Directed by Sam Raimi (Spiderman, A Simple Plan, Army of Darkness)
Starring Toby Maguire and Kirsten Dunst
How do you justify spending $200 million on a movie?
U.S.A. Today answered the question well: “Make most of it back in your first week.”
“Spiderman II” made $115 million on its release weekend. Released on a Wednesday, the film made $180 million by the following Monday. That gross income broke all records to date, becoming the largest four day and six day total for any film.
The film made money, no question. But did it deliver?
I agree with Sony’s Amy Pascal on July 4th. “Who needs fireworks when you have Spiderman.”
The film was much better than the original . . . most people agree. I especially liked Peter Parker’s struggle with his identity. His “job” as a superhero was messing up his personal life—a struggle that drove to actually hang up the spidey suit. (I haven’t given away anything more than the preview did!) Peter has to choose who to serve- himself or others.
The film was very good; I actually took the whole family.
SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
The film had very little objectionable content. No sex, nudity or sexual situations. No crude humor, and little to no cussing. The only thing to consider is a few intense scenes where Doc Oct. kills/maims others with his robotic arms- a little frightening for the very young.
It’s rare to find a clean action film these days. “Spiderman II” is clean, it’s funny, and it’s good action. It’s worth the ticket price.
Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):
- What are some of the messages or themes you observed in this movie?
- How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
- How can we move from healthy, Bible-based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
