This summer has what I call a “Great Trinity of Summer 2007”. Those 3 giant films that will probably dwarf all others, Transformers, Pirates 3 and obviously Spider-Man 3. Well, there have been a number of screening for Spider-Man 3… and while no one should get too excited or too worried at early early early feedback…. the stuff I’ve been hearing about Spidey 3 isn’t so great. Not bad… but not great either.
One reader sent me this earlier:
A couple of friends I used to work with in a publishing company got to a screening of S3 on Wed night and their reactions were a little disheartening. Bear in mind these are film critics I totally trust the judgements of who both loved the first films. Basically the consusus was:
Good:
The humour is still great, Bruce’s cameo is very very funny.
The effects for the most part stand up really well, Sandman is excellent and similar to The Mummy stuffBad:
The Peter/MJ relationship has nothing to it now they’re together.
The plot is ok but mostly serves to set up each new villain and fight sequence.
There are too many new characters to deal with
After a pretty awesome finale the aftermath was so weak about 50 ppl apparently left a couple of scenes from the end.
When asked at the Tokyo premier, Tobey Maguire was reportedly asked by the Associated Press what he thought of the film to which he said:
“I Don’t Know, I Kind Of Liked It”
Even some of the more positive feedback coming out of Spider-Man 3 seems to be tempered. Take for example this quote from EOnline:
We were all so gassed to see this, and for a change, we weren’t disappointed. It’s not perfect. It’s not the best of the three (the original still holds the crown). It won’t be the finest film at the theater this summer (at least, I hope not!).
Now, let me repeat that it’s unwise to get too excited or too worried at just a couple of early quotes about a movie. Hang in there and wait to see what sort of consensus forms amongst a larger group of people who have seen it. But I will admit I’m a little surprised to hear this kind of stuff. Let’s wait and see.
I saw spiderman 3, and I liked it very much. being a spidey fan it is difficult to be objective but I think this third installment fullfilled my expectations and even more. I Liked the action scenes with venom and sandman, the relationships between different characters get more complex, more mature and probably realistic.I would not rank each of the three movies. However, everybody expects a “better” movie after having seen the previous ones. with spidey 3 the stakes are very high. if there is another spidey movie, it is going to be hard to make it better than 1,2,3. Time will tell. I only hope not to see in the future flop movies involving our friedly neighborhood spiderman!
I agree with most that Tansformer will not make the top three billing.
Wanna know why….?
whoops-might be a little confusing because I forgot to put in quotations-here:
zxzxc said :
“Opinions are like assholes and every one is entitled to them, but uneducated, unresearched opinions are nothing more than a pile of crap. The fact of the matter is that Skrek 2 is the third highest grossing movie of all time, behind only Titanic and Star Wars. You can believe the Shrek 3 will do much better than Transformers and if you still disagree, please contact me by email so when can bet any amount of money you want on it. :) yum yum
You call it the “Great Trinity of Summer,” you don’t even mention the Harry Potter movie, all the HP movies have grossed upwards of 250 million. Transformers is not as big as Harry Potter, no way is grosses more money. Transformers won’t even be in the top 5 for the summer, between DH4, Simpsons, and the new Pixar movie, one of them is bound to take that spot.”
zxzxc said :
Opinions are like assholes and every one is entitled to them, but uneducated, unresearched opinions are nothing more than a pile of crap. The fact of the matter is that Skrek 2 is the third highest grossing movie of all time, behind only Titanic and Star Wars. You can believe the Shrek 3 will do much better than Transformers and if you still disagree, please contact me by email so when can bet any amount of money you want on it. :) yum yum
You call it the “Great Trinity of Summer,” you don’t even mention the Harry Potter movie, all the HP movies have grossed upwards of 250 million. Transformers is not as big as Harry Potter, no way is grosses more money. Transformers won’t even be in the top 5 for the summer, between DH4, Simpsons, and the new Pixar movie, one of them is bound to take that spot.
Why are so many of you concerned with the amount of money these movies are gonna gross?
