Spider-Man 3 gets a lot of flak. Its critically acclaimed and commercially successful predecessor was always going to be a hard act to top. But a forced convergence of multiple storylines pressured by executive meddlers created a third movie that divided its viewers.
Yet, despite the criticism it receives, Spider-Man 3 has several redeeming factors. Yes, it has its fair share of badness (you’ll find this illustrated all over the web), but it also has moments that are poignant, exciting, and downright amazing.
10) J. Jonah Jameson
As usual, J. K. Simmons thrives in the role of J. Jonah Jameson. This time around, the disgruntled newspaper editor is given even more screen-time than Spider-Man 2 and makes the most of it. It’s the kind of stuff we see here that makes me look forward to his return in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
In one memorable scene, J. Jonah Jameson is under orders from his wife to control his blood pressure. Secretary Betty Brant is thusly put in charge to ensure he takes his medication and doesn’t lose his temper. How does she do this? By installing a buzzer that vibrates his desk. Much of the humor is derived from watching a usually uptight Jameson struggle to maintain composure. It’s a real treat.
9) Bruce Campbell’s Comedy
Once again, Bruce Campbell cameos as a comic relief character. Here, he plays a badly-accented Frenchman working at a French restaurant. Bad accent aside, however, the scene he stars in is undoubtedly one of the movie’s more effective comedic moments.
Campbell engages in some light physical comedy as he regularly mistakes Peter’s hello/goodbye gestures to Gwen Stacy as him beckoning his staff over to deliver the engagement ring. Watching Campbell feverishly shoo away his employees upon realizing his mistake is charming, funny stuff – and saves a scene that would otherwise be monotonous and boring.
8) Creative Fight Sequences
The story may be shaky in places, but the Spider-Man 3 fight sequences are thrillingly underrated compared to the other movies. One of the most prominent examples is the Peter vs. Harry fight near the beginning. Watching a suitless Peter Parker engage his former best friend in battle in a display of aerial acrobatics is just as engaging today as it was in 2007.
Yes, sometimes, the CGI does border on cartoony in some sequences. But, like the films before, the fights in Spider-Man 3Â are so stylish and meticulously choreographed, you hardly care. In many ways, it’s like watching an expensively produced anime and it seldom fails to entertain.
7) Aunt May
Throughout the Raimi films, Aunt May acts as Peter’s moral compass. As such, she helps create some of the most poignant, underrated moments in the movies and Spider-Man 3 is no exception. Her wisdom is what helps Peter grow as a person on his journey.
Aunt May’s impact is down to a combination of warm dialogue and Rosemary Harris’s grounded performance. Her introductory scene in the movie has her recount the tale of how Ben proposed to her. Harris’s delivery of her lines are so sincere and moving, it highlights the kind of moments we don’t see in Spider-Man films after this. That groundedness makes the world believable despite it being filled with superpowered types.
6) Thomas Haden Church as Sandman
Thomas Haden Church’s turn as the tragic Sandman makes you wish he was the center of the movie. Flint Marko’s establishing scene sees him sneak into his ex-wife’s apartment and reconvene with his sick daughter. This inevitably leads to a confrontation with his ex-wife, Emma, who is less-than-pleased about her husband’s criminal activities.
Sandman is portrayed as a regretful, reluctant criminal who nonetheless loves his daughter. Upon gaining his Sandman powers, he uses them to rob a money van, hoping to use the cash to fund his daughter’s treatment. When Spider-Man foils his attempts to help his daughter twice, Sandman sees him as an obstacle and eventually seeks his demise. Sandman being retconned as Uncle Ben’s true murderer is perhaps a bit much, but his powerfully sympathetic backstory gives him a humanity that echoes what is so great about Raimi’s Spider-Man villains.
5) Christopher Young’s Score
Danny Elfman hated working with Raimi on Spider-Man 2. According to Fred Topel of About.com (the website now known as DotDash), Elfman said he’d “rather go back to waiting tables than to do Spider-Man 2 again, to have the same experience.” Ouch. Thus, in his stead, Christopher Young was brought in to fill Elfman’s disgruntled shoes (Don’t worry – Elfman and Raimi have since made up).
Not only does Young successfully recreate the series’ iconic score, but he adds some flourishes of his own. As with its predecessors, Spider-Man 3 uses musical cues to accompany its villains. In this case, Young utilizes an ominous, foreboding mantra to communicate the dark temptation of the symbiote. But he also shows diversity in musical tone by using a moving score for the tragic Sandman character. Young’s score is easily one of the most underrated parts of Spider-Man 3.
4) Peter and Harry
The strength of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man movies is they focus on the relationships between the characters. One example of this in action is Peter and Harry’s friendship. The two start as best buds before Harry discovers Peter is Spidey in the second installment. At this point, Harry still thinks Spider-Man killed his dad, thus motivating Harry to pursue vengeance.
Spider-Man 3 is underrated in how satisfyingly it fulfills this arc in the movie. After an intense fight between a symbiote-infected Peter and Harry, we are left to believe their friendship is beyond repair. However, upon learning the truth behind his dad’s death, Harry sacrifices his life to help Peter in the last act. This makes his death all the more impactful and rounds off his arc in a fulfilling way.
3) Peter and MJ’s Relationship
Let me set the record straight –Â Spider-Man 2Â is one of my favorite movies of all time. But the area where I think it’s weakest is the Peter-MJ relationship. For Peter, his attraction to MJ seemed more like a crush than love, maybe even lust. You don’t get the sense you’re watching an adult relationship take place on-screen.
In Spider-Man 3, we see a more compelling relationship dynamic unfold. MJ’s theatre career is failing but Peter’s superhero life has never been better – alongside this, he’s also en route towards a staff job at the Daily Bugle. Peter’s self-absorption prevents him from giving MJ the support she needs. His surface-level platitudes don’t cut the mustard, leaving their relationship to suffer. It’s a real conflict that makes their relationship more interesting.
2) That Sandman Scene
Look, I can get that some people dislike Spider-Man 3. Heck, there are many reasons I don’t like the movie. But when people exaggerate it as a terrible movie to end all movies? I would direct those drama lamas to the ‘Sandman’s Birth’ scene.
Even now, 14 years later, the scene is moving in its approach. From the subtle way that the grains of sand stir at the start to the way the Sandman emerges and re-emerges as he figures out his new form, this scene is masterfully directed. Christopher Young’s profoundly ephemeral score amplifies the profundity of a truly fantastic scene.
1) Peter’s Journey
The main theme of Spider-Man 3 is about controlling one’s pride. At the beginning of the film, Peter is in a different place than he is in 2. Here, the public loves Spider-Man and, in turn, Peter enjoys being the wall-crawler, having found balance in his civilian and superhero lives. But with that, comes a great deal of pride – which the symbiote amplifies up to eleven when it latches onto him.
By the film’s mid-point, Peter forgets Aunt May’s wise words that a “man must put his wife before himself”. Suddenly, the love of his life isn’t MJ – it’s fame and glory. It’s only when a symbiote-infected Peter accidentally hurts MJ in a bar fight that he realizes his mistake. Peter’s journey in this movie is powerful and, indeed, is a lesson for us all.
Regardless of what director Sam Raimi says of Spider-Man 3, I still maintain it’s an underrated movie with plenty of memorable moments to make up for the bad. What do you think of the movie? Is its bad reputation exaggerated – or justified? Sound off in the comments below!