Spider-Man 3 is Good (and always has been)

[@alfa4191]

Spider-Man 3 is the best movie that Spider-Man ever made. Since it’s release in 2007, critics have spent countless hours analyzing every frame, every scene, every line of dialogue in search of its many subdue themes and messages. Like Garfield, Spiderman 3 is a film about layers. On the surface, it’s your typical thrill-a-minute blockbuster with cutting edge special effects. But upon further viewing, you start to understand this is merely a facade. A false attempt to placate a broader audience. In superhero movies, you can only tell two different stories, really. The origin story, or a story about heroes learning to work together as a team. Spider-Man 3 shatters expectations by not giving you the rise of Spider-Man, but rather the fall. Peter Parker becomes tangled, if you will, in a web of violence and deceit and ultimately becomes the villain. The movie starts with Pete. He sees his best friend James Franco, and he clotheslines him down an alley and kills him. Then we’re introduced to Sandman, who we learn is a great father, trying to save up enough money to pay for his daughter’s surgery. So, Spider-Man gets wind of this and kills him in a sewer. Then the city throws a parade for Spider-Man and he kisses some bimbo, right in front of his girlfriend. Then he meets this guy(Eddie Brock), who is actually his biggest fan. Up to this part, I kind of figured that “Maybe Spider-Man is just having a bad day.” We all know he’s a good guy at heart. But then, fucking stupid ass James Franco starts being alive again. So, Mary Jane dumps Spider-Man, for no good reason. And then, she says “she’s seeing another guy.” Spider-Man, in a state of such distraught and fragility, goes to the only guy he thought he could trust, James Franco, who goes: “I’m the other guy.” Fucking backstabbing piece of shit James Franco. Now, this scene is essential. Peter looks back into the cafe and that little bitch, winks at him and then boom. Like that, he’s gone. Now the question is, where the hell did he go? The truck takes like one second, to go in front of Peter and then he disappears. This is where I realized that James Franco is actually hiding under the table. Think about it. Naturally, Spider-Man slams James Franco into a wall and then chucks a fucking grenade at his head. Then we cut to Spider-Man being fed a plate of cookies, and he says: “You got any with nuts?” Ursula replies: “I have some nuts. I could make some.” To which Peter replies: “Go make me some.” “Go make me some cookies with nuts in them.” Now, this is actually a very clever scene, when you think about it. In life, there is such a rich variety of cookies. Peanut butter, chocolate chip, mint cookies, oatmeal raisin. But director Sam Raimi, has Spider-Man consciously choose nut cookies to signify that this man has gone nuts. You have the scene where Spider-Man is pointing at various women on the sidewalk. Now look at the gesture he is making with his hands. He is saying to these women, “you’re safe now.” But in Spider-Man 4, I will shoot you with a pistol. But it’s not until this moment, where we, the viewers, see that faint flicker of hope, within Peter, snuffed out. He changes his hair from the normal way to his evil hair. This is when the Spider-Man, that I knew who had lost Uncle Ben, who’d defeated Bonesaw. this is when he had become truly lost. Spider-Man 3 tells a dark story that confront the audience with very serious questions. And for this reason, I think it became a very divisive film. It’s a movie from a different era, where artists were encouraged to take bold risks, uninhibited by close-minded executives. And I sincerely doubt we’ll ever see Marvel, reach these heights again. Like Alfred said: “with big power comes big responsibility."

[@gameoflords3120]

you just copied "Spiderman 3 - Making a Masterpiece "

[@martyrobinson3566]

Naw, the first one is still the best but this one is good.

[@jsb2372]

I'm not reading that. You can't even spell Alpha. This film is complete trash. This video is some Spiderman fan that couldn't find good content and suffered through this multiple times.

[@channeloft]

@@jsb2372 🤡

[@jsb2372]

@@channeloft thx for the appreciation

[@spacecop9500]

The funny part is that even without the symbiote, the basic story of his ego and pride taking over was all gonna be in there, according to Sam. The symbiote merely enhanced this!

[@SlayerXGamez]

Yeah 😂😂😂

[@williamkrause5585]

Imagine we still got the bully maguire dance anyway.

[@RLC1700]

Well said

[@samf.s.7731]

So we would have gotten "the dance" either way? Great to know that in the multiverse, in another universe where Raimi ignored Arad somehow and did it his way, we still would have had the kick ass emo Peter dance. So the dance is a nexus entity, huh?! 😜

[@spacecop9500]

@@samf.s.7731 We have no official info, but I'm sure we would have had something very much along those lines!

[@tompollockjr144]

I've seen the movie plenty of times, and I've watched dozens of videos of people discussing it. Some blasting it, some defending it... But no one I have ever seen has made the biblical connections and symbolism in the film before. This is a truly brilliant observation, and really changes the way I see this movie. Great job Ben. Can't wait to watch it again with a new perspective.

[@miriamrosemary9110]

I didn't figure out that symbolism either, and now it seems obvious. Indeed, great job. My next viewing will be a lot more enjoyable as well.

