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Spider-Man
The Spin on Spider-Man 3

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our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man swings back into theatres on May 4. This time, everything seems perfect for his alter ego, Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire). The budding Daily Bugle photographer has learned to balance his secret superhero life with his public life. And things are going "spinningly" with his heartthrob Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst).

But then, things take a turn for the worse. Spidey's trademark blue and red suit morphs into an all-black version—and brings out his dark side. So there will be no red carpet at the film's U.S. premiere on April 30 in Queens, New York (Peter Parker's hometown). In honor of the sinister suit, superstars (though not superheros) will walk down a black carpet.

As Spider-Man battles his dark side, he must also combat two new on-screen villains—Sandman (Thomas Hayden Church) and Venom (Topher Grace). Actor Tobey Maguire explains that the suit symbolizes that Peter is in a dark period of his life now. "In this film, Peter Parker feels he's got a real handle on things, so much so that he's got a certain arrogance . to his behavior which starts to get him in trouble. Then he learns that Sandman is responsible for his uncle's death, so he has feelings of real anger . That, coupled with the effect the black suit has on him . lead him down a different path," Maguire told the Toronto Star. "[Spider-Man is] growing up in each film. It's all under the umbrella of 'with great power comes great responsibility'." (As Spider-Man fans know, those quoted wise words are what Peter learns after his Uncle Ben dies.)

The movie's director, Sam Raimi, agrees. Raimi was a huge Spider-Man comic book fan growing up. "I could really identify with Spider-Man's alter ego," Raimi told Weekly Reader. "He went to school like I did. He had homework like I did. He had an interest in girls but was afraid to approach them. All the readers knew he was secretly as cool as Spider-Man."

That's also what makes Spider-Man so appealing to Richard Gore, who's been collecting Spider-Man memorabilia for more than 25 years. "Spiderman never lost his humanity, " he says. Gore can't wait to see how the comic book action will play out on the big screen. "It's going to be very cool to see Venom on-screen.," Gore said. He hopes to be first in line for a midnight screening on May 4. And he won't be alone. The first Spider-Man flick earned $114.8 million on its opening weekend in 2002. Spider Man 2's opening topped $115 million. As Spider-Man's co-creator Stan Lee might say, "That's a lot of true believers!"

Webs of Wonder
"Spider-Man, Spider-Man. He does whatever a spider can . . ." That's what the song says, but what can real spiders do? Here are some fast facts about spiders:
  • Spiders are arachnids, not insects. Arachnids have four pairs of legs and their bodies have two segments. Insects have three pairs of legs and their bodies are divided into three segments.

  • There are at least 30,000 known types of spiders roaming the world (not including Spider-Man, of course!).

  • Like Spider-Man does when he is "catching thieves just like flies," all spider species spin silk. Not all spiders build webs to catch their prey, however. Some species simply drop sticky silk lines with silk balls at the end to grab a bite.

  • Most spiders inject venom (poison) through their fangs to kill or paralyze their prey.

  • Spiders eat mostly insects, which helps control the world's insect population. They also enjoy munching on other spiders! Larger spiders are known to eat lizards, frogs, and birds.

  • The largest breed of spider is the aptly named Goliath Birdeater, a hairy spider which can have a leg-span of 12 inches. That's the size of a small pizza!

  • The smallest spider is the Samoan moss spider. It's less than 0.017 of an inch from the tip of one leg to the tip of another leg.

  • Spider silk is stronger than steel, and more elastic than nylon; to break under its own weight a strand would have to be over 40 miles long.

    • Think About It!
    1. Why might Peter Parker be a character that kids can relate to?
    2. What do you think "with great power comes great responsibility" means?

    Some Stats on Spider-Man 3
    • As in the previous Spider-Man films, the character's co-creator Stan Lee makes a cameo appearance with a brief line. Lee and Steve Ditko co-created the character, who made his first appearance in the comic book Amazing Fantasy #15 in 1962.
    • Thomas Haden Church worked out for 16 months to get in good enough shape to portray Sandman.
    • Spider-Man 3 is reportedly one of the most expensive films ever made. Some film industry folks say it cost more than $250 million to create.
    • Real sand was used in many Sandman scenes.
    • There are more than 600 latex "web" balloons in the movie's celebration scene. They were each hand-painted with black magic markers.
    • Instead of using computer generated imaging, the film's visual effects designer created miniature skyscrapers for some scenes to save money and ensure that the buildings looked as realistic as possible.


    Spider-Man Crossword
    • Try and solve this Spider-Man crossword puzzle here!
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