sam Raimi had a big responsibility picking Tobey Maguire for the role; he had other things on his mind than just to pick a handsome, fit and a gorgeous hunk to drool at. He said, “I explained to them who the character is – which, after all, is my job. This isn’t like casting a young Superman,” He points out “I wanted to cast someone who isn’t necessarily that handsome, while they perhaps wanted to cast someone with a track record with box office and with action movies. I had to explain that this isn’t necessarily an action movie. We’re making a movie about Peter Parker – We’re going to watch this boy grow up and become a hero, not because he beats up the bad guy but because he pushes aside his own self-interest for the betterment of others.” Well there we are Raimi sums it up he wanted to keep the human elements to show Peter Parker developing as a hero and develop he does. For all you Spidey lovers you may be disappointed watching this trilogy because we don’t like what’s happened to Spidey but overall all the Spiderman trilogy are still smart, still exciting and still show amazing jeopardizes and spectacles . Spiderman 3 is an excellent film based on the human elements of Spiderman.