Parker’s decision to dump his alter-ego comes at a particularly bad time. New York is being terrorized by the latest villain, Doc Occ, a brilliant scientist controlled by four artificially intelligent mechanical limbs soldered to his spinal column and, due to a freak accident, out of control (surprise, surprise). Doc Occ was once Dr. Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina), devoted husband and hero to Peter Parker. He is conducting an ambitious fusion project to create safe, clean energy. This project is financed by Harry Osborne (James Franco), Peter Parker’s best friend and son of SM1 bad guy, Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe, who makes a corny, yet vital, cameo appearance). When a test run goes spectacularly awry, Osborne is financially compromised and places the blame squarely on an “interfering” Spider-Man, whom he still holds responsible for his father’s death. Poor Spidey. He just can’t do anything right. Not even Peter Parker wants him anymore.
But Peter cannot turn his back on his fellow humans--or, to be more specific, one human, Mary Jane Watson. When she is kidnapped by the evil Doc, Peter finds that his waning superpowers come back in full force. It’s interesting that he was so close to simply willing them away through lack of interest, and that their return is precipitated by extreme anger. That doesn’t seem heroic, but it is very human. And it is in the human elements of this film that we see real heroism and genuine evil.
The theme of heroism, seemingly obvious in a film about a super hero, was particularly prominent in the first Spider-Man because it was released on the heels of September 11. The question of heroism is revisited in this film, although not always in the most obvious way. Peter shows himself capable of bravery even without his Spidey costume when he rushes into a burning building to rescue a trapped child. This is the sort of heroism personified by Uncle Ben, who was killed because he was “the only one who did what was right”. It is easy to associate doing what is right with heroism, maybe because doing the right thing seems like a rarity. In Peter’s case, he needs to rely less on his super powers (handy though they are,) and more on his sense of right and wrong so that he can come to terms with his service to the common good.
The Spider-Man franchise has been particularly entertaining and satisfying, mainly because it has not been afraid to show its human side. The special effects in Spider-Man 2 sometimes seem incidental, incorporated simply to remind viewers that they are watching a summer blockbuster. Toby Maguire portrays Peter Parker with warmth and an aw-shucks stoicism. At the end of a hard day you want to give him milk and cookies and tell him everything will be okay, a ploy used by the smitten daughter of Peter’s landlord. Kirsten Dunst is fine as Mary Jane, an attractive counterpart to Maguire. You feel that she is competent to withstand whatever the world can throw at her as Spidey’s girl (although she has to do something about her penchant for getting kidnapped. He doesn’t need that sort of pressure.) Alfred Molina is sufficiently nasty as Doc Occ, but he doesn’t really have much to work with -- the mechanized limbs steal the show, as well as his identity. Like the special effects, Doc Occ comes across as a bit of an afterthought, the plot device needed to present the real villain of the series, Harry Osborne. Unlike Doc Occ, or his father before him, Harry’s evil is neither super-powered nor accidental. It is the result of a weak and petty man with too much money and too much of his own way. Unfortunately, James Franco’s whiney performance of Harry Osborne is disappointing. It is difficult to see why Peter was ever friendly with him in the first place. If Franco was less reliant on the formulaic bad-guy model (spoiled, weak, and aggrieved,) we might be more sympathetic as he makes his journey over to the dark side. He is, sadly, one-dimensional. But Spider-Man 2 is not. As Peter Parker and the gang head towards the third installment, things will only get trickier, for heroes and villains alike.
He was so close. If Peter Parker, a.k.a.Spider-man, had simply stuck to his guns, he could have freed himself once and for all from the web of his own making. The first Spider-Man film ended with Peter (Tobey Maguire) choosing a life dedicated to protecting mankind, rather than enjoying a life with the girl of his dreams, childhood love-interest Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst.) From the opening moments of Spider-Man 2, the viewer is aware that it is a choice Peter has rued almost from the day he made it. He conducts his crime-busting responsibilities with all the enthusiasm of a nail being hammered into place. Even rescuing kids from busy traffic is getting to be a grind. And to add insult to injury, no one appreciates his sacrifices. His professor thinks he’s a lazy student.His boss, pizza magnate Mr. Aziz, thinks he’s too slow. His landlord thinks he’s shifty. His beloved Mary Jane thinks he’s unreliable. And that’s just the criticism leveled at Peter personally. At the top of the heap is tabloid editor J. Jonah Jameson (J.K. Simmons), Parker’s on again-off again boss at The Daily Bugle, who has made a career out of libeling Spider-Man. It’s little wonder that midway through the film the famous red and blue Spidey costume ends up in the trash, as Peter puts his web-slinging days behind him and looks forward to an uncomplicated life of normalcy.
Directed by Sam Rami