[@NoahNCopeland]

yes, it's so good. Holden Hardman talks about biblical theme of forgiveness in his essay

[@vngelicath1580]

I've always like the connectional imagery between the symbiote and Peter/Eddie and the Ring for Frodo/Gollum (or Anakin from Episode III, for that matter). Both are derivative from the Biblical motif of Sin.

[@m0istur]

I didn't know it was hated, my younger self just enjoyed it

[@nestorsifuentesaguirre2722]

@@m0istur It was but it was Sony who fucked it up not Magure not Grace not Franco NO DAMN ACTOR RUINED IT!!!!!!!

[@lScottsy]

The “He’s still out there” call back to the episode of caravan of garbage did not go unnoticed. Gorgeous stuff

[@filmotter]

I like that we are in a time period right now that we're all starting to enjoy campier movies that we all thought were bad 10+ years ago. Also great video overall!

[@SlayerXGamez]

Ikr i find that really funny

[@cpenner7086]

still bad

[@owlcircus6811]

It’s kind of infuriating actually. Being a fan of those campier/bad movies growing up, understanding everyones hate helped me grasp film criticism and what makes a film “good” and accepting what I like regardless of what others think. Seeing 180’s done on SM3, the Prequels, Matrix sequels should make me happy that everyone else is starting to enjoy them but man it just feels like bandwagoning.

[@tomnorton4277]

@@owlcircus6811 Campy movies and bad movies are two completely different things. The Star Wars Prequels hold up extremely well and actually get better the more you think about them. Idiots who think that campy automatically means bad are simply too close minded to look at corniness on its own merits. They're so concerned with being on the "right" side of film criticism, so worried about being one of the "cool kids" that they refuse to engage with anything that seems uncool.

[@MichaelSlovin]

To be honest, I've come to despise this trend. I mean, *some* of those films, albums, shows, or whatever are probably better than we remember, but not *all* of them, for Christ's sake. Every week on this platform, it seems, I bump into another "it's good, actually" video, wherein some flavor of pop culture apologist attempts to argue for the hidden or untapped depth of this or that panned commercial entity. The only thing these critics simultaneously demonstrate to me is that it's easy to make ostensibly intelligent points on structure, theme, and execution when the material you cover is overwhelmingly loud, obvious, and accessible. Grown people patting themselves on the back for navigating an elementary school jungle gym is what it looks like to me. All I come away with is a better sense of the critic's cleverness, not the media's, because, as it turns out a lot of the time, the media being covered isn't by itself very clever. The cleverness has to be superimposed. This is what some critics might call "being a good sport" and what I would much more uncharitably call "doing all the work and being too proud you did."

[@generalkenobi2164]

Always love the SM3 appreciation, it was my favorite when I was a kid and I still love it whole heartedly. Everybody gets the theme wrong though. The theme is forgiveness. Harry forgives Peter. Peter forgives Flint. Mary Jane forgives Peter. It sets it up not only over the course of the whole movie, but really it started with the death of Norman. Incredible movie

[@instant_ramen4202]

Yep that's the one I say to people when we talk about the movies

[@ashketchum6585]

Does anyone remember the theater version having the actual Venom animatronic and a bunch of scenes that aren't present or edited in the versions since?

[@ΠαντελήςΑδριανόςΟικονόμου]

Yes. The only one who chooses not to forgive is Eddie Brock and his desire for revenge ends up destroying him.

[@datboi42]

@@ashketchum6585 ? What do you mean?

[@ashketchum6585]

@@datboi42 The scenes that are supposedly "deleted" scenes we see in movies when they appear on disc are at times scenes that actually made it into the theaters. I was a witness. Another good example is the 3rd Chipmunks movie before and after circulation.

[@Morlock19]

Man it seems like Ben just is SUPER positive about literally everything

[@maugdw]

I love it. I find a video talking about things someone loved in a movie way more interesting and enjoyable than someone critiquing a film, even constructively and even if I disagree with it. It's a personal preference but still it's nice when things are kept positive

[@BonJoviBeatlesLedZep]

He thinks the first Pokémon movie is bad at least, but he did love it as a kid

[@marinecomponentvandefensie5351]

@@BonJoviBeatlesLedZep what I want to know now is what he thought about the third Pokémon movie

[@and8091]

Can't wait for the Jack and Jill video.

[@nestorsifuentesaguirre2722]

Stays positive even when he's aware that the film was still ruined by studio meddling

[@navalta_gfx]

I rewatched the whole trilogy a few weeks ago and was expecting the third one to blow. But then I was like, this is actually pretty good. It’s definitely the weakest in the trilogy but it still does interesting things with the storylines and characters from the other two movies. Raimi was still able to deliver a fun and satisfying story despite the studio meddling. Now that some time and franchises have passed since Spider-Man 3, people are looking back and appreciating what is great about it.

[@khathide22nd]

Well said👍🏾👍🏾

[@notBrocker]

Weakest? It’s literally the best one imo

[@resikin]

Fun fact: When Sam Raimi asked Christopher Young to score Venom's theme, he asked him to make it as "demonic and devilish as possible."

[@hideandpride1891]

Well he did a great job. Ironically it the best theme of the trilogy.

