The Official "I Loved Raimi's Spider-Man' Thread - Part 1 of 99 Luft - - - Part 12

[Venom75]

I have yet to see Homecoming and I'll admit this is a biased answer coming from me,but the Raimi trilogy will always be my favorite Spider-man films. I have yet to see a Spider-man film that really had that epic feel to it. Each one of Raimi's films did,at least for me. Each movie that came out was an event. And the hype was HUGE,especially for Spider-man 3. Maybe it's also because those movies were my first introduction to Spidey on the big screen. Nothing beats seeing Spider-man,Doc Ock,Mary Jane,Venom;etc on the big screen for the first time. I also have a lot of good personal memories from that time period(2002-2007),and I've connected some of those good times to when each movie came out.
I never really cared for either of the "Amazing" films. They had their moments,but I just couldn't get into them. I honestly find the Amazing Spider-man the worst Spidey movie.
I will see Homecoming soon. But even if I love it,it still won't replace the original trilogy for me.

 

[Avenging Angel]

I'm debating to see it or not. The Raimi films are too strong a franchise to top. The characters are extremely visceral. Something I don't quite feel from this movie.

 

[Johnny-Oh]

Homecoming was really good but yeah it doesn't come close to Raimi's first 2 movies(and even moments from SM3). I think the fact that it's been so hard to top those movies is making people appreciate them more and more because I remember during the time leading up to the the first TASM, everyone would write them off as too "cheesy" and "childish" but now there's a lot less of those type of comments.

 

[Grootster]

Just re-watched the Raimi movies (actually, this was the first time I've seen #3), and I really enjoy them. After seeing Homecoming I said that was my favorite Spider-man, but now I'm still debating between that and Spider-man 2.

I like Spider-man 1 a lot. The storyline is interesting, the characters are well-defined, and the atmosphere is great. I went into this expecting not to like Mary Jane, but I found her more enjoyable than I remember. My only real complaint is that some of the action is a bit flat, a few of the fight scenes almost seem more like a TV show than a movie.

Spider-man 2 is genius, one of the best superhero movies I've seen. Doctor Octopus is a great villain, and I felt like this movie had the most interesting story for Peter. Both of these movies have done a great job applying CGI effects only where necessary, and making heavier use of practical effects and real sets, which makes the movie so much more immersive than something like the Amazing Spider-man. I still can't believe that Doc Ock's tentacles were mostly done with practical props.

I didn't hate Spider-man 3 by any means like some people do, but I do acknowledge that it's not as good as the first two. Venom felt a bit shoehorned in, and I was a little bored and/or not as invested in a couple places as I was the first two. This is the first one where I really started to dislike Mary Jane, I think she's overstayed her welcome at this point, and her storyline with Peter just feels repetitive. I wanted Peter to just give her up and fall in love with Gwen or that Russian girl from his apartment, but sadly that didn't happen. Aside from that, I thought that the CGI effects were noticeably worse (and more excessive) here than the first two. Still, I think it's a good movie, and it might get a little too much hate. I enjoyed the storyline with Harry for the most part, and the Sandman was a great character.

Overall I think it's a pretty solid series, with Spider-man 2 being the peak. I feel like it's a series that's pretty easy to get invested in and it's very story and character driven.

 

[Spidey_62]

After seeing Homecoming 4 times so far, I still say Spider-Man 2 is the best but Homecoming was a very well done Spidey movie and it's up there. They're two very different movies but both really capture what makes Spider-Man interesting.

 

[The Joker]

I agree. Love Homecoming to bits. My 2nd fav Spidey movie. But SM-2 is still the king for me.

 

[DX]

I agree. Love Homecoming to bits. My 2nd fav Spidey movie. But SM-2 is still the king for me.

This.

 

[ZeroDarkThirty]

Personally, I felt that 'The Amazing Spider-Man' blew Raimi's Spider-Man films out of the water. Unfortunately they screwed everything up with the sequel.

 

[The Joker]

TASM blew alright, but not anything out of the water.

 

[DX]

Personally, I felt that 'The Amazing Spider-Man' blew Raimi's Spider-Man films out of the water. Unfortunately they screwed everything up with the sequel.

1. Nope
2. Not the kind of thread for that, I'm afraid.

 

[Kreem Pi]

Personally, I felt that 'The Amazing Spider-Man' blew Raimi's Spider-Man films out of the water. Unfortunately they screwed everything up with the sequel.

How did it do that?

 

[Grootster]

I'm debating to see it or not. The Raimi films are too strong a franchise to top. The characters are extremely visceral. Something I don't quite feel from this movie.

I'd recommend Homecoming. It's very different in themes and tone than the Raimi films, I'd definitely give it at least one watch, even if you still end up preferring the original movies.

