The third time is rarely the charm for superhero films. In fact, Part 3 is generally the point where most comic-book-inspired series tend to fly off the rails. Think of the silly ‘Superman III,’ the campy ‘Batman Forever’ and the dumbed-down ‘X-Men: The Last Stand.’ All three of these films demolished everything good that had been built up by their predecessors and ruined what had been shaping up to be exceptional ongoing franchises.

I’m not sure if ‘Spider-Man 3’ quite belongs in the same class of extreme badness as those films. I am sure, however, that it is not a very good movie.

As the film opens, life is going swimmingly for Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire). He is doing well in school. He is madly in love with his girlfriend Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst), to whom he intends to propose. And his alter-ego, Spider-Man, has become a media darling, beloved and revered by the entire city of New York. Spidey is given a parade in his honor, the key to the city and the cover of every magazine at the newsstand. Because of all this public acclaim, Peter starts to believe his own hype and becomes a bit too full of himself.

Of course, Peter is not able to enjoy the spotlight for long before everything starts going to Hell. His old friend Harry Osborn (James Franco), believing Spider-Man to be responsible for his father’s death, is out for vengeance, using his old man’s Goblin gear to achieve it. A thief named Flint Marko (Thomas Haden Church) has developed a shapeshifting body made of sand in a freak accident and is terrorizing the city. Eddie Brock (Topher Grace), a rival photographer, is trying to edge Peter out of a position at The Daily Bugle. A sentient mass of black goo from a fallen asteroid becomes strangely fixated on Peter. And, throughout all of this, Peter’s relationship with Mary Jane grows distant and strained, particularly after an attractive classmate (Bryce Dallas Howard) enters his life.

Peter becomes filled with a vengeful rage when he learns that Marko, the Sandman, was responsible for his beloved uncle’s death years earlier. Making matters worse, Harry decides that the best way to hurt Peter is through Mary Jane. But Peter’s anger over these developments becomes greatly intensified when the alien substance attaches itself to his suit, giving it a sleek, black makeover, but also causing his aggression to skyrocket.

If it sounds like ‘Spider-Man 3’ has an awful lot going on, it most certainly does. The film is absurdly overstuffed with plotlines and characters, and is completely incapable of juggling them all. Director Sam Raimi has bitten off far more than he can chew in this film. So many story threads compete for attention that many of them seem like afterthoughts. The Sandman character, for instance, disappears for so many long stretches of the film and ultimately makes so little of an impression, that one wonders why his inclusion was deemed necessary at all.

Similarly, Grace’s Eddie Brock seems utterly superfluous until he comes into contact with the black substance near the end of the film, transforming him into the popular, razor-toothed villain, Venom. Hardcore comic fans will cheer Venom’s appearance in the film, but will be sorely disappointed to find that the character’s screentime is extremely limited, almost to cameo status. Venom has been shoehorned into the film to appease the fans, but said fans undoubtedly would have preferred it if his inclusion had been more organic and substantial than it is here.

Raimi spends the majority of ‘Spider-Man 3’ focused on the relationship between Peter and Mary Jane and the complications it faces. While I believe character relationships to be an important aspect of any film – and one all too commonly neglected in action movies – ‘Spider-Man 3’ too often resembles a sappy twenty-something melodrama more than a superhero extravaganza. The film spends too much time showing the heartbroken couple playing phone tag with each other and too little showing Spidey in action.

‘Spider-Man 3’ does have a few good points to it. While it frequently drags, it does come alive in its action sequences, which are very energetic (though, as in the earlier films, they still look too cartoonish). The actors all do commendable work. And an extended sequence where Peter, falling under the corrupting influence of the black suit, begins to embrace his inner Fonzie is highly amusing.

But, coming after the solid effort that was ‘Spider-Man 2,’ the film disappoints. It is far too unfocused and sloppy to be satisfying. One can only hope that the inevitable ‘Spider-Man 4’ will be much more well-crafted. Another sequel like this might make arachnophobics of us all.

Brandon Wolfe can be reached at [email protected]