Film Review
By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Spider-Man 3
Directed by Sam Raimi
Columbia Pictures 05/07 Feature Film
PG-13 - sequences of intense action violence
"Making right choices requires keeping our heads on straight, thinking clearly, getting the facts, resorting to rules, calculating consequences, being responsible. It is important to keep our heads clear precisely because life can be so zany. But a clear head isn't everything. Don't rule out alternative roads — roads that take us beyond reason to the right choice," writes Lewis B. Smedes in Choices: Making Right Decisions in a Complex World. In the third Spider-Man movie, the superhero learns that this is so true.
As the movie opens, Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is flying high and everything is going great. "People like me," he says in a voiceover. New York City is safe and sound thanks to his heroic efforts, he in love with the girl of his dreams, and he is doing well at college. But then things begin to crack and change a little bit here and a little bit there until Peter is surrounded by chaos that threatens all that he thought he was.
The challenges begin when a mysterious black substance attaches itself to Peter's Spider-Man suit; he discovers that wearing the black suit he has more strength and agility. But at the same time, it draws out his need for power and control over others, making him full of pride and more aggressive. Still, Peter likes this new feeling and begins wearing the black suit under his street clothes.
This yielding to his shadow side intrudes upon his relationship with M.J. (Kirsten Dunst), who faces a major disappointment when her debut on Broadway is dubbed a failure and she loses her job. He is not there when she needs him; instead he capitulates to the fame game when he is given the keys to the city after saving Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard), a college classmate and the daughter of the NYPD Captain (James Cromwell). During the ceremony, he kisses Gwen, breaking M.J.'s heart.
Then Peter and his Aunt Mae (Rosemary Harris) learn from the police that a recently escaped convict, Flint Marko (Thomas Haden Church), is the man who shot and killed his uncle years ago. This fellow is convinced that he is not a bad person but just someone who has had bad luck. He might be right. Running from the police, he stumbles into a molecular fusion experiment that turns him into a "sandman" able to change his shape and size at will. When Spider-Man finds out who Sandman really is, all his submerged feelings of vengeance resurface. Thank goodness Aunt Mae is on hand with some wise advice: "Uncle Ben wouldn't want us living with revenge in our heart. It can overtake us and turn us into something ugly."
Ugly is the word that describes Peter Parker's disintegrating relationship with his one-time best friend Harry Osborn (James Franco), which also becomes tinged with hatred and revenge. A final spiritual teacher is Eddie Brook (Topher Grace), an amoral and self-centered photographer who gives our hero a glimpse of his own capacity to choose the wrong path.
Spider-Man 3, overseen by director Sam Raimi, has all the requisite special-effects thrills than come with the territory. But the thing that holds our interest is the character development. We can identify with Peter Parker and the choices he must make to retain and deepen his humanity. In the name of love, he has to learn to put M.J. first and to set his own ego needs aside. In the name of friendship, he has to learn to what it means to stand by a person in tough times as well as in good times. For the sake of his own growth, he has to recognize his shadow side and forgive himself for his mistakes. For the sake of others, he has to accept that forgiveness is the hard but right path to take since all of us are vulnerable and sometimes make the wrong choices.
Being a winner in Spider-Man 3 means making choices from the heart, and that is a message that we need to hear again and again, given all the movies that proclaim the satisfactions of an eye for an eye. Three cheers for Spider-Man, the superhero with a heart!
Monday, May 21, 2007
Sunday, May 13, 2007
http://www.movieministry.com/movies.php?view=featured
1 . The Big Idea: Self-Sacrifice makes you marriage material.
Topics: Husband Wife Marriage Self-sacrifice
Scripture: Ephesians 5:25-33 Titus 2:3-5
see illustration
2 . The Big Idea: You become what is in your heart.
Topics: Prayer Heart Evil Thought
Scripture: Psalms 36:1-4 Matthew 12:34-37
see illustration
3 . The Big Idea: Where do you find forgiveness?
Topics: Confession Repentance Forgiveness Reconciliation
Scripture: James 1:23-24 Luke 19:2-10
see illustration
4 . The Big Idea: Revenge poisons the heart.
Topics: Revenge Violence Sin Forgiveness
Scripture: Hebrews 12:14-15 Matthew 5:43-48
see illustration
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
Self-Sacrifice makes you marriage material.