 

[Spider-Aziz]

I'm debating to see it or not. The Raimi films are too strong a franchise to top. The characters are extremely visceral. Something I don't quite feel from this movie.

Then don't set your expectations to that height if you eventually watch it.

Personally, I felt that 'The Amazing Spider-Man' blew Raimi's Spider-Man films out of the water. Unfortunately they screwed everything up with the sequel.

1. This is a place to appreciate Sam Raimi's trilogy, or ignore the third if you don't like it.
2. Although I love the first reboot, Sam Raimi's first movie is easily the finest one, and the original trilogy is easier to watch.

 

[Venom75]

After seeing Homecoming,my favorite Spidey films go like this:

1. Spider-man 2
2. Spider-man
3. Spider-man 3
4. Spider-man:Homecoming
5. The Amazing Spider-man 2
6. The Amazing Spider-man

 

[BatLobster]

You know, I think the thing about the first two Raimi films is they really are films for hopeless romantics. Like, if you were a nerd coming of age in the 90s/00s it was super easy to relate to that version Peter Parker, as much of dweeb as he was portrayed as at times. To see somebody that sheepish and awkward transform into a superhero was just pure escapism if you were at the right age for those films.

In an attempt to 'modernize' and be different, they overcorrected with TASM series and turned Peter into too much of a James Dean. Now with the MCU characterization, it's definitely a nice middle ground where Peter is definitely still a geek (and an actual decent person), but by putting him in a science school surrounded by other geeks and giving him a geekier best friend, it kind of makes him a bit "geeky cool" by default. There's nothing wrong with that, and considering how much things have changed since 2002 it feels appropriately modern and realistic while still keeping the essence of the character.

I just think on a fundamental level, it's more of an emotional hook to watch Peter struggle with his conflicting emotions of desperately wanting to get with MJ while trying his best to live up to "with great power comes great responsibility" than it is to see an overeager kid that's waiting for his number to be called by Tony Stark.

 

[Leenie]

You know, I think the thing about the first two Raimi films is they really are films for hopeless romantics. Like, if you were a nerd coming of age in the 90s/00s it was super easy to relate to that version Peter Parker, as much of dweeb as he was portrayed as at times. To see somebody that sheepish and awkward transform into a superhero was just pure escapism if you were at the right age for those films.

I think you make a great point here. I was a freshman in high school when the first Spider-Man movie came out. And yes, I was very sheepish and not popular at all. Even though I'm a woman, I most definitely related to Peter Parker when I was young, and I think the Sam Raimi movies captured that perfectly. Peter Parker is supposed to be relatable, and for the time period that these movies came out, I think they succeeded big time.

I also agree in a way that this series is for hopeless romantics, as I believe Raimi romanticized the Spider-Man mythos in many ways (which makes these particular movies feel SO cinematic to me). Personally, I can still feel the love that was put into these films. These movies have so much heart, even Spider-Man 3 (as messy as that film is).

Also, while I really, really, REALLY enjoyed Spider-Man: Homecoming and have very few nitpicks or complaints about it, I find the Raimi movies to be more artistic. Why? Well, Spider-Man: Homecoming feels like a Marvel movie. Sam Raimi's Spider-Man feels like a Sam Raimi movie. Raimi's personality and fingerprints are all over his movies, and that's kind of a really rare thing with comic book movies nowadays post-Dark Knight Trilogy. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy the Marvel movies ... But the Sam Raimi films feel much more special to me.

The Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies also feel special to me because they helped shape my taste and enthusiasm for cinema altogether. The first two Spider-Man movies are the first movies where I absolutely needed to learn everything about how they were made. In doing so, I discovered the Evil Dead movies, which then led me to discover Raimi's collaborations with the Coen Brothers (who have made some of my utmost favorite films of all time) ... Thus creating this domino effect of me discovering great films.

 

[Grootster]

BatLobsterRises, you make a good point. I think it's interesting to watch these different incarnations of Spider-man and see how he changes and modernizes. I do feel like Raimi's version is very relatable and accessible.

 

[BatLobster]

@Leenie, ditto for me. The Raimi films were definitely a gateway drug for me in terms of learning more about his past work and expanding my interest in cinema in general. Totally agree that his movies felt like Sam Raimi movies, while Homecoming has that familiar Marvel flavor. This is especially apparent in the action sequences.

 

[henzINNIT]

I think it's a testament to the Raimi trilogy that the following films have had a hard time adjusting. That first incarnation nailed several things so well that these reboots have to dodge them. ASM sunk in part because of that I think.

