July 17, 2004
webbed?
last week, i watched spider-man 2 twice. the first time in megamall, the second time in shangri-la. the former cost 81 pesos. the latter, 295 pesos. yep, you read that right. and if that figure made you look twice at your computer screen to check, then you're not the only one. the four of us (joy, sam, ben and i) who watched the film, victims as it were, were also shocked to hear the lady behind the counter say: "Your bill amounts to 1180." i think all the mathematics i've learned in my 19 years of schooling deserted me at that instant. 1180 divided by 4 is...? slow, really slow. later on, when we realized the folly of our actions, did we begin to laugh at the whole thing. the lady must have really seen the shock in our faces.
based from that experience, when someone asks me what my favorite film is, it's gotta be spider-man 2. just to make the whole shebang worthwhile. hee.
seriously, though, spider-man 2 can stand on its own merits (silly me: "Without the benefit of that experience? Nah."). it wouldn't be difficult for one to make it his or her favorite film of all time. the emotional weight of the story, the way it was portrayed by the characters, the way the action scenes helped in pacing the movie, all helped in establishing a well-thought and well-executed film.
spider-man 2 begins with a comic book recap of the first installment of the series. the comic book panels are created from spider-man's web, and in each panel we see an exposition of the characters. this in itself is a great way to start the film. it serves two purposes: 1) as i've said, it provides the recap of the first film, without having to resort to lengthy flashbacks and dream sequences. and the fact that it occurs during the opening credits gives those who do not wish to recall those past events an option not to watch it (silly me: "And why do they wanna miss that?); 2) not only does it give a recap of the first film, it also gives a gist of what is to be seen in the second film. the characters, all trapped in a web? a fitting emotional overview of how the characters would behave in this second installment.
all the characters in this film are trapped within their own problems. mary jane is infatuated with a guy who cannot dare to love her; aunt may misses her husband, ben, so much that she forgets that there is life outside of that love; harry drinks every night, vowing to avenge his father's death; and peter parker is, of course, trapped within his spider-man identity. because of these things which hinder them from letting go and moving on, they remain stagnant within themselves. they remain webbed.
i think that scene where spider-man loses his web because of the depression he feels is brilliant. it gives one an idea that spider-man is the source, the vortex, of the web that everyone else is entangled in. when he finally decides to be "spider-man no more," each of the characters suddenly find a drive to move on. mary jane thinks twice of marrying the astronaut; aunt may accepts peter's apology, and in the process, his husband's death; and harry finally gets his act together and starts planning spider-man's death. indeed, one can say that spider-man's web brings them together, but it also forces them apart.
of course, these highly intellectual plot sequences would have been to naught if not brought to life in the way they should have been brought. and in this, tobey maguire, kirsten dunst, james franco, alfred molina, and rosemary harris have succeeded wonderfully. tobey's face speaks volumes of dilemmas and uncertainties; kirsten's eyes express hurt and a strange, but strong, sense of determination; james's features portray brings to the screen harry's anger well, and alfred molina and rosemary harris, as the older ones in cast, have character portrayals which they and their experience can only muster.
as i've said in the start, i do not really need the benefit of that hilarious experience to establish spider-man 2's greatness. the movie, in itself, will have you stuck to your seat, and will never let go.
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