While chatting with Chris Hardwick, Jonah Ray and Matt Mira during the latest
Nerdist podcast (click here to listen), director
Sam Raimi ("Army Of Darkness") reflected on some of his past mistakes. Most notable, 2007's
Spider-Man 3, which tried to stuff Venom (Topher Grace), Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) and James Franco's Green Goblin all into one movie in an ill-fated attempt to top much beloved
Spider-Man 2. An
hour into the podcast Raimi admits that the
Spider-Man 3 was "awful" and that he had "
made the wrong story, the wrong way." You can read some of it below, thanks to
pajiba.com for transcribing a portion of it.
It’s a movie that just didn’t work very well. I tried to make it work, but I didn’t really believe in all the characters, so that couldn’t be hidden from people who loved Spider-Man. If the director doesn’t love something, it’s wrong of them to make it when so many other people love it. I think [raising the stakes after Spider-Man 2] was the thinking going into it, and I think that’s what doomed us. I should’ve just stuck with the characters and the relationships and progressed them to the next step and not tried to top the bar …
Raimi: [But] directors don’t like to talk about their bad films.
Hardwick: I don’t think that ‘bad’ is the right word.
Raimi: Awful!
Also of note, when Matt Mira tries to compliment Sam Raimi on his 2013 film
Oz the Great and Powerful, Raimi then mumbles something negative. Mira then asks, "You don't think so?" To which, Raimi replies dismissively, "
I did the best I could."
That's a bit of surprise as it is the most financially successful of his since he directed the Spider-Man trilogy. Though, Raimi doesn't seem to take compliments well throughout the podcast, but I think it has more to do with him being humble. You have to respect that.
SPIDER-MAN 3 - Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) finally has the girl of his dreams, Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), and New York City is in the throes of Spider-mania! But when a strange alien symbiote turns Spider-Man's suit black, his darkest demons come to light changing Spider-Man inside as well as out. Spider-Man is in for the fight of his life against a lethal mix of villains - the deadly Sandman (Thomas Haden Church), Venom (Topher Grace), and the New Goblin (James Franco) - as well as the enemy within himself.
Cast: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Topher Grace, Thomas Haden Church, James Franco
Director: Sam Raimi * Writers: Sam Raimi, Alvin Sargent & Ivan Raimi
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