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Spider
Man Returns to Thrill US all
The sequel will do better already it spun off approximately $40.5 million in ticket sales, reports Sony Pictures Entertainment Vice-Chairman Jeff Blake. This beats the opening day total of $39.4 million by 2002’s “Spider-Man” as well as the best Wednesday opening numbers of $34.5 million by 2003’s “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.” While the first film concentrated on Peter Parker’s (Tobey Maguire) transformation into Spider-Man using the theme,”With great power comes great responsibility,” the second film examines the personal tolls and sacrifice Parker must make in order to meet that responsibility and if it’s worth it. Picking up nearly two years after the first film left off, Spiderman 2 finds Peter Parker trying to maintain some balance between ego and alter-ego, and failing miserably at the task. From everywhere, time presses down. Relationships suffer. Happiness dwindles. For every rescue or brave criminal capture, there’s a missed opportunity or a loved-one in wait. Mary-Jane (Kirsten Dunst) is moving on with her life, and Harry (James Franco) with his own, both touched, in such opposite ways, by the events of the first film. Director Sam Raimi says “What I pitched them to get the job was that I wanted to make a story not about Spider-Man, but Peter Parker. And I really told the studio when they interviewed me about my love for the characters, I would focus on the relationships I thought that was the right way to tell this particular movie”. Having demonstrated how Peter Parker acquired his extraordinary powers in Spider-Man, the new installment will broaden the audience’s understanding of those special skills and abilities, according to Arad from Marvel studios “not just the web-shooting and the wall climbing, but Peter’s ‘spider sense,’ his internal early warning system, a kind of precognition and the potential danger of turning his back on those special gifts.” Raimi also notes “This movie depicts that journey the outgrowth of that momentous decision. How is Peter going to weigh his personal needs against his sense of responsibility, when he knows that he must use his gift for the benefit of others? His dilemma is something we all live with in smaller, less dramatic ways every day of our lives. Behaving responsibly is always difficult and often a sacrifice. You may have to give up something of yourself or maybe even allow yourself to be wounded a bit. That’s what’s so satisfying about this story. It’s all about choices and a character who is terribly conflicted because it’s never easy to do the right thing.” “The thing that set Spider-Man apart from other movies with great technology and action, is how much attention was given to the characterization and personal relationships,” says Stan Lee, the co-creator of the Spider-Man comic book series. “The action, the great set-pieces, that’s a given. But delving into Peter Parker’s problems in the way they did, truly elevated the film.” The production team supported by the Sony pictures image works studios, which created the special effects, and the CGI generated environments have done a great job in creating various breathtaking environments. The laboratory facility of Doc Ock the archenemy of Spiderman is superbly done. The villain of the movie is the Doc Ock who is supposed to be having most of the strengths and powers Spiderman has and literarily seen as worst enemies of Spiderman in comic lore. But it’s the internal mental developments that mostly help Spiderman to outsmart his deadly opponent who is armed with four powerful mechanical tentacles. Film critics round the globe are already appraising this movie as the best of the best from the marvel comic world even better than the Superman series and Batman. It’s also clear that Raimi’s fascination with Parker hasn’t ended. The director recently signed a deal that will have him return for a third film on the Marvel superhero. |
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