Spiderman 2

Review by Richard Lee

Columbia Tristar / 2004 / 127 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: November 30, 2004

Specifications:
-DVD-Video
-DVD-9
-Region 1

Aspect Ratio:
-2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen

Main Menu:
-Play Movie
-Scene Selections
-Special Features
-Languages
-Previews

Audio:
-English 5.1(Choose if you have a full surround-system with sub-woofer.)
-English Dolby Surround(Choose if using TV speakers only.)
-French/Francais 5.1
-Spanish/Espanol 2.0

Subtitles:
-English
-French/Francais
-Spanish/Espanol
-Subtitles Off

Special Features - Disc 1
-Commentaries - Cast & Crew/Technical
-Spidey Sense 2
-Web-i-sodes
-Music Video: "Ordinary" by Train
-Blooper Reel
-Previews

After the phenomenal success of "Spider-Man", virtually the entire cast and crew return for the inevitable sequel which proves to be even more compelling and at times emotionally moving. This is due largely to director Sam Raimi's love of the genre; his kinetic and flashy visual directing style and the winning performances of Tobey Maguire as the comic book hero, J.K. Simmons' rapid-fire delivery as Jonah Jameson the newspaper editor, and Alfred Molina as Doctor Otto Octavius, a far more formidable villain than the Green Goblin in the previous film. 

At the beginning we find Spider-Man, alias Peter Parker trying and failing to make ends meet as a pizza delivery man and free-lance photographer for the Daily Bugle. Peter is still at odds with his best friend Harry Osborn(James Franco) who wants revenge against Spider-Man for the death of his father and with Mary Jane Watson(Kirsten Dunst) with whom he fears commitment because it would put her life in danger. Harry is the chief financial provider for Dr. Octavius' experiment with a new energy source involving fusion. When the experiment goes horribly wrong, as they always do in superhero movies, the doctor is transformed into Doc Ock, an evil alter ego with four menacing mechanical arms who proceeds to wreak havoc upon the populace. This sets the stage for some of the most exiting action set pieces ever committed to celluloid; obviously not physically possible without taking full advantage of what modern computer effects technology has to offer. Spider-Man 2 is one of those rare examples of a sequel that not only meets but surpasses the expectations set upon it by the original.

Picture Quality:

Like the "Spider-Man" dvd before it, the picture resolution of "Spider-Man 2" is very sharp with warm and flush flesh tones and dark contrasts. With the bit rate nearly maxed out over the dual layers of the disc, little or no artifacting is noticeable during scenes with rapid motion which is pretty much every time Spidey is swinging through the cityscape.

Audio Quality:

Aggressive 5.1 mix with Doc Ock's tentacles taxing the LFE channel like the T Rex from "Jurassic Park". Highlights for demo purposes: 34:00 - Doctor Octavius' ill-fated experiment; 47:52 - Bank Robbery and Building Battle Sequence; 1:33:48 - Battle on the Subway (the film's best sequence).

Special Features - Disc 2:

Main Menu:
-Making The Amazing
-Featurettes
-Enter The Web
-Gallery
-Interactive
-Languages

Subtitle Options :
-Spanish/Espanol
-Portuguese/Portugues
-Chinese
-Subtitles Off
Disc 2 is chock full of supplements in addition to the feature and other special features on Disc 1; beginning with "Making The Amazing", a 126 minute documentary covering the production of "Spider-Man 2" from the pre-production phase to the premiere. Also to be found on the menu for "Making The Amazing" is an easter egg; by selecting/highlighting Doc Ock's upper right tentacle(which would be the left one on the screen), we get a humorous bit where the director Sam Raimi gives Alfred Molina the motivation for his role by showing him a scene where Doc Ock is played by a surprise guest. 

"Featurettes" includes 3: "Hero In Crisis", "Ock-umentary: Eight Arms to Hold You" and "Interwoven: The Women of Spider-Man".

"Enter The Web" is a unique behind-the-scenes look in real time at the shooting of the film's climax where you can choose between 4 different angles of what's going on in front of and behind the camera. 

"Gallery" shows the paintings done by Alex Ross that were shown during the opening credits of the film.

"Interactive" features the trailer and a making of featurette of Activision's Spider-Man 2 video game. There is also an explanation of the DVD-ROM features of this disc.