AS ANOTHER INSTALLMENT of the Spider-Man franchise, SP3 outdid itself in the computer and special effects departments. The story had two protagonists and three or four antagonists, depending on how you count the odd, symbiotic extra-terrestrial. This gunky ooze, ominously quick, crash landed in a field where Peter Parker aka Spider-Man (Tobey McGuire) and Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) have spent the evening, high in the tree tops, relaxing on a huge, hammock-like web, stargazing and visiting.

The pair were still romantically involved, as it was left in Spider-Man 2. They were on a date, having a go at a long kiss, while watching shooting stars. As they were occupied, they did not observe one of these wonders blazing down into a field behind them. After their date, they got on Peter's Moped to go home. At the last possible opportunity, the alien life form hitched a ride as they sped away. It rode along on the rear fender, right behind MJ, but didn't choose her. It stuck with Peter—apparently it needed a lifeform sufficient to its needs and MJ just didn't give off those vibes.

Because we had two protagonists, these character stories ran alongside each other. Peter and Harry Osborn (James Franco) both struggled with their dark sides. Each are exposed to outside influences. They must learn about themselves, choices can be made, evil is not inevitable and of course, there are difficulties as these forces made them feel very powerful.


Harry had grown a healthy grudge for Peter, who he saw kill his father, the evil-doer of SP2, the Goblin. Unbeknownst to Peter, Harry was ready to end the derring-do excapades of Spider-Man. Needless to say, sheer luck allowed Peter a future beyond Harry's initial attack, as Harry inherited Daddy's arsenal of killing toys, and apparently, his temperment, as well.

The three bad guys are the 'alien' oozing yuk, a sadly misguided father, and a rival photographer. The 'alien' was obviously bad news from the moment it pulled itself out of the molten meteorite in which it arrived. Special Effects made it really creepy.

Eddie Brock (Topher Grace) is a cocky upstart willing to take the low road of tricks and deception to outdo Peter. Brock began submitting his freelance photography of Spider-Man, helping the good people. Brock wants a permanent gig with the same newspaper that has been Peter's main touch. Brock's larger than life shots portray more action and so had greater appeal to the editor in chief, J. Jonah Jameson. In this recurring role, J.K. Simmons, a TV favorite, was again amusing as the blustering old-time Newsman who wants to catch the all-perfect Spider-Man in the act of doing something 'not so perfect.' (His newer role as Asst. Police Chief Will Pope in TNT's 'The Closer' offers a quick look at the range of his acting skills.)

Because of Jameson's fickle attitude, Peter had to find a way to hold his own with the newspaper. Although Peter is a nice guy, his advantage as the photographer who consistently catches Spidey in action shots isn't all that fair, to me—being Spidey, and all. He would know where to get these shots. Kinda deceptive and kinda opportunistic. To me, this photo op is an unexplained advantage. How does he get these shots of himself in the act of saving people that get in trouble in ways both unscheduled and unanticipated?


Our third villain for which we don't really get a good hate-on going with is Flint Marko (Thomas Haden Church), an escaped convict. His daughter has serious health problems which he tries to remedy with lots of money—stolen money. In the bizarre fashion of comic book life transitions, Marko falls in a pit, encounters a load of energy is some gizmo and becomes Sandman. Composed of sand, Marko continues his relentless pursuit of cash for his daughter's ills. There are ups and downs to being a Sandman, none of which will net his daughter the money he wants her to have. This is a hopeless and convoluted conversation point with your youngsters, in a world where ethics are blurring on the issues of health services—good luck.

As a minor antagonist, Mary Jane served her purpose, as she was having a hard time this go 'round for the finish of the trilogy. She was having trouble getting estabished as a lead stage singer and she's a bit grumpy, or sulky, as you wish. She also wants more from Peter, usually at most of the inconvenient moments when he was experiencing a whole bunch of nasty inner conflicts, or the bad guys. Peter wasn't showing at his best and as they were both practicing a fair amount of deception, tempers and pride escalate, and they break up. (This is a romantic action superhero story, so don't sweat that nonsense—all's well that ends well.)

Doesn't MJ have a huge, girl-rule point? Spidey, midway in the story, allowed a kiss, in public no less, with the police chief's daughter, in the same upside down, remove only the chin portion of the mask kiss he had shared with her in Spider-Man (1)—the kiss! I mean, that just cinches it, doesn't it?

Peter's clueless and in his own stuff, so of course, she had to spell it out for him. Can you blame her for being a bit upset? That's her best moments, as it is her lot to be this way in Spidey's life—and it is beyond me how these filmmakers can take a perfectly good actress, which Kirsten Dunst is, and make her so lackluster…what's up with that?

As a lot must go unsaid here, to allow you the enjoyment of this flick, I mustn't go any further into specifics. The SP3 script sweeps up, down and around the metropolitan high-rise canyons—and makes as many 180-degree turns as Spidey makes while eluding and pursuing the bad guys. As such, the timing is meticulously crafted to be technically correct. You'll like the show, if you don't try to get beneath the superficial glossiness.