[@resikin]

@@hideandpride1891 You mean unironically? Personally, I think Sandman’s theme is the best of the trilogy. That and of course the responsibility theme.

[@hideandpride1891]

@@resikin Yeah even the Venom symbiote dark theme is amazing. I love it. But I said unironically because the fans love the first two movies and everything in them but hate the third. When people hated the third movie, they really did and they hated pretty much everything in them. Even on other reviews on KZbin I see people bash this movie and never praise even the good things about this movie, not even the score and cinematography or effects. Seriously, these people never mention the positives for this movie because that's how much they hated it. Not even a little praise for it, which is a shame because I think it's a great conclusion.

[@Sonicfan-wi6oy]

"Knock knock let the devil in" Sam raimi circa 2007

[@nestorsifuentesaguirre2722]

@@hideandpride1891 Yeah but had Sony just stood aside maybe such hatred might have never existed. It's their fault some people are treating this film like a scumbag

[@seanthebluesheep]

J. Jonah Jameson also represents truth in this film. The truth that Spider-Man is a MENACE!

[@tstercula]

Between this, the bi Fast and Furious reading, and some of your Mr. Sunday Movies videos, you really nail the "pop culture rescue" video essay style. Whether or not I agree, it's so engaging to watch someone unabashedly gush about something, especially something often maligned. I love challenging criticism that builds up rather than tears down.

[@Eduardoooo-s6f]

Wasn't expecting both a Raid: Shadow Legends ad and an analysis of scripture in a Spider-Man 3 essay but I'm loving every second of it

[@munjee2]

It's always a good year when Ben uploads

[@ЖудаМ]

Another little detail is that in this movie, Eddie Brock is an active sociopath if you stop to analyse his behavior towards people. His first scene he is basically taking pictures of the woman the supposedly loves (Gwen) while being dead cold about it (and even introducing himself to her father), he also doesn't even seeks to help her in any way after Spider-Man saves her, just goes takes pictures of Spider-Man because its his major interest. He also actively has a lot of charisma and speech skills that allow him to almost right away get a job by talking with J.J Jameson and just didn't got it because of Peter. There's also the great element of deceiving, lying and doing anything he can to get what he wants. Eddie also is vengeful, after Peter reveals him as liar, instead of trying to repent from his mistakes, he actively seeks revenge, so much so that he literally goes to a Church beg God to kill Peter. Venom never made Eddie evil, it just gave the means for a desire he had to revenge against Peter.

[@alext399]

he was also never dating Gwen, as she confirms

[@TonyQuinn]

I like it despite its flaws. Imo it’s one of the Spider-Man movies that feels most like a comic book.

[@aguywithalotofopinions412]

I know I'm in the minority here, but the third one has always been my favorite. Not because it's the best (IT'S NOT) but because it's just so fun. It's the kind of movie that I'm always down to watch regardless of my mood.

[@autisticpatty1]

Honestly, I agree with you. Spider-Man 3 has always been my favorite one. It’s just so fun to watch and experience. I love it!!

[@starlighter93]

Also, while Eddie is nothing like in the comics, this was the character this movie needed. He was the anti-Peter Parker. The kind of guy Uncle Ben was worried Peter could become.

[@net945-x5g]

He's Nothing in the Comics As in He doesn't Let His Ego Out on People and has a completely different charaterization, but the knowing the Truth and not Liking It thing Still holds True. For Example, in the Ultimate Comics, Eddie Finds out Peter's Used His Father's Symbiote as a Cure For Cancer, and While you don't have control over the Symbiote Once he has You, Eddie Still chose To Free It From the Clear Glass It was filled in. Eddie has Always Had Even in The Comics that Cocky side inside of him, it's Just that It Is often Like a Side he doesn't have Control over, that often comes out at the very last Moment when he's in Near-Death Survival Situations. For Example, When The S.H.I.E.L.D decides to Inject the Carnage Symbiote in Spiderman, Eddie doesn't Directly Attack him, he Is almost Dubious and Curious on who that Person Might be until It doesn't start to Attack him. At that point, All Of Eddy's Memory Grows Back and he Immediately Transforms into Ultimate Venom filled With Anger, or Even the First Time he Transforms he Is doubting whether he's living or not and them proceeds to affirm his existence as Being Possessed By Venom as Like a Second Creature, a Dual Being Existing besides him in within his Body, which Is kinda Like Venom Acknowledging his own existence and Eddie Acknowledging the Scission of Beings Happening in his Body. So Yeah, While Most Versions of Venom Might Be different, the Few, Main "Classical Ones" Are Definitely About Him Acknowledging This Truth He doesn't Like About Himself. In the Comics, he's not as much as a megalomaniac as he Is in the Movies, but he Is a Megalomaniac Nonethless, it's Just that he's not as outgoing about It as he Is in his most "Popular" Versions, being mostly represented as Someone coming From an important Family, he has to Keep a Certain Sense of "Healthiness" around his Person, Kinda lying to Himself to Keep him From Going Berserk.