It’s like someone anticipating The superbowl-arguing how many tickets they’re gonna sell this year to last-or how many million viewers its going to have against the Desperate Housewives finale…why?
Jay said “My thing has always been, if you like what the movie seems to be about, go see it and decide for yourself if it’s good or not. Dont let someone else do it for you.”
That’s the exact mindset you should have when going to see a movie.
Well said.
According to a ComingSoon.net article, Sam Raimi recently confirmed that Sony wants to do Spider-Man 4, 5, and 6. He wasn’t sure whether he could be involved or if they’d even want him to continue with them, but he said it would be hard to leave the Spider-Man franchise.
The link is:
http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=19999
“So just so I understand you right… you think one l thing (Spidey, Pirates and Shrek) and that’s fine… no bias.
But I think something different from you (Transformers) and I’m bias? RRRiiiggghhhtttt. Ok.”
—-
Opinions are like assholes and every one is entitled to them, but uneducated, unresearched opinions are nothing more than a pile of crap. The fact of the matter is that Skrek 2 is the third highest grossing movie of all time, behind only Titanic and Star Wars. You can believe the Shrek 3 will do much better than Transformers and if you still disagree, please contact me by email so when can bet any amount of money you want on it. :) yum yum
You call it the “Great Trinity of Summer,” you don’t even mention the Harry Potter movie, all the HP movies have grossed upwards of 250 million. Transformers is not as big as Harry Potter, no way is grosses more money. Transformers won’t even be in the top 5 for the summer, between DH4, Simpsons, and the new Pixar movie, one of them is bound to take that spot.
the hollywood reporter review likes it…..
i have to be honest..I love the spider man films but I am a bit wary of this one for some reason…none of the trailers have really grabbed me…..I have tickets for openiong night though but for the first time I am not that excited….I am more excited about die hard 4 to be honest..that last trailer was fucking awesome ….except for kevin smith who I have gone off after clerks 2…anyway
hey has anyone read the new empire magazine??
sorry for going off topic bit here but i just read an interview with peter cullen and he says that this version of optimus prime
“is now a little more colloquial..a little more trying to be hip”
does that not worry some of you…
“ratchet don’t even go there”
“talk to the hand starscream”
I know you disregard anything I say due to my dislike of the film so far but seriously..that does sound as little worrying in a podracing announcer “thats gotta hurt” type of way…
but shit…look at the movies we have coming up…..it is going to be an insane season..starting with spider man in 2 weeks
I know it’s been said before both here and by John, but it’s been my fear from the beginning, that bringing in too many villians will take away from the movie.
That and the relationship thing with MJ gives too many plot points that can spin out of control.
I’m still pumped about Spidey 3, but I’m more reserved about my expectations, in hopes that I won’t be let down I guess.
@Chisox
I agree.
I was just pointing out the fact that reviews are going to vary as much as opinions do. That is to say, quite a lot.
My thing has always been, if you like what the movie seems to be about, go see it and decide for yourself if it’s good or not. Dont let someone else do it for you.
But I do agree with you that AICN is a haven for plants. I wasnt really saying listen to one over the other, just that you shouldnt let others tell you how to feel about something.
and harry potter
Shrek 3 will be in the top 3 of highest grossing summer movies. Even ahead of 1 if not 2 of these 3 movies
Yeah, Shrek 3 is gonna be a beast. Parents will be aching to get rid of their kids for a few hours, and Shrek is that chance.
I think you underestimate the power of the Shrek 3…
I saw this movie on Wednesday night at the Leicester Square screening in London, and I have to say, it was very disappointing. Unengaging villains – Raimi has said he was originally against having Venom in the film and it shows, plus Sandman has a terrible backstory — and the story is all over the place. It is true that about 50 to 70 people left before the film finished — this is definitely the least successful Spider-Man film. I have heard people compare it to Batman Forever… and to be honest, they’re not far off.
Yanoe I’m kinda hoping they don’t make a 4th movie.. cos honestly I’m kinda bored with Spiderman movies, and if they make a 4th one I know I’m gonna go see it anyways and then hate myself afterwards.