Scene Setup:
Peter Parker knocks on Aunt May's door. When she answers it, he has a surprise for her about M.J.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
In all of the Spider-Man films, Aunt May represents morality and reason. She is the soul of these movies, so it is no surprise that when Peter wants to talk about taking "the big step" with his girlfriend, MJ, that Aunt May gives him good advice -- and a challenge. She says, "A man has to be understanding, and put his wife before himself." She asks Peter if he can do that, and Peter responds, "Yeah, I think I can." And then she offers Peter her engagement ring to give to MJ, symbolizing the continuity of marriage as an institution.
The Apostle Paul commanded husbands to love their wives. It seems obvious, doesn't it? What man would marry a woman with whom he wasn't in love? And yet, there is the command. Paul recognized that love is not a fleeting feeling, but a lifetime commitment to act in a loving way, every day, whether the husband happened to feel loving that day or not. Love is demonstrated in sacrifice, and the example Paul gives is the way the Christ sacrificed Himself for the Church, and gave His life for her. So the best way that husbands can demonstrate Christ to the world is by sacrificially loving their wives. In doing so, they exemplify the great mystery between Christ and the Church.
The character of Aunt May also is a testament to the idea that one of the greatest gifts than an older generation can offer the younger generation is that of a good example. She had a loving marriage for a lifetime, and now wishes to pass along that legacy to Peter in the symbol of her ring. The Apostle Paul wrote to Titus, telling him to have the older women in his church teach the younger wives how to love their husbands. When Christian men and women love their spouses for a lifetime, they give example and strength to those who follow.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
None for this scene.
Topics: Husband Wife Marriage Self-sacrifice Tradition
Scripture: Ephesians 5:25-33 Titus 2:3-5 Colossians 3:18-19 1 Peter 3:7-7
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: husband, husbands, wife, wives, marriage, sacrifice, self-sacrifice, tradition, traditions, marry, love, loves, lover
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
You become what is in your heart.
Scene Setup:
After trying to pass off some bogus shots of Spider-Man as authentic, Eddie Brock is exposed as a fraud, and fired. He makes his way to a church, kneels down, and prays a most unusual prayer.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
Eddie Brock is on his knees, in a church, looking at a statue of the crucified Christ, when he prays his homicidal prayer. And, in a startling way, he was answered -- but not by God. In the final book in the Chronicles of Narnia, "The Last Battle," C.S. Lewis explains through his Christ-figure character, Aslan, that not all prayers addressed to God are really prayed to Him. When our hearts are filled with evil intent, then even if we say we are praying to God, we are actually fooling ourselves. God does not answer prayers offered in the spirit of the father of lies. Even as Spider-Man struggles to free himself from the tight grip of evil; Eddie makes himself a ripe host for the black, oozing venom that envelopes him, giving external expression to the depravity in his heart.
A wise man once said, "Going to church won't make you any more a Christian than going to the Elks Club will make you an elk." Many people believe that because of their relationship to Christians or Christianity that they know God, but Jesus warns that many will call Him "Lord" and yet will be rejected by Him because their hearts and actions betray them as liars. It is not externals that connect us to God, but what is within our hearts. That which takes up our thought time, those ideas we cherish, our deepest desires -- these are what ultimately will come out and reveal us for what we are.
Do you share God's thoughts? Do you desire what He desires? We will become what is in our hearts. It is important, then, for us to allow God to renew us, to make us into new creatures, to conform us into His image, so that we may be one with Him, enter into His family, and truly become His children.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
The last moments of this clip are pretty frightening. Eddie is enveloped in a black goo that transforms him into a demonic looking creature. Use discretion.
Topics: Prayer Heart Evil Thought Murder
Scripture: Psalms 36:1-4 Matthew 12:34-37 Luke 6:45-49 John 8:38-45 Hebrews 3:12-18
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: pray, prayer, heart, evil, thought, think, inner man, murder
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
Where do you find forgiveness?
Scene Setup:
Peter comes to Aunt May's house to confess that he has wronged MJ.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
Half of Aunt May's advice is good, but the other half -- though well-meant and widely believed -- is wrong. When Peter confesses to Aunt May that he has hurt his girlfriend, MJ, and no longer knows what to do, Aunt May tells him: "You start by doing the hardest thing -- you forgive yourself."
Many people believe that getting on the right path begins with forgiving yourself, but that way of thinking is based on the premise that you have sinned against yourself. The Scriptures tell a different story. We are told that when we sin against others, the first (and hardest) thing we have to do is seek their forgiveness. The other acts we are told we need to do are to repent and seek God's forgiveness -- because ultimately all sins are sins against God. Nowhere in the Bible are people ever told to forgive themselves, in fact, it is assumed that people will all too quickly forget transgressions they have committed against others (James 1:23-24).