[@JJJ-uo2xb]

The fight sequence between Harry and Peter at beginning is gold! The Spider-Man life crashing into his Peter life in the middle of the street. Peter having to Spider-Man it up, with no costume. Being forced to realize his friend wants to kill him. Peter desperately trying to cling onto that wedding ring while trying to cling on to his life. Masterful!

[@mattball8622]

It's so refreshing to see a video essay that's basically 'hey, let's actually look at the good in something for once'. I'm not the biggest fan of this movie, but I really enjoyed both your thoughts on it and also the fact that it wasn't yet another video just dunking on a divisive movie for #content

[@Hei_Darkfire]

"Investing too much energy into disliking a movie's flaws can sometimes prevent us from seeing the actual value of the thing itself." I wish everyone could take those words to heart. I've said for years the reason so many people hate some things is because they just want to, or think they're expected to hate something, and then they refuse to be entertained by something good. It's a real pain to see good movies go down the drain because people wanted to be so hateful.

[@YouSayRoll]

I think the points you have made about lies are one of the reasons why some people don't like this movie. When all the characters are constantly lying to one another and themselves its just painful to watch, as all the conflict would be solved if they just stopped and thought about it. While all the lying is admittedly more realistic, and how a lot of us act, it's not always fun to watch, it can just be frustrating. I prefer a hero who tells the truth, suffers the consequences that come with that, but remains true to themselves despite the price if being honest. Still a great vid that gives me a lot more respect for Sam Rami and the movie itself.

[@jliller]

On the one hand, movies are frustrating when most/all of their character conflicts could be resolved simply by the characters having open and honest conversations with each other. On the other hand, in real life many humans are terrible about communication and aren't open or honest with each other.

[@bryangarcia662]

Fully agree with this, personally my biggest issue with the movie is how consistently stupid Peter is on an emotional level and towards MJ, if he only started acting up post-symbiote, it'd be easier for me to suspend disbelief, but being so far up his own ass and literally kissing another woman in front of her, and then acting like it wasn't a big deal, or the whole "everyone loves me and its sooooo hard" deal, it's all just one big bruh moment for me. That being said, I still find enjoyment in the film, it's better than I remembered and better than I think many portray it. Still, it's just too many conflicts and problems that would have been solved by honesty and emotional maturity, sure I get that they're young, but it's not like young=dumb, and they're not supposed to be teenagers in this film.

[@HermanFalckHow]

Partially. I think that is more the reason people didn't like The Last Jedi which is a great movie that is difficult to accept for a lot of people. Spider-Man 3 has valid issues. I don't personally mind them, but I can understand someone not getting over the retcons or the sheer volume of dance sequences.

[@jliller]

@@HermanFalckHow "I think that is more the reason people didn't like The Last Jedi which is a great movie that is difficult to accept for a lot of people." TLJ is fine as a standalone film, but the problem is that it's not a standalone film. It's the last volume of a trilogy that lacked a cohesive vision. Dead ends, hard turns, dropped characters, and a bad redemption arc.

[@nestorsifuentesaguirre2722]

@@jliller Studio meddling is everywhere that is why TLJ and Spider Man 3 gained resentment from the world. Spit on the actors see what happens

[@JacksonFromRadix]

Spider-Man 3 will always be my favorite of the trilogy. I’ll never argue that it’s objectively the best, but the themes and Peter and Harry’s journey to forgiveness has always resonated with me the most

[@slkjvlkfsvnlsdfhgdght5447]

you can't argue that art is objectively good or bad, taste and preference are subjective

[@715creeks]

My guy referenced Sex Education, Uncharted 4, and Before Midnight in the timespan of 30 seconds and his argument hit different. Love your videos, Ben! Keep up the good work.

[@tristan8940]

Dude, I cannot fully explain how excellent this video is. I recently watched the trilogy with my wife (before NWH obviously), and we enjoyed SM3. I could tell there was more to it than I thought as a child, but couldn’t put my finger on it. The lying from everyone was just as frustrating as I remembered, but my adult perspective helped me see the reality in it. The last few months, I’ve been hiding an old habit from my wife. The last few weeks, I’ve been struggling and praying with how to come clean. Or whether or not I should even come clean. I can just handle this myself, right? Plus all the struggles of “if I committed, why am I still dealing with this bullshit? Life should be normal and good now.” Damn, man. You hit the nail right on my head. Yesterday I realized I need to tell her. Today was a struggle, but this helped me confirm it. Beautiful work. I don’t know where you’re at spiritually, but you ministered right to my heart, all while giving a spot-on analysis of this divisive movie. God bless you. Gonna go come clean.

[@tristan8940]

Update: honesty is really hard, but very worth it. The last year has been hell, but I haven't been walking through it alone. It feels as though everything that is outside of my control has crumbled, and everything I believed has been reshaped and chiseled down, and everything about my life is different. And that's okay. It's good, actually. I'm sad sometimes, and I've been more angry than ever sometimes, and I don't know what I'm supposed to do often, but none of that is the worst thing. It's a lot better than living a lie. Be true to the person closest to you. And yourself. Thanks for reading, y'all. Keep it real. For real.