At this point I don’t really care what the reviews are saying, I’m still gonna go see it and unless Raimi rip it to shreds like Ratner did with X3, I’ll say it’s about what I expected.
JAY AICN is the worst website for studio plants.
Darren, I was the ‘reader’ I am not a plant and have been reading TMB for about two years.
As for the screening it was in London and my ‘friends’ work for Film Review magazine. I used to work there and went to the Spiderman 2, T3, and War of the Worlds screenings while I was employed. These were often weeks before the official Premieres.
Just to set the record straight . . .
my bad! i just skimmed thru your blog and misread it. I thought someone else made up the phrase “Great Trinity of Summer 2007”, and you included Tranformers instead of Shrek 3. so i thought you were showing your bias by doing that.
Nonetheless, i think Shrek 3 will annihilate the Transformers. I’ve read box office analysts that said Shrek 3, Spiderman 3 and pirates 3 are going to be the kings of the Summer box office, and they will probably dominate all others. So i’m just going by what they’re saying.
Hey Louman2
So just so I understand you right… you think one l thing (Spidey, Pirates and Shrek) and that’s fine… no bias.
But I think something different from you (Transformers) and I’m bias? RRRiiiggghhhtttt. Ok.
Your bias is coming thru. I’ve not heard of this phrase “Great Trinity of Summer 2007”, but i’ll bet that they meant Pirates 3, Spider-Man 3, AND SHREK 3 (NOT TRANSFORMERS!).. that’s what they meant by Trinity (3 sequels from 3 of the highest grossing movies of all time).
I’ve read the glowing reviews over at AICN too, Ray.
They dont agree at all with the way this guy is trying to play it.
For christs sake, E!Online said that the first one was better than the second one. Who actually agrees with that? Not me, I can tell ya that much.
And the Tobey quote… C’mon man, What’s he gonna say?
“It was the best movie ever made”. Tobey has never struck me as that type of dude in interviews. He always comes across as a little sheepish and understated. Like that quote would suggest.
Either way,
I’m still just as pumped for this flick as I’ve ever been.
E!Online and some random dudes friends (who may or may not have actually even seen the movie) arent gonna temper my excitement one bit.
i think the maquire quote has been taken out of context….i really doubt he said that in the way it is being portrayed……
I agree with john though…there really doesn’t seem to be the same buzz and hype for a spider man film as there has been in the past….we are still 2 weeks away but i just don’t think people are as jazzed as they were last time….i guess that happens though the higher the number at the end of the title the less people start to care – it happens with most franchises……i think it will clear 100 mill opening weekend still…i mean I aint that excited and i have bought tickets already so there you go……
Spider-Man 3 from what I’ve seen looks amazing. The Harry vs Peter fight was a trill to watch. Venom looks outstanding. People keep complaining about three villains in any Superhero film will be bad, and people use BATMAN AND ROBIN as an example. Well using an example like that is fucking outrageous. BATMAN AND ROBIN was utter shit not due to three villains but due to the shitty script and directing. Bat-nipples? Come on it had shit written all over it. Not even Clooney could make the Batman character work. So don’t be saying a lot of villains don’t work when Batman Begins proved that totally wrong.
Alright thats my little rant there.
Maguire saying ”I kind of like it” seems to be a bit not trust worthy. The guy is smart enough to not to say that before the American and European releases. If Maguire did indeed say these words I doubt he meant it in a serious tone.
”After a pretty awesome finale the aftermath was so weak about 50 ppl apparently left a couple of scenes from the end.”
Why would people leave a couple of scenes before the end? For all they know it would have been important. Some people annoy me when they do this.
To Washington:
YES! I for one thought the second one was inferior to the first. In fact, even the first was quite average in my opinion. I’d be happy if they reboot the entire franchise.
