Columbia Pictures, 2004. A Marvel Enterprises/Laura Ziskin Production. Based on the Marvel Comic Book by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. Screen Story by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar and Michael Chabon. Screenplay by Alvin Sargent. Directed by Sam Raimi. Starring Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst and Alfred Molina.

     By Stephen Pytak 

     This is the best film I've seen in 
some time.
     Director Sam Raimi's unique 
style is the reason why.
     But he couldn't have pulled it off
without the return of Tobey Maguire
to the title role.
     I grew up reading "Spider-Man"
comics and had hopes and visions
of what "Spider-Man" films would
be like.
     Raimi pays homage to a lot of
the existing reference materials, the
1967 cartoon series in particular.
     I'm no "Spider-Man" expert,
but I think he went above and 
beyond in that department.
     But that's not all he's brought
to this sweet baby.
     Back in the day, I was unfamiliar 
with what I'd like to call "The Sam 
Raimi Hero's Journey."
     But then I saw "Evil Dead (1983)" and
"Evil Dead II (1987)" and, yes, "Army
of Darkness (1993)."
     Here's the skinny.
    In many of Raimi's fantasy films,
his heroes take a lickin' in one way
or another, and prove themselves
by somehow bouncing back.
     In "Spider-Man 2," it's Peter
Parker's turn.
     Our story takes place two years after
the first film. Parker (Maguire) is 
in college. He's struggling with grades,
with money, with heartache, and with
being "Spider-Man."
     Raimi and Maguire take great pains
(I'm sure Maguire suffered the most) to
illustrate all of this.
     There are close calls and crashes,
trips and, jeez, I don't know how to
describe the suffering Parker/Spider-
Man went through trying to stop a 
speeding train.
     And sometimes Raimi's mischievious
sense of humor was working over
time.
     I don't know who's idea it was to 
weave in a certain Burt Bacharach
song, probably the director's, but 
that was hilarious.
     The bottom line is, these guys 
took a character everybody knows
and made his story fresh. It's
touching. It's painful (in more
ways than one.) And it's 
thrilling.
     It's shocking too.
     Just ask anyone who's seen it
what they thought of the scene in
the hospital.
     In short, Doc Ock's arms go
to town on an unsuspecting operating
room staff.
     My wife covered her eyes.
     I said "Wow!'
     It's brutal. I doubt anyone survived.
Raimi pushed the limits on his PG-13 
rating. It's more violent than "Army
of Darkness," and that damn thing
got an R.
     The action scenes won't 
disappoint. The fight on the speeding
train is the best. But they're all 
worth seeing over and over and over.
     It's been a long time since I've
seen a Raimi film that had such
life.
     The first "Spider-Man (2002)"
wasn't bad.
     But this time out, it doesn't feel
like anyone's holding Raimi back.
     I don't know what's going on 
behind the scenes. Whatever the
case, they got it right.
     My only real beef is the title.
I thought they'd call it "The Amazing
Spider-Man" or something like that.
     But who cares about titles.
That's not what's important when
the lights go down and movie
starts.