"Spider-Man Movie Trilogy" - Missed Opportunities?

[Spider-Man]

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Spider-Man Movie Trilogy

With Spider-Man 3 now on DVD (talkback (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=200065)), we now have the first Spider-Man Movie Trilogy released. Looking back on these three films, what do you think were the missed opportunities, if any? Do you think they could have improved a character, expanded another, or did they achieve that across the board. When Raimi mentioned that Ben Kingsley was to originally set to play The Vulture in Spider-Man 3, I couldn't help but think about the missed opportunities in the franchise and what we could possibly see for the next Spider-Man Trilogy.

Thoughts?

If you want to talk about the individual merits of the movies, the talkbacks are linked below. If you want to talk about the Spider-Man 3 DVD release, please go here (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=200065).

Related Threads:
-Spider-Man Talkback (Spoilers) (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=31938)
-Spider-Man 2 Feature Talkback (Spoilers) (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=115099)
-Spider-Man 3 (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=189553) Feature Talkback (Spoilers) (http://forums.toonzone.net/showthread.php?t=189553)

[Jacob T. Paschal]

Sandman, sadly he never got the exposure he needed because most of his story was cut to make the film shorter due to that pest, Venom.

[silverwings]

Each film got potentially worse for me. They wasted the mutation effects, Doc Ock was the only decent thing about film 2... don't even get me started on 3, which was by far the worst.

I dunno, maybe I'm a sucker for origin stories, but the first film was the one that most felt like a SM film to me. The others seemed to lose that charm and wit that makes Spiderman, well, Spiderman.

[DarkAngel]

Each film got potentially worse for me.
I think I agree.

I really, really wish they'd cast Dunst as Gwen Stacy and had her die in the bridge sequence at the end of the first movie. And I would have liked to have seen Bryce Howard as MJ in the remaining movies. Casting aside, I think the tragedy of Gwen's death and the exploration of its impact on Pete (coupled with the death of his uncle) would have been something special to see. That was a huge missed opportunity, IMO.

[Mikintosh]

My thinking's completely the opposite of both you. I thought the films got better as each one came out, and I think Dunst has been a much more important part of the franchise then most of the fanboys give her credit for. I'm glad they opted to tell the Spidey story with MJ from the beginning as it gave the three movies a cohesiveness in terms of storytelling that even the hollowed Stan Lee years on the comic book didn't have. Gwen Stacy's death may be well remembered, but the character herself was just a very long-lasting distraction. Howard was good, but I still don't consider her leading lady material yet.

In fact, my only qualm is the neither of the Stacys were used sufficiently in 3, but I loved the film anyway. And Ben Kingsley as the Vulture would've been ridiculous except as a pre-credits scene, if anything.

[Hanshotfirst113]

3 was a simple case of too many cooks in the kitchen. The Stacys and Venom could have been excised entirely and left things far leaner and more managable. It was just that they bit off way more than they could chew, IMO.

[Hades]

The only missed oppurrunity was Gwen Stacy. In 3, they should have killed MJ, had Peter get really depressed about it, blaming it on himself for wearing the black costume and Gwen was there to pick him up and the two end up falling in love.

[email2003]

The only missed oppurrunity was Gwen Stacy. In 3, they should have killed MJ, had Peter get really depressed about it, blaming it on himself for wearing the black costume and Gwen was there to pick him up and the two end up falling in love.
Not bad, but too much love crap killed the sequeals! The 1st movie was by far the best for some reason, except for Green Goblin's terrible outfit.

[DarkAngel]

I'm glad they opted to tell the Spidey story with MJ from the beginning as it gave the three movies a cohesiveness in terms of storytelling that even the hollowed Stan Lee years on the comic book didn't have. Gwen Stacy's death may be well remembered, but the character herself was just a very long-lasting distraction. Howard was good, but I still don't consider her leading lady material yet.
MJ would be introduced in the first, so there would be continuity and cohesiveness. I'd just wanted to see Gwen set up as the love interest initially. The friendship with MJ would be still established in the first and developed as the trilogy progressed. And featuring Gwen early would make more sense and eliminate a needless, unnecessary element from the third movie.

Howard wasn't given a lot to do in S3, but she's more talented than Dunst and would have made a much better MJ.

Also, I want to mention that I probably did like Spidey 3 more than the previous two. But, it's just not a very good movie. As was mentioned above, there were "too many cooks in the kitchen" resulting in a bit of a mess.

DA

[thedanmachine]

I feel like they seriously missed an opportunity with The Lizard, who I feel like weve been waiting to show up since #2.

[Jeff Harris]

Dr. Curt Connors - You know, they've been flirting with the fans by putting him in every movie. Comic fans know he becomes The Lizard, but, alas, Dr. Connors' reptilian side was never exposed. Pity.

Gwen Stacy - What exactly was the point of her character? Really? She was the pretty, intelligent, and charming daughter of a police commisioner. She flirted with Spider-Man and Peter Parker, but ended up being hurt emotionally in her last scene. It's almost like they introduced her for no reason only to see Peter Parker act like a jerk. I know she was important in character development for Spider-Man in the comics, but her addition to the movie mythos, especially in the third movie, was pointless and unnecessary.

Venom - Oddly enough, I enjoyed Eddie Brock's scenes in the movie rather than Venom because Eddie was a better character. Maybe it's because I just don't like Venom as a character. The development into Venom was rushed and could have been used as a plot device for a sequel just as Harry Osborn's discovery of his father's lab was in the second movie. Instead, it became an excuse for another "villain kidnaps MJ and Spidey has to rescue her and accidently become responsible for their imminent demise" sequence. Lame. Maybe another Venom would be a better character (you know, because Dr. Connors still has a piece of the "material" in his lab).

Villiains not used - Green Goblin. Doctor Octopus. Sandman. Great villiains. Like Batman, Spider-Man also has a diverse roster of rogues he could face. I would have loved to have seen what they'd do with a character like Electro, Rhino, Vulture, Chameleon, even Kraven. And since a live-action series is out of the realm of possibility, they'll only continue to be seen in animation.

[Chibi Kageboshi]

I really wanted to love th espider-man movies because i love th character so much in the comics and animated. For me it what really put me off was Dunsty as MJ.... sorry i just couldnt see it. I gave up on the franchise half way through movie 2. Venom should have been saved for 4-5-6 trilogy. The should have god with The Lizard for movie 3.