I have just one thing to say: I want a black, alien, “Spidey” suit! If my guess is correct, I will not be the only Spider-Man fan leaving theaters this weekend wishing I was swinging and jumping from rooftops like some rabid ninja. In fact, we are likely to see tensions this Halloween between these “alien spider beings” and those lovable pirates, which we are so used to seeing at the ever popular, “Pirate” parties. Soon enough, we will be going to “Spider-Man” parties, and all of us guys will finally get a stab at that Mary Jane Watson character!
This movie is first and foremost a visual “joygasm”! The fight scenes are enough reason to go and see this movie. I would see this film even if it did not have sound! Sorry Danny Elfman (Spider-Man 3 music-composing genius)! Heck, I would see the movie just for the work that they did on Sandman (Thomas Hayden Church). I cannot even begin to tell you how amazing the sand texture turned out and how far particle animation has come. I was even more amazed seeing the effects on a huge IMAX 
screen, and I recommend nothing less to viewers. You almost feel dirty after watching Sandman fight Spider-Man. I remember when Independence Day came out 1996, I was in high school, and I saw the movie like eight or nine times in theaters. It was the pinnacle of CG at the time, and the coming of Spider-Man 3 offers the same excitement and raises the bar on animation and special effects. I figure most people will see it more than once, though the high ticket costs will tame most of us. The set design is fantastic, the camera moves flawlessly. There is great use of color and light, even if Spidey crawling past a huge American flag seemed a bit of a stretch. Like, Captain America and Superman, he is an all American hero so I’ll let that one slide. I guess the 
red/blue skintight outfits work well for viewers!
The inner struggle of Peter Parker with his alter ego Spider-Man are highlighted by the appearance of the star of the movie; that nasty little third party, the ever goopy black symbiote from outer space. It allows us a darker (more interesting) side of Peter Parker to wreak havoc upon his foes (Sandman; New Goblin) and affects his personal love life (Mary Jane Watson; Gwen Stacy). I found that the alien suit brought upon an interesting buildup to character and general momentum of the movie. Even when the first Spider-Man came out in theaters, I knew that black Spidey suit was on the horizon and was completely 
shocked at how well they pulled it off. The animation was absolutely beautiful. I have to admit I was completely terrified when I heard that Topher Grace was asked to play the part of Venom. I do admit that he did a pretty good job as Eddie Brock, but I was expecting a young version of Dolph Lundgren (Rocky IV, He-Man), and not some scrawny kid. I mean, sure he’s Peter Parker’s main competition as photographer for the Daily Bugle so he has to look the part, but give me a break! The least they could have done was feed him a bunch of protein bars and try to meat him up a bit in the gym.
My biggest disappointment in Spider-Man 3 was the visual character design of the new Goblin. James Franco does a great job as Harry Osborn, though the new Goblin is not very menacing. Harry’s father (William Defoe) 
would probably lose all respect for his son if he was alive. Sure, the suit Harry wore had some pretty cool blades, and his hover “snowboard” had some interesting magnetic capabilities, but it would have benefited the film if the character designers had taken an extra month to put together something worthy of fighting alongside the Sandman and Venom. Somebody’s going to get fired at Columbia Pictures for this one. Well, I don’t wish that upon anybody, maybe a slap on the wrist and looks of disgust will do.
Finally, let’s take a moment and congratulate Kirsten Dunst on not completely screwing up Spider-Man 3 (unlike her disastrous appearances in Spider-Man 1 and 2). I think they should have hired a no-name actor to play Mary Jane Watson, but I have to admit she was actually tolerable this time around. This is on account of much better 
written dialogue and, for once, a good story. There were moments that made me roll my eyes, with “cheesy” echoing through my overly graphically-stimulated mind, though they were few and far between. To tell you the truth, I have grown so accustomed to Spider-Man 1 and 2 being “cheesy” that I find this to be the general style of the movie, and at least there is now consistency between the three. Come the first couple shots of the movie, the viewer is quickly introduced to the singing of Kirsten Dunst. It’s not that she does a bad job at her whole little Broadway/jazz singer bit, but I have to be honest that she didn’t have to work too hard at realizing her “mediocre Broadway singer” role.
Overall, this was a great movie. Not a dramatic masterpiece, but more of a medley of action, adventure, love, some comedy and Shakespeare (without the “old English”). It did a good job of appearing to be based off a graphic novel. Keep your eyes peeled for Stan Lee.
PS. Watching Spiderman 3 in IMAX DMR 2-D makes it an unforgettable and enjoyable experience.
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