Dougal Campbell's geek ramblings

Yesterday, Susan and I (and Susan’s parents, as well) saw Spider-Man 2. Awesome movie. I can’t remember the last time I went back to watch a movie in the theater for a second time, but we’re thinking about seeing this one again.

Of course I have extra incentive to see it again, because I missed the opening sequence. We were running a few minutes late getting to the theater, but we got seated just as the opening credits started. I zipped out to the lobby to get our snacks, figuring I’d be back before the action started. Silly me. Out of the eight-or-so registers at the snack bar, only two were open, and they were both already serving customers. Despite the fact that there were four other teenaged employees huddled in a corner behind the counter, babbling about what movies they were going to rent that evening. And to top it off, the lady in front of me was counting out dimes, nickles, and pennies to pay for her order.

And when I eventually *did* get served, the kid taking my order wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed.

Snack Counter Kid: “What can I get for you?”

Me: “A large Coke, a large buttered popcorn, and a box of Raisinets, please.”

SCK: (holding up drink cup) “This size?”

Me: “Yeah.”

SCK: (pours drink, sets it on the counter, fiddles with the lid because he didn’t get it on straight, fetches popcorn bag) “Butter?”

Me: (didn’t I say ‘large buttered popcorn?’) “Um, Yes.”

SCK: (fills bag with popcorn, then holds the bag up) “Did you want butter?”

Me: (slightly irritated) “Yeah!”

SCK: (butters popcorn, rings up order) “Eleven dollars.”

Me: (pay, rush to the end of the counter for napkins and a straw, go back into theater) “…grumble…”

Peter Parker’s Manager: “You were late again, Peter. You’re fired!”

Peter Parker: “Hey, look at that guy coming into the movie ten minutes late. He’s even more of a loser than I am!”

Despite all of that, I enjoyed the movie immensely. And based on my wife’s synopsis, I really didn’t miss all that much. The special effects were incredible — even better than the first Spider-Man movie. The acrobatics and web effects looked quite realistic. And the effects for Doctor Octopus were awesome, as well. Plus, the script was pretty darned good (though, I feel like they might have been a little too gratuitous with the whole “Peter Parker is a loser with no life” theme).