[@datboi42]

5:45 in Spider-Man 2, he did tell Aunt May what really happened on his own

[@MITHYKA]

I've always defended this film, I think it's genuinely good. What ultimately hurt the movie was the execution and the casting of Topher Grace as Venom. And let's not kid ourselves, it was going to be a monumental task trying to one up Spider-Man 2

[@connorplays6263]

I would actually recommend the hybrid cut, which basically takes the best of both the theatrical cut and the editor's cut

[@JadenSmithEyes]

Last year, I spent weeks editing meme videos for this movie (and deleting them all because creative dysfunction) -- BUT its given me so much appreciation for this movie. Harry and Peter working together to save MJ hits my childhood softspot for everything I wanted to see from Spider Man. & Themes of truth and forgiveness hit so hard, I cried like a baby. Toby gets shit for the over his the top performance, but Ive grown to love it.

[@colleenjones8225]

This was great--thank you!

[@lcgrzy]

Spider-Man 3 was already one of my favorite Spider-Man movies. Now I love it even more. Ben from Canada is one of my favorite KZbin channels, by far.

[@imnotkiddingg]

funniest part of this was the 5 year old game grumps reference at 5:40 actually made me smile

[@somelettersnnumbers]

Dude this was awesome! Love your in-depth essays! I actually really like the Editor's cut of the movie which used the deleted scene of Harry looking at the picture of his friends instead of the Butler telling him the truth. The only other thing I wish got changed was the news teams' coverage of the final battle, it was so cheesy and took away from the drama imo. If those segments were cut, I'd say it's a near perfect final movie.

[@TomEyeTheSFMguy]

Alright, alright. You've convinced me. I'm off to Disney+ to watch this right now.

[@asdfreii]

“It’s always more interesting to look at the film itself, rather than what the film isn’t or was it supposed to be” Maso in shambles

[@stephenlovelace9268]

Love you Ben perfect timing for my lunch break

[@Games-tx1zc]

I'm still not a fan of this movie, but this has given me a neat new way to look at it! Mad props!

[@davidaffholter4683]

KEEP. THESE. COMING!

[@ThatGuyTrice]

Thank you for making this video Ben. I’ve always LOVED the Raimi trilogy (ALL OF THEM) for the human depiction and emotions they convey. They make me feel like I too can be a hero. And I always loved the undertone of forgiveness in this movie. Forgiveness saves Peter from himself, saves sandman and restores Harry and Peter’s friendship. Because of forgiveness, Harry goes so far as to give his life for his best friend. And, ultimately, Eddie is destroyed by his lack of forgiveness. Beautiful.

[@mrspacy]

Dude you're straight up one of my favorite KZbinr's right now, your essays are some of the most entertaining and interesting explorations of some stuff I didnt think about. Even things I openly hate like the Sam Raimi Spiderman movies

[@stephblue5540]

You can always hear the passion and love for what you talk about and create in these vids, love it!

[@lucaswarriorteammining5786]

The fights in this movie are some of the best. Each one has amazing choreography and are memorable. Everytime I rewatch this movie, I always look forward to the fights.

[@cinnamonmycool1237]

I’ll give this film 6.5 it’s pretty decent but way more enjoyable and watchable than the first 2

[@michaelechim2148]

Amazing video Ben. Very much agree with your opinion on the movie. However, looking at this movie through the lense of a pursuit for truth and the different ways characters react to the truth is a new idea for me. Thank you for showing me a new perspective on this movie!

[@TimeToRemind]

Thank you so much for making THIS kind of video, my youtube recommendations are usually just "Why ... sucks" I just want to see people passionate about films talking about what they love rather than looking for problems in films for jokes.

[@dreamcast2k1]

Fun Fact for Spider-Man 3 (2007) In the novelization of the movie and the original version of the death of venom he was literally consumed by the suit and leaving a warped and deformed skull and skeleton. Which is so much cooler

[@toppsizfckd]

"Eddy's truth is... THAT HE SUCKS!" That's the top-notch film analysis i've subscribed for.

[@michaelwest5215]

you did it, i'm convinced, might have to reference this in a sermon one day

[@Aranock]

LETS FUCKING GO BABY! I fucking loved chatting about this one with you, so you know my love for the video. Be the sigma male you wanna see in the world and let go of your goo demons. I hope people appreciate that this video is the most correct piece on Spiderman 3.

[@soundwaveproductions9510]

People in 2007: This Movie Sucks! People now: This Movie Is Art!

[@Jansenbaker]

Wow. I love your breakdowns. The insight, the comedic timing, the depth. I loved hearing you talk about _the Truth_ put throughout this film, and I did not fully realise the connection with Satan (literal or figurative), Peter, and Eddie. Eddie being himself and not lying anymore... he was always bad, wasn't he? I thought he was a fairly sympathetic character, but he really does do the wrong thing every time. Also, the goop demon line just gets me, so funny.

[@paulodorea]

I hate the fact that one day the media decided this movie was objectively bad. I still find it one of the greatest Spider-Man movies, with a lot of interesting themes and great character moments. I love the fact that these 3 movies were not afraid to make the characters really flawed, and would often show them at their worst, there is a lot of courage around these films. Great video man, earned a subscriber.

