SPIDER-MAN 2:

So is it totally amazing?
Is it as good a sequel as X-men 2 was?
Is it one of the best super-hero movies ever made?

Yes.Yes. Yes.

But you knew that already. You knew that the moment you saw the first previews for this film. The moment you first saw how Doctor Octopus and his arms looked, how fantastic the fight scenes appeared, you knew it was going to be something special. Problem is, you just weren't sure how it was all going to come together. Don't worry it's great. It all fits together spectacularly.

Why? The effects are better: the swinging Spider-man looks a whole lot more realistic. And, It's not just about Spider-man fighting with some new villain. This film focuses on Peter Parker. You can feel him agonizing about things even when he's under the mask. It's about the choices he has to make. The first one was about Parker becoming Spider-Man. This one is about him trying to decide if that's what he really wants to be. It's all about choices. It's about people being torn between what they can do and what they are.

Like.. Doctor Octopus for instance, who's very scary. What? Pudgy guy with big metal arms. How's that scary? Because the arms talk to him. Yes, I know, in the first movie Osborn believed the mask was talking to him. It's sort of the same idea of wrestling with your dark side. But Osborn was insane. Otto Octavius is actually a really nice guy. It's just after things go wrong, he starts to be controlled and influenced by the arms that are grafted to him. There's artificial intelligence built into the arms technology. They can think for themselves. Which makes sense. It would be hard for someone used to controlling two arms to suddenly try to control and coordinate six arms and two legs simultaneously. He'd be a spaz. So that idea is pretty clever. And it nicely illustrates the whole corruption of technology idea. It also makes for one very squirm-inducing scene where the arms rip apart a room full of people while octavius is semi-conscious and blindfolded.

The arms are very cold and unforgiving. When they pulverize and grab at people it's with terminator, cold precision. It's like something out of a horror movie. That's one of the fun things about the movie. Sam Raimi just has crazy fun with it. There are scary parts, and incredibly funny parts (like the "raindrops keep falling on my head "happy" montage) and astoundingly crazy-cool action scenes. Everything you could hope for from the guy who made "Evil Dead 2" and "Army of Darkness". (and yeah Bruce Campbell does make an appearance again) The movie truly is like a comic-book come alive when Doc Ock fights Spider-man.

It's everything you could hope for. But what puts this over the top, what makes this truly stand out as a good movie, is that they don't get distracted by just trying to do an over-the top summer blockbuster action flick. Remember the preview that started with Parker about to kiss Mary Jane in the cafe before the car comes crashing through the window? Remember how sweet and full of emotional complexities it was? He loves her and she know that he does, but he just can't say it. And it hurts her because she doesn't know why he's being like that. And it hurts him because she's the last person he would ever want to hurt. But more than anything he wants to protect her.

I'm so glad that they didn't ignore the Mary-Jane and Parker connection. It's such a vital part of the whole Spider-Man story. A lot of that emotional turmoil is crafted into the film. Anyone who's read the comic knows that Spider-Man is all about Parker trying to get through life by juggling all his responsibilities. He's still like a regular guy: He has to pay the bills, he has to go to school, he has to keep a job, all while trying to be Spider-man. We actually see him at the laundromat washing his costume in one scene. It's touches like that, which really make the movie shine.

The movie really focuses on the stresses of that situation. It shows how draining it is to do all this while keeping a secret. That's the kind of thing that drives people to have nervous breakdowns. And Parker does reach a breaking point where it all gets to be too much. There's a lot to the movie: Action, romance, internal and external conflicts.. Stan Lee makes another brief appearance. Someone on the sidewalk sings the Spider-man song. People in the city are getting used to seeing Spider-man, He's become a bit of a local, cult hero. Yes, there actually is an unmasking scene. Every scene with J. Jonah Jameson is pitch-perfectly hilarious. Harry Osborn still HATES Spider-man.

They really follow through with the logical progression and growth of the characters from the first film. (It's about two years later, from when Uncle Ben died. Just enough time for people to have started to settle in new lives.) Everything hinted at in the preview is actually carried through. The movie is actually even more awesome than the previews made it out to be. There's so many wonderful things that aren't even hinted at in the previews. (Well, yet. Beware of the previews that will start in a week.)

Sure maybe some people might find some of the Mary-Jane and Parker dialogue a bit cheesy towards the end, but when you think about it, it's so hard to find the right words when you're trying to tell somebody how you truly feel. There is so much between those two, that it's hard for them to vocalize it. I was very happy and surprised with the way the movie ended. I can't wait to see the 3rd one. There was a very nice set-up without it feeling like a cliff-hanger.

And the very, very last shot is so subtle and intriguing. The look on the character's face is a haunting mix of multiple emotions.
And that's all I can safely say.
I really liked this a lot. I can't wait to see it again.