The part of Aunt May's advice that is good is that once we have repented and sought forgiveness, we are to try to "make it right." Jesus taught His disciples to put things right with people they have offended even before making an offering to God. Zaccheaus, a thieving tax collector who received a visit from Jesus, untimately repented and promised that everyone he had defrauded would be repaid four fold.
When we do wrong to others, when we sin against them, our responsibility is not to forgive ourselves, but to seek forgiveness from them and try to make right what we have done wrong. It may not be the pop-psychology way, but it is God's way.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
None for this scene.
Topics: Confession Repentance Forgiveness Reconciliation Restoration
Scripture: James 1:23-24 Luke 19:2-10 Matthew 5:23-24 1 John 1:8-10 Psalms 51:1-13
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: confess, confession, sin, sinner, sinning, sins, repent, repentance, forgive, forgiven, forgiveness, reconcile, reconciliation, restore, restoration
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
Revenge poisons the heart.
Scene Setup:
Peter Parker (a.k.a. Spider-Man) comes to tell Aunt May that Spider-Man has finally killed the man who murdered her husband, but he is surprised by her response.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
Peter is surprised by Aunt May's reaction to the death of Flint Marko -- the murderer of her husband. She is not happy. She does not believe in personal vengeance. She feels the depth of the loss of her husband, but she tells Peter that it isn't "for us to say whether a person deserves to live or die." As the spiritual anchor in the Spider-Man films, she cuts through all of the notions of who deserves what, and straight to the heart of Peter's motivation -- revenge. She says that revenge is a poison that can take us over and turn us "into something ugly."
God warns us against allowing bitterness to rise up in our hearts to defile us. Revenge, even including murderous desires, may seem right to us when we are victimized, but if the wages of sin are death, then we need to take great care about the sinful paths we put our feet upon.
One of the most common of human emotions is the desire to "get even" when we feel we have been wronged. When people do evil to us, we feel compelled to do evil in response, thinking that doing so will set everything to rights. We want to hurt those who hurt us; some of us even wish death on those who would harm us. We are so steeped in this belief that the message of the Scriptures is counterintuitive -- it doesn't make sense. Some might even call it "foolish."
But Jesus taught that we are not to seek vengeance, but to leave that to God. Instead, He teaches us to love our enemies, and to pray for them. We don't even the score when we repay evil for evil; we just create more evil. Instead, Jesus tells us to "overcome evil with good." All of us were once evil, sinners, and enemies of God. But He chose to love us while we were still His enemies. Jesus did not die for perfect people, but for the very people who hated Him (Romans 5:6-10). If we are to be conformed into His image, and if we are to transform the world with His message, then we need to be prepared to follow in His footsteps, living a life of forgiveness and mercy.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
None for this scene.
Topics: Revenge Violence Sin Forgiveness Murder
Scripture: Hebrews 12:14-15 Matthew 5:43-48 Proverbs 24:29-29 Romans 12:17-21 1 Thessalonians 5:14-15
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: revenge, vengeance, violence, sin, murder, evil, forgive, forgiveness, murder, love
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
Topics: Husband Wife Marriage Self-sacrifice
Scripture: Ephesians 5:25-33 Titus 2:3-5
see illustration
2 . The Big Idea: You become what is in your heart.
Topics: Prayer Heart Evil Thought
Scripture: Psalms 36:1-4 Matthew 12:34-37
see illustration
3 . The Big Idea: Where do you find forgiveness?
Topics: Confession Repentance Forgiveness Reconciliation
Scripture: James 1:23-24 Luke 19:2-10
see illustration
4 . The Big Idea: Revenge poisons the heart.
Topics: Revenge Violence Sin Forgiveness
Scripture: Hebrews 12:14-15 Matthew 5:43-48
see illustration
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
Self-Sacrifice makes you marriage material.
Scene Setup:
Peter Parker knocks on Aunt May's door. When she answers it, he has a surprise for her about M.J.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
In all of the Spider-Man films, Aunt May represents morality and reason. She is the soul of these movies, so it is no surprise that when Peter wants to talk about taking "the big step" with his girlfriend, MJ, that Aunt May gives him good advice -- and a challenge. She says, "A man has to be understanding, and put his wife before himself." She asks Peter if he can do that, and Peter responds, "Yeah, I think I can." And then she offers Peter her engagement ring to give to MJ, symbolizing the continuity of marriage as an institution.
