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May

13

Religious and Political Themes in Spiderman 3

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Kelly Candaele, the Producer of “A League of their Own” with Tom Hanks, Geena Davis and Madonna has written a very interesting commentary on Spiderman 3. 

The makers of Spiderman 3 scorn politics. Despite a rampaging destructiveness that sweeps across New York, there is no sign of the government outside of a desultory police force. There is no Mayor to bolster morale, no Governor to declare an emergency and certainly no President to scramble Air Force fighter jets. Rudy Giuliani should be outraged. Politicians, it is implied, would only make things worse. In other superhero moves like Superman and Batman, politicians were portrayed as corrupt at worst and benign at best. In Spiderman 3, the everyday wielders of political power are banished completely.

There is a curious religious dynamic at work in Spiderman 3 that reinforces the absence of viable social networks. Spiderman’s struggle with the dark seductions of power is an isolated and individual one. His triumph over internal evil takes place alone in a Cathedral tower, the church bells literally stripping him of the black sin of hubris. If power corrupts, then masculine power (women gather round when Peter Parker wears the black Spiderman suit) corrupts absolutely. This is comic book Nietzsche, Christianity feminizing — through sympathy, guilt and forgiveness — Spiderman’s temporary embrace of the will to power.

…

But Spiderman 3’s central and perhaps subliminal message is reactionary and anti-democratic. The mass of people are inert, victims of vast forces that are beyond their control. The debris of shattered windows and skyscrapers caused by these warring forces descends from above — as does deliverance. This is the antithesis of the democratic promise, that people freely joining together in a common cause can make history and determine their own fate.

dlw:He then holds up hope that the upcoming Harry Potter movie will preach a more democratic ethos.

dlw

Comments

3 Responses to “

Religious and Political Themes in Spiderman 3
”

  1. Mark Van Steenwyk on May 13th, 2007 10:33 pm

    ‘Cause we all know how much more just democracies are. ;)

  2. dlw on May 13th, 2007 11:01 pm

    Dude.

    I said democratic ethos!!!

    It’s not simply a matter of the structure of the system, but how people perceive it and act within it…

    dlw

  3. Mark Van Steenwyk on May 13th, 2007 11:54 pm

    Fair enough. But I couldn’t resist giving you a gentle ribbing. ;)

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