[@erik_gerhard]

Avi Arad is an interesting force in the Spider-Man media saga. I was a little shocked to see his name in the credits of No Way Home as “the original true believer,” when so many of his decisions seem to be motivated by the bottom line. John Semper-who fought with Avi to maintain the artistic integrity of Spider-Man TAS when nobody else had faith in Marvel’s stories coming to a new generation-deserves that title so much more.

[@Michael-ld2np]

its wonderful to see someone break down this masterpiece of a film. all the biblical/philosophical metaphors and themes of this film is something I doubt we will see in future superhero films.

[@Adronitis]

It's all over superhero stories from the western world, because they all follow the hero's journey, which is inherently biblical

[@AlexSmith-tp7xu]

Raimis venom is perfect for his story. we see this sort of symbolism throughout the series. "I believe there's a hero in all of us, who keeps us honest, and noble"-aunt may "my friend Harry taught me a valuable lesson, that we ALWAYS have a choice" we see this in full effect in every installment. Norman is under the control of the Goblin, but it was his decisions that led to it, and he could always find a way to cure himself, or have peter do it since he can't control himself very long. we see doc ock let his ego get the best of him when he refuses to admit his machine isn't ready. he loses everything and let's his ego take hold. this causes him to act very out of character. we, the audience are led to believe it's all the work of the evil arms, but we see in the climax that he always had a choice, once again, he refused to face his demons and embrace his inner hero. I'm not gonna explain spiderman 3s villains because you can fit the pieces together and this comment is already massive. but anyways venom fits perfect. we see Peter fall in to this trap of letting his ego take hold and not seeing his choice, showing he's no different than his villains. we also see Eddie who acknowledges he has a choice, but makes the wrong one. which makes it more realistic since you can't save everyone. ultimately this is a story of inner hero vs inner villain, spiderman vs Goblin. it's a beautiful marvel flavored version of that old tale: a boy and is grandad are sitting by a pond and the grandad is trying to teach the boy about life, he says "boy I have a terrible fight going on inside me. it's a fight between two wolves. one will is pure white, it is noble, truthful, just, humble, and kind. the other it's pitch black, it's vengeful, ego driven, hateful, mean, and greedy. now lemme tell ya, the sane fight goes on in you every day" so the boy asks the big question "which one will win?" the grandad says "which ever one you feed" besides who cares if the venom that best fits his story telling is weird and not comic book accurate, we have the multiverse now. let this interpretation be it's own thing.

[@ricardopereira6065]

This is hands down the best SM3 video made till date. Most of the videos about it don’t go further no actual reasons why they like the movie and just shilling on Tobey. But this…the deep breakdown and aspects of the movie I haven’t heard so far…you definitely should make more videos.

[@spectre1004]

Wait to you see Hitop’s vid

[@dr.kokiri7013]

Wow...just WOW!😭 this video just changed my whole perspective on Tobey Maguire's spiderman, and it really makes me relate to what peter parker has been doing, and what I have been doing these past few months. And you brought up the bible in this video and I have to say...you weren't wrong! I'm glad you put all of this into one theme. THE TRUTH and I'm glad you made this video! Thank you

[@ChristianJay]

Aiplex Software Private Limited have been falsely flagging any video *related* to Spider-Man, and now many channels face the risk of being terminated. They claim these videos are using footage from No Way Home but that is not the case. I made a video detailing this entire situation in depth, which they also tried copyright striking despite the fact it's only me talking into a camera. I'm hoping we can generate enough noise to finally get KZbin involved. I would appreciate it if anyone could help share the video, or generally just bring attention to this issue!

[@ChristianJay]

The video is currently the most recent upload on my channel. I'd link it, but I don't want to run the chance of the comment getting discarded for spam. Please help share the word!

[@Just_Some_Guy_with_a_Mustache]

I mean, that's fair. I'm just not gonna be first in line to praise Avi Arad, the studio, and others getting their grubby mitts into Raimi's vision like that. I respect the man too much as a director.

[@Novur]

It's so refreshing to see a take on this movie that doesn't boil down to "girl bad." I'm so sick of snotty obnoxious "film critics" constantly shitting on MJ 🙄

[@rennythespaceguy7285]

100%, I swear people lack basic media literacy when it comes to her and her in particular

[@austinjohnsen4430]

MJ is actually one of the more reasonable and mature characters in the movie oddly enough. Even when she’s been mad at Peter for a number of things she still tries to help him through the uncle Ben thing.

[@austinjohnsen4430]

@@rennythespaceguy7285 I use to be one of those people that didn’t understand why MJ acts the way she does, especially in 2. But after rewatching the first movie again it started to click. She had a crappy father, crappy boyfriends, multiple near death experiences, and then the one guy that actually treats her with respect friend zones her not long after he poured his heart out to her about how he feels. Fast forward to 2 and Peter is once again giving MJ confusing signals about how he feels.

