Monday, July 05, 2004

FAITH ON SUPERHEROES MOVIES RESTORED



Some time ago, I mentioned that I've lost my faith on silver screen interpretation of comic superheroes (May 8th 2004 entry). Well, I take that back after I've watched Spider-man 2 today! Man, I heard it was good, but I nv expect a comic superhero movie adaptation could be THAT good! It is EXCELLENT! I love all the characters (with the exception of one, which I'll mention later), and the show actually move me at certain parts!

One of the reason I hated most superheroes movies is my inability to sympatize with any of them. Neither Clark Kent aka Superman nor Bruce Wayne aka Batman are very interesting and complex character, but Peter Parker aka Spiderman is one dysfunctional superhero whose crumbling life everyone who is and was a youth can relate too. Also, the colourful supporting cast really makes the movie shines too, Aunt May, Mary Jane etc, and all the love/hate relationship thingie surrounding all the characters are amazingly complex and wonderful to watch.

The villain Dr. Otto Octavius, however, is the exception. He's rather... flat. Unhappy scientist once to revive his failed creation eventhough by he knows that by doing so he'll destroy the city bla bla bla... Man, must villains be so cliche? Can't they have more likeable villain like Magneto? He's one villain that I really rooted for, since I kinda supported his agenda (kill all the stupid humans. We mutants are the future! Than there will be no more war!) He's ideal is so much more realistic than Professor Xavier's one. And that is also one reason why I prefer Japanese manga/anime over western comics. Both hero and villain are more like shades of gray than either black(evil) or white(good).

Also, the movie is slightly preachy at times too. It's not necessary bad, but it's kinda distracting and slightly annoying. But then, the good far outweighs the bad, for I've seriously nv expected a movie based on a comic to be THIS good! I love the way it emphasizes more on character development/interaction than mindless bashing. Not to say that it is devoid of any action scenes, mind u. In fact, I throughoutly enjoy all the fight scenes between Spidey and Dr Ock. The special effects are quite impressive, but I'm glad that it's not so overused it overshadows the heart of the movie!

Overall, it's a great cinematix experience. And I will definitely be waiting eagerly for the release of Spiderman 3!!! Oh btw, I really adore all the beautiful comic book drawings during the opening sequence, showing scenes from the 1st Spiderman movie (great idea for a recap!). And the guy who plays Jonah Johnson, the fast-talking, unethical boss of Peter Parker, is made for that role. All of his scenes are nothing short of outrageously funny! Really enjoyed it all!

Also, I've watched 3 episodes of Trigun already. Have to say that it's the funniest 3 episodes of anime I've seen so far. The series definitely seems promising!

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