Spider-Man 3

After the brilliant second film, Raimi a) joined a sect professing universal love and understanding, b) got on drugs, or c) just went crazy. How else are we to explain the emotional hyperboles in which Peter dances in the street in a perfect block, or receives the most poignant "life advice" from his aunt? Everything is so over the top that it simply CANNOT be taken seriously, and Raimi is simply fucking with the viewer for over two hours. I admit that it's really hard to absorb. On the other hand, the real problem I see is the underdeveloped characters, where in particular the villains lack proper motivation (otherwise Sandman and Venom are great) - in fact, absolutely everyone is lacking motivation. It's also unfortunate about some of the sloppy special effects in the action sequences, which look really bad in contrast to Sandman's perfect birth. All in all, it’s a rather uneven ride, but not at all boring, even though I found myself staring with my mouth wide open at times, and it wasn't just due to the action. Right now I’m giving it four stars, and I have to watch it again sometime so I can give it a proper review. (15/01/2009)

Average, sometimes incredibly bad and naive. Raimi wanted everything - depth and fun - and he came up with awkward CGI coloring pages with an unconvincing protagonist and such conspicuous clichés that they can't even be enjoyed. Visually, Spidey offers nothing new, and inside the film rumbles like an empty barrel, despite trying to look very wise and thoughtful. Taken as a whole, it doesn't hold together in any way, and Maguira's performance is truly the culmination... This was simple not very good. (08/11/2008)

The garishness of the coarsest, er... grain. The longer the film goes on, the worse it gets, and the soap opera-like romantic plot is definitely one of the worst things poor Spider-Man has ever had to contend with. In the scenes where he's supposed to be evil and obsessive, Tobey Maguire shows that he's more good at overacting than acting, and Mary Jane's jealous exit is an ordeal. Yet Sandman would have been a decent villain if he had been given more space, as his birth scene is one of the best ever seen in a comic book movie. Seriously, no irony. Most of all, Spider-Man 3 looks like an attempt to make "something like Tim Burton's Batman Returns" that didn't work. (12/05/2015)

The first two episodes boasted that unique Raimi’s signature that makes me appreciate them as modest little-big movies created out of pure love for the original comics. Compared to them, the third one is fake, pompous and seemingly hungry not for the support of the fans but for a big chunk of money... A blockbuster that is noisier, more megalomaniacal and more sprawling than its two predecessors, mocking itself in a figuratively and emotionally overblown finale that juxtaposes a heartfelt life confession and a tearful J.K. Simmons haggling with a little girl over how much she wants for her camera. Raimi’s direction is still better than good, the action sequences have the proper charge and the illegibility of the main character saves everything, but this is no longer the original Spiderman, it lacks personality and a surprising motif, just like all current comic book adaptations. 65% (21/07/2012)

My favorite part of the trilogy and apart from Kirsten Dunst, Bryce Dallas Howard is also a nice addition. I have no idea where the mistake was made, but keep the same satisfied audience for five years if they have enough of it. In retrospect, I appreciate many things, including the compactness of the series, the light humor, and the use of a generous number of characters. And I certainly don't feel that there is too much pathos. They’ve taken some of it away compared to the second one, which is much more extreme. And MJ at the theater? A total fairy tale. (13/02/2011)