[@nestorsifuentesaguirre2722]

@@austinjohnsen4430 Guess What?? Multiverse of Madness had a Spider Man 2-like subplot with a surprisingly different outcome that had fans like: "THIS IS HOW THE RAIMI SPIDEY SEQUEL SHOULD HAVE CONCLUDED LEAVING THE REDHEAD GAL FOR THE SILVERHEAD GAL (CLEA FOR STRANGE AND BLACK CAT FOR SPIDEY)" Which makes me think that the Black Cat was scrapped from the trilogy's final products

[@sarov7658]

She is still Garbage and the worst part of the trilogy atleast her appearance is comic accurate

[@Tymbus]

I enjoyed Spider-man 3 so it is good to see an appreciative review

[@Fyron2434]

I'm surprised you didn't put in the line from Sandman's wife at the beginning, though to be fair it doesn't seem to have much weight in Sandman's actual story. "You and the truth, sitting in prison having three meals a day together. I live in the presence of great truth. And that is the truth that you left behind right there in that bedroom." (Their daughter)

[@mr.amphibian8418]

I’ve always loved this movie but this video has changed my view of it. Keep up the great work.

[@ashleyromero8941]

My brother and I both agree, you make amazing videos! Keep at it bro! Take your time, such amazing work!

[@victoryusmc]

Appreciate your editing on the "other channel" I do like your in depth look at the videos you make.

[@mr.moviemafia]

What Ben says at 0:49-1:05 is exactly how I feel about the Star Wars sequel trilogy. They’re imperfect and could be better, but by constantly focusing on what they aren’t, so many people ignore all of the good that they DO bring

[@will_da_man_]

God bless you sir. 🙏

[@mr.moviemafia]

I love Star Wars and have all my life, and while I think they have varying degrees of quality, I love, enjoy, and can find genuinely good things in every Star Wars movie 🌟

[@micsulli19]

Spider-Man and Batman video essays are some of my favorite videos on KZbin. And this might be my favorite one because it's so fucking hilarious!

[@kingsolo5442]

Spider-Man 3 iconic “if ya know what I’m talking about” 😈😂

[@jasonshaw2065]

Great video! Lies - conflict - truth - forgiveness is a powerful life lesson. And great use of the very underrated claymation Jesus movie where Ralph Feinnes (Voldemort) is the voice of Christ.

[@ketsiaiitan]

Really enjoyed this video, this is a nice change from the usual vitriol towards this movie!

[@vinson75]

Didn’t expect this to be so beautifully biblical :o

[@BasementMinions]

Woh, thank you for helping me to love the final movie when I already love the first two!

[@alejandrovasquez8527]

Absolute banger of an analysis, thank you for giving me even more reason to love and appreciate this movie

[@kaizenkltr]

Thank you Ben From Canada. 1 and 2 were my childhood, and this is no exception. Ive watched this so many times and still love it to this day

[@limberlad]

I'm glad you're making content, man. You're points are always so well articulated.

[@GMMReviews]

0:20 is actually wrong, from what I've heard, the movie was always going to have 3 villains, the third being Vulture. Vulture was going to be beaten in a montage in the intro, but come back at the end for revenge, by teaming up with Sandman. The story was originally going to be Peter falling to the sin of pride, and his ego. When Avi Arad pressured Rami to put Venom in the movie, it didn't add another villain, he simply replaced Vulture's role, and Peter getting the black suit was handled super well, as it simple enhanced the "pride and ego" story originally written. Also think about Harry's arc, Peter needed his help to fight 2 villains, as he couldn't take them alone. This wouldn't work with only Sandman, and this is proof that 2 villains was always the plan. Some of Rami's original ideas for Spider-Man 3, like Vulture being a villain, and Spider-Man beating a villain easily in the opening montage got rolled into Spider-Man 4, which sadly never got made. That being said, Spider-Man 3 is better for having the black suit, and had Venom not been inserted into the film, it still would have had 3 villains. Fans probably would have reacted better though, as Vulture is an old B list villain people don't care much about, and Venom is the most popular villain in Spider-Man comics. Having Vulture show up for 10 minutes would be fine, but only having 10 minutes of Venom wasn't enough for such a popular character. Also Rami didn't care for Venom, and his interpretation of the character is basically just an evil Peter, which works great for the Movie, but Venom fans were pissed when it came out.

[@jaredguy8022]

Actually I believe, the third 'villain' was going to be Mysterio (Played by Bruce Cambell, finishing the running joke that he plays various characters in all of them.) But he would barely have been in the film, as you said in your comment. Vulture was going to be the bad guy in Spider-Man 4 before it was cancelled and then rebooted with Andrew Garfield. And I believe it was talked about that John Malkovich would have been Vulture. So could have been interesting to see, but alas we shall never know.

[@levigifford3871]

Woah, I did not realize there was theology in the film!!

[@Adronitis]

I've always felt it, but Ben explained it perfectly!

[@uosdwiSrdewoH]

Good to see you again. I was worried you weren't making another video which would've been a shame because they're brilliant.

