As this is clearly a sequel, some background and introduction was in order for those who are not devotees of the franchise or at least familiar with the central character. Apart from that, the romantic entanglements could have been played down without losing anything as long as the hero rescues the girl in the gripping finale.

With those two caveats, the film succeeds spectacularly; there is even redemption for the initially reluctant supervillain as at the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour he realises his folly and sacrifices himself to save the city and perhaps the world. The main appeal of the film though is surely the special effects and stunts, which are spectacular beyond belief, even if the train sequence is something one would expect Superman to pull off but not Spider-Man. Watch out too for the briefest of cameo appearances by his creator, Stan Lee.