I remember reading the sea of glowing reviews to the second Spiderman, before seeing it, and only ONE review was actually shyly noticing that this wasn’t actually such a good movie at all, for several reasons. After seeing the movie I realized that this one review was the only one which was seeing things for what they were. Sometimes I look at the world, at the raving reviews for some movie or another, at the millions they make, and I wonder what’s wrong with people. The Star Wars prequels, most of the Harry Potters, the Spiderman movies, Narnia… It’s interesting that sometimes times has to pass in order for people to admit certain things – that yeah, those prequels kinda sucked, that that one movie wasn’t in fact very good, that that other movie was actually terrible etc. Lately there are very few people that manage to see things for what they are, through the hype that precedes or follows some popular movies.
I’m a bit shocked at you, Gio. This sounds a lot like a rival studio plant job.
Smells like it, anyway.
Let me put it this way: the reader is giving his opinion on a movie he hasn’t seen, but that his “friends” seen Wed night (sure they did). He’s telling you that these friends ALL had mixed reactions- the same reactions. So he’s telling you what they told him. In addition, the Spidey 3 screenings haven’t been in North America yet. Oops. The first time S3 wll show up in the states is during next weeks Tribeca Fest in NYC. Now, it could refer to the screenings in Toyko (which is how AICN reported on the film-and they gave S3 high marks)
“The plot is ok but mostly serves to set up each new villain and fight sequence.”
I laughed hard at this one. It’s not the case. I know I was a naughty, naughty boy for reading the novelization first, but if the film has even HALF of what the novel describes that that above statement is strongly inaccurate.
As for Tobey: The next day…
“I feel like we really got into some new territory for Peter Parker,” Maguire told a news conference Tuesday. “I really enjoyed it.”
Will the real Tobey McGuire please stand up. In any case, he didn’t say he hated it. ;|
Related:http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=19983
or…make up your mind Sam.
While I am looking forward to seeing this one I’m actually more excited about the game. There’s even a strong posibility I won’t see it until it’s on Blu-ray, but that’s mostly due to a suspended license.
Honestly, the wait is killing me. I really do need to know for myself. To be honest, if i can sit through Ghost Rider, i can sit through a poor Spider-man film but we’ll see.
If it doesn’t work, it won’t be because Raimi didn’t try; i know that much.
Check this shit out – loads of new clips
http://uk.rottentomatoes.com/m/spiderman_3/trailers_player.php?IGNMediaID=1964222&playerType=playlist
Audiences aren’t stupid they know that if Dunst likes the movie then everyone will love it.
Who cares what the reviewers said? What did KIRSTEN DUNST think about it?! It’s her opinion that matters above all, seeing as how she’s a priceless gem or some shit according to her.
This is very different from the early reviews I read over at aintitcoolnews.com . There early reviews were glowing, saying three was easily the bets out of the bunch..
You insulted Tobey Maguire because of his response? What? You were expecting a speech or some kind of propaganda?
“I don’t know, I kinda liked it.”
Knowing that morons like him can make it in hollywood gives me hope.
Well John, mixed reviews are better then negative reviews.
That’s one of the things I’ve worried about, too many bad guys. But won’t know until I see it.
He was in Japan, jetlag maybe
Could it be that Toby was quoted saying it sarcastically, and the distortion machine that is called The Media has construed it to cause CONTROVERSY?!
Hey John,
I don’t know – It would seem to me if these reviews are true and even TOBY is giving a lackluster feel. The “I kinda liked it” doesn’t inspire one to think of greatness. My only hope is – is that he’s being that way to make it seem like it’s not as good ..when it’s REALLY GREAT. But my feeling is there’s something to worry about.Especially for the hardcore fans.. No Doubt. My 3 Cents ..
I thought S2 was far superior to the first one!
Surprised at the mixed reaction but your right John (as you usually are!) more people need to see it to get a better picture.
although to be honest 6 billion people could say this was the most god awful film ever created and I’d still go see it.
Twice
Spidey 3 for UN Secretary
Did anyone really think the first one was better than the second?
Hmm. Mixed reviews are better than flat-out shit reviews. I’m gonna go see it in IMAX.