This film was met with lacklustre response from critics and cinemagoers alike when it first hit screens back in May, most criticisms gravitated toward the number of villains for the film. Despite this set-back however, the film managed ...

...to be a success, another trilogy of films is in talks, and Spidey took his audiences for another thoroughly satisfying popcorn jaunt. For those of you who missed this while at the cinema, you're fortunate that the film takes on a very personal scale, and while the fine detail of the CGI may be missing, oftentimes the explosive action sequences are easier to follow on a smaller screen while so much is so often afoot.

The story here lifts a number of elements from the canon and flips them. The original girlfriend from the comic series, Gwen Stacy, played by the impressively tongue-in-cheek yet still emotive Bryce Dallas Howard, is brought in largely to point out how irritating Kirsten Dunst has been in all three films and doubtless to cover her exit, after her appearance in this film was marred by her reluctance to reprise the role. That reluctance shows, and detracts from key setpieces where her lacklustre attempts to insert herself into a green screen world mean the danger just isn't there. The superb Tobey Maguire continues to epitomise Peter Parker as he matures still further in this outing, albeit with a little assistance from an unlikely source, to push the character in new and surprising directions, often with hilarious and entertaining results.

The story is by and large a thrill ride, high with emotion and action, only to sweep you off your feet with acutely humourous scenes and scenarios. Unfortunately, a number of directorial decisions marred the gleeful progression of the plot. The introduction of the black suit is well handled in and of itself, but further twisting of the canon angered fans of the original Spider-Man story due to the resentment with which Eddie Brock, the jealous tormentor of Peter Parker, was dealt with. The Venom storyline feels somewhat shoe-horned in -Venom simply appears by chance, going so far as to wholesale ignore the foreshadowing of its origins in the second film for no apparent reason. This is largely because it was exactly that- shoe-horned in by the studio unwilling to wait for an uncertain fourth film to pull the trigger. Raimi, who had no intention of directing said fourth film, has openly admitted to hating the character, so have a pinch of salt in hand when viewing scenes as a fan of the original Spider-Man, or as a fan of films wondering what all the fuss is about.

Despite such shortcomings, the film remains above par. The webslinging is still as glorious as ever, and Spider-Man gets a long overdue limelight placed squarely upon him by the inhabitants of New York City, the first in a series of twists on the Spider-Man formula that lend a fresh perspective. Superb supporting turns from the classic characters of the series -Aunt May continues to provide a tuning fork to the soul with her inspiring retrospectives- as well as a convincing performance by pugfaced Thomas Hayden Church as The Sandman help the film motor along to a final fight scene that experiences delirious highs and lows of emotion woven perfectly with expertly realised fight sequences.

Summation: Flawed but enjoyable, unfortunately falling short in crucial details but achieving in many unexpected areas.

SublimeMoment: Bruce Campbell's restauranteur.

Rating: 3/5

Review: Rob Myles