Homecoming was really fun, though I still feel like some decisions were noticably forced because they couldn't retread previous films. A tough path to walk, and the film mostly succeeds. Vulture in particular is fantastic. There's a ton of great character scenes, the least interesting stuff was probably the action.

It's still Raimi for me, but I can certainly see why a lot of people are super happy about Homecoming.

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

Finally saw Spider-man: Homecoming last night:

While I'm sure it will work great as a Spider-Man for a new generation, certainly for kids and teenagers, it just didn't do all that much for me. I'll follow the BATMAN character anywhere, but I've realised that just isn't the case with SPIDER-MAN. I honestly didn't feel that much excitement when watching this. I can appreciate it as a well put together movie, but that's pretty much it.

It still doesn't come close to the Raimi series for me or made me feel as elated as I did watching the final swing during SPIDER-MAN (2002). This blows the AMAZING series out of the water, but simply didn't touch the original trilogy.

HOMECOMING was merely a decent movie, but nothing special (outside of Keaton). Holland deserves a stronger script as well.

 

[Darkmania]

Yes, Spidey 2 is still king. I would rank in the following way;

1. Spidey 2
2. Spidey
3. Homecoming
4. Spidey 3
5. Amazing Spidey 1
6. Amazing Spidey 2

If Raimi's third movie was just tweaked a bit; better Goblin 2 suit, someone other than Topher as venom (and I like Topher just not for that role), and the whole Sandman/Uncle Ben thing, I think Spidey 3 would rank above Homecoming.

 

[Zantera]

The trilogy still holds up for me, even SM3, which has flaws, I still enjoy far more than the TASM films. I know the scene people tend to hate on the most is Peter dancing down the street and while not a good scene, I will say it's better than the jazz club scene which is easily the worst scene in the movie for me. I don't necessarily agree with the "bad villains" complaint because I think Venom is really the only one who suffers. I think Sandman is actually really great (exception of him killing Ben) and his backstory/motivation is something I can get behind. Harry's evolution across the 3 films is IMO good, and I liked him teaming up with Peter at the end.

As for the Peter/MJ relationship, I used to think MJ was in the wrong but the more I've seen it, I actually like how human both of them feel. Peter definitely comes off as arrogant and having let the Spider-Man fame get to his head. He isn't really there for MJ and while she also makes mistakes (like not telling him about getting fired), he does come off as a bit of a tool when he's trying to comfort her. Plus I mean, what was he really thinking with the Gwen kiss? I do feel like Gwen doesn't really have a reason to be in the movie though. Even with setting up the Eddie/Peter rivalry, I feel like Peter ruining Eddie's career would have been motivation enough really.

But also, I feel like the score deserves some praise. Yes, Danny Elfman had already made great music for the first two, but I feel Christopher Young deserves credit for his score in SM3. There's a lot of memorable music, and I feel like in certain scenes it really elevates what's happening.

Also while the movie definitely has some awkward scenes (jazz club dance, MJ/harry cooking, "look at goblin junior, you gonna cry?" etc), I also feel like the movie has some genuinely great scenes. The birth of Sandman, the scene between Peter and Sandman at the end when he tells his side of the story (and that music) and I would also say the moment after the brawl at the jazz club when Peter realizes what he has become. That's why I feel like SM3 isn't a bad movie, it's just a flawed one.

 

[AVEITWITHJAMON]

Yeah I finally saw Homecoming last week and while I enjoyed it, itdoesnt hold a candle to the first 2 Raimi movies for me.

It had none of the pathos and emotion of the Raimi movies, and it didn't have the down on his luck everyman feel that is important to the Spiderman character for me, and Raimi nailed that aspect.

Also, barely any mention of Uncle Ben was nigh on criminal. Homecoming did have some really good moments and a good villain. And I think the sequel could be great. But the first 2 Raimi movies are still the team of the Spidey on film crop for me.

 

[Herofan]

Also while the movie definitely has some awkward scenes (jazz club dance, MJ/harry cooking, "look at goblin junior, you gonna cry?" etc), I also feel like the movie has some genuinely great scenes. The birth of Sandman, the scene between Peter and Sandman at the end when he tells his side of the story (and that music) and I would also say the moment after the brawl at the jazz club when Peter realizes what he has become.

Peter hitting MJ, even accidentally, was probably a franchise-ending moment, one of the memorable ways that SM3 went too far.

 

[Vampfox]

Also while the movie definitely has some awkward scenes (jazz club dance, MJ/harry cooking, look at goblin junior, you gonna cry?

Personally I thought the little Goblin Junior line was a great line.

Peter hitting MJ, even accidentally, was probably a franchise-ending moment, one of the memorable ways that SM3 went too far.

I don't see how it went too far. That scene was needed for Peter to ultimately reject the black suit.