Ah, Friday. Today is the first day in a long time where I haven't started the day drugged up. I feel washed out; kind of tired.

I couldn't force Jon away from his computer last night; I'm not going to watch Evil Dead II unless I have someone to inflict it on. So I watched Spider-Man. I think my initial reaction to Spider-man II is correct; the sequel is a superior movie. How often do I get to say that? Aliens, The Empire Strikes Back, Godfather II...

I still love and enjoy the first movie. Raimi, however, didn't seem to be speaking with his own unique voice. I point out the entire "World Unity Festival" sequence. Too much seems to be borrowed from Tim Burton's Batman. I liked Batman but it didn't capture my imagination the way the Spider-Man franchise does (I could say the same thing for the comic books themselves). Like I said previously, I think the studio suits had decided that Raimi has the ability to create a movie that would make them bucks so they backed off.

Afred Molina comes off better than Willem Dafoe, but I don't neccessarily think that's entirely fair. Doc Ock's costume didn't have his face covered which allowed more emoting. I also noticed that Maguire (yes, I finally figured out how to spell his name) got to keep his mask off for a good deal of the second movie which allowed us to appreciate his acting that much more. Yes, I think nerd-boy is a fine actor. After the first movie I sought out a few of his other movies: The Cider House Rules, Pleasantville, Wonder Boys, and some of the things he's done with Ang Lee (Ride with the Devil and The Ice Storm). He's a good actor. He's unfortunately saddled with that 'boyish' look but that works well in his favor for the web slinger. Take for instance, Orlando Bloom. Imagine him as Spider-Man. Can't, can you? He hasn't yet shown any ability to display strong emotions.

Also better were the CGI action sequences. Spidey's still a bit cartooney, but it's not as egregious as it was in the first movie. I feel stupid complaining about cartooney action in a comic book movie.

How about themes? The first movie's theme was spelled out to us: with great power comes great responsibility. Parker's guilt-driven motivation to do good struck me as realistic, but the theme didn't resonate with me the way the theme of the second movie did. Spider-Man II's theme seemed to be that in order to do the right thing, to stay on the right path, sacrifices must be made, even if it means giving up your dreams.

For this selfish little Libertarian that's mighty heavy, and sacrifice is a word that sticks in my craw. No one should have to feel like they have to stay miserable. When Peter walked away from Spider-Man, I was on his side. It's his life! But I can understand why he went back; having to deal with his concience ended up making him more miserable than before.

But There has to be a way to do the right thing and to find the things that make you happy. That's why the subway scene made me feel verklempt, and Mary Jane's decision at the end had me BVD'ing for joy.

Well, I hope you had your hip boots on for that last segment! Did I mention that I liked this movie?