[@Neo_Theo]

Spectacular assessment, and can I just add that Peter's forgiveness of Flint/Sandman, specifically, is just amazingly well written. When Peter forgives Flint Marko and lets him drift away, it is literally the opposite of how Peter excels in solving his problems or deals with criminals. Peter uses Spider-Man to punch wrongdoers into submission before sending them to jail, but here Peter reveals himself and actually lets the criminal escape. It is very much all Peter Parker and no Spider-Man, only further exemplified by the fact that it's something anyone could do: just forgiving. No radioactive spider-bites or machines required; just accept someone's repentance to the effect of letting them off the hook completely. I've always felt that the movie has some painful moments to watch but gets a bad rap overall, so thanks for thoroughly fleshing out the positives within it.

[@lamarhoward5862]

Bro! You HAVE to make more videos. They’re so deep and unfiltered every time! Please make more!

[@slkjvlkfsvnlsdfhgdght5447]

i actually like that peter doesn't ask for Harry's forgiveness when he asks him to help save mj, he knows as well as we do that he doesn't deserve forgiveness, and imo it shows a kind of strength: he appeals to Harry's sense of morality, not his sense of pity

[@dominikcygan2664]

how out of all your essays this one is the least viewed??? it's an amazing new view on one of my favourite movies, i love your channel and these essay type videos with sprinkles of jokes.

[@zenairzulu1378]

The power of Bully Maguire will outlive this moive.

[@FlyoverStatePark]

man I ignored this in my feed several times cause I have seen endless video essays about spiderman 3, but then I saw BEN FROM CANADA and I knew I needed to see one more.

[@natevari2509]

You and HiTop Films really made me appreciate Spider-Man 3 in ways I never thought of.

[@Mephilis78]

Harry "you tried to kill me" Peter "Well, yeah, but I just threw the grenade you tried to kill me with back at you. So, we're kinda even "

[@lazyartiste_2357]

Spider-Man 3 gets better with every subsequent viewing. This aged really well in my opinion.

[@AAAnonimAAA1st]

I agree. It's an enjoyable movie. Personally I found only 2 plotholes in the movie: 1. Parker is unconscious because he lost venom and Eddie just got eaten - wouldn't he immediately attack Parker? - we're just missing one quick shot of Peter running away. 2. Peter asks Harry for help because he "can't defeat the two combined" - why would he think that? He already defeated Sandman once and as for Venom he haven't fought him before - we're missing some throwaway line about feeling "powerless without a suit" or "he got my suit and I know how powerful it makes people" Also, back when this movie came out, people LOOVEED to complain about Peter turning "emo" when he meant to be "cool" under venom influence. I have an explanation for it though I cannot confirm if Raimi really thought like this. Peter is a NERD and he turns into what he thinks is cool and not into what "objectively" is cool. Remember that around the same time many nerds thought katana wielding poses in trenchcoats and fedoras were ultra-super-cool? I think Parker's slightly edgy makeover and outdated disco dancing is actually least embarrassing thing Raimi could have done.

[@Turbike]

Just gotta say the symbiote effects look so much cooler a decade earlier than the Venom movies! That church scene can't be touched. Can't say the same about the actual Venom character design.

[@thisbubblygoodness7611]

the symbiote in spider-man 3 is perfect, its like black webs and tendrils, in my opinion i dont really like the symbiote look in the venom movies, by themselves the symbiotes look like sea slugs crossed with snot, nowhere near as badass as Spider-man 3

[@MaxAlexanderTaylor]

Can't believe I haven't seen this video before, Ben. Absolutely class observation. The third instalment is the perfect act 3 to the previous two films. What happens when you've been given the ultimate boon at the end of the previous act? How to be master of two worlds? UGH SO GOOD. Also loved your inclusion of the Miracle Maker clips. Top notch grub.

[@austinwallick8744]

God I fucking love this channel

[@NimTV]

Great analysis! I personally already liked this movie, despite how over stuffed it was, but seeing this video made me appreciate it even more! I really do think that this movie is a great way to cap off the trilogy! Honestly one of the greatest super hero trilogies ever I’d have to say.

[@fernandoromeronunez2052]

Just found this channel. I love it when I find great content on a channel that's starting out (although your editing makes me thing you're no rookie)

[@peterparker9214]

Ben I couldn’t agree more. I re watched these the other day and I enjoyed this one the most.

[@arsissarma7104]

The world seems like a better place when Ben uploads!

[@Paulinho_66]

That movie is a masterpiece There is a sequence that i love in that movie : On the begonning it shows peter getting everything working out in his job, university and watching MJ show. On the spiderman 2 movie he could not handle his life everything went down the hill… its the same sequence of events but in the movie 3 it works out. He is in peak of his life as spiderman and peter parker but then everything goes bad because of his inner demons unleashed by the symbiote

[@lainewiens]

Best video essay I’ve seen in memory. Absolutely incredible job!

[@Stingrayzero]

Ben, I absolutely adore everything you make

[@thesymphonyoflife3950]

17:27 What the hell was that sentence!? LMAO!!!

[@downtempus]

Oh man, it’s so good to see all that Egoraptor-inspired script bits, moar!

[@lachlanrussell18]

Ayo, unrelated to the video- Scott from nerdsync is one of your patrons! That’s so cool! Creators supporting creators is my favourite thing

[@Anyone690]

Dude this video was amazing! It was everything I have had bubbling up in my head over this movie and you just put the words in a video. Fantastic