The Apostle Paul commanded husbands to love their wives. It seems obvious, doesn't it? What man would marry a woman with whom he wasn't in love? And yet, there is the command. Paul recognized that love is not a fleeting feeling, but a lifetime commitment to act in a loving way, every day, whether the husband happened to feel loving that day or not. Love is demonstrated in sacrifice, and the example Paul gives is the way the Christ sacrificed Himself for the Church, and gave His life for her. So the best way that husbands can demonstrate Christ to the world is by sacrificially loving their wives. In doing so, they exemplify the great mystery between Christ and the Church.
The character of Aunt May also is a testament to the idea that one of the greatest gifts than an older generation can offer the younger generation is that of a good example. She had a loving marriage for a lifetime, and now wishes to pass along that legacy to Peter in the symbol of her ring. The Apostle Paul wrote to Titus, telling him to have the older women in his church teach the younger wives how to love their husbands. When Christian men and women love their spouses for a lifetime, they give example and strength to those who follow.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
None for this scene.
Topics: Husband Wife Marriage Self-sacrifice Tradition
Scripture: Ephesians 5:25-33 Titus 2:3-5 Colossians 3:18-19 1 Peter 3:7-7
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: husband, husbands, wife, wives, marriage, sacrifice, self-sacrifice, tradition, traditions, marry, love, loves, lover
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
You become what is in your heart.
Scene Setup:
After trying to pass off some bogus shots of Spider-Man as authentic, Eddie Brock is exposed as a fraud, and fired. He makes his way to a church, kneels down, and prays a most unusual prayer.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
Eddie Brock is on his knees, in a church, looking at a statue of the crucified Christ, when he prays his homicidal prayer. And, in a startling way, he was answered -- but not by God. In the final book in the Chronicles of Narnia, "The Last Battle," C.S. Lewis explains through his Christ-figure character, Aslan, that not all prayers addressed to God are really prayed to Him. When our hearts are filled with evil intent, then even if we say we are praying to God, we are actually fooling ourselves. God does not answer prayers offered in the spirit of the father of lies. Even as Spider-Man struggles to free himself from the tight grip of evil; Eddie makes himself a ripe host for the black, oozing venom that envelopes him, giving external expression to the depravity in his heart.
A wise man once said, "Going to church won't make you any more a Christian than going to the Elks Club will make you an elk." Many people believe that because of their relationship to Christians or Christianity that they know God, but Jesus warns that many will call Him "Lord" and yet will be rejected by Him because their hearts and actions betray them as liars. It is not externals that connect us to God, but what is within our hearts. That which takes up our thought time, those ideas we cherish, our deepest desires -- these are what ultimately will come out and reveal us for what we are.
Do you share God's thoughts? Do you desire what He desires? We will become what is in our hearts. It is important, then, for us to allow God to renew us, to make us into new creatures, to conform us into His image, so that we may be one with Him, enter into His family, and truly become His children.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
The last moments of this clip are pretty frightening. Eddie is enveloped in a black goo that transforms him into a demonic looking creature. Use discretion.
Topics: Prayer Heart Evil Thought Murder
Scripture: Psalms 36:1-4 Matthew 12:34-37 Luke 6:45-49 John 8:38-45 Hebrews 3:12-18
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: pray, prayer, heart, evil, thought, think, inner man, murder
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
Where do you find forgiveness?
Scene Setup:
Peter comes to Aunt May's house to confess that he has wronged MJ.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
Half of Aunt May's advice is good, but the other half -- though well-meant and widely believed -- is wrong. When Peter confesses to Aunt May that he has hurt his girlfriend, MJ, and no longer knows what to do, Aunt May tells him: "You start by doing the hardest thing -- you forgive yourself."
Many people believe that getting on the right path begins with forgiving yourself, but that way of thinking is based on the premise that you have sinned against yourself. The Scriptures tell a different story. We are told that when we sin against others, the first (and hardest) thing we have to do is seek their forgiveness. The other acts we are told we need to do are to repent and seek God's forgiveness -- because ultimately all sins are sins against God. Nowhere in the Bible are people ever told to forgive themselves, in fact, it is assumed that people will all too quickly forget transgressions they have committed against others (James 1:23-24).
The part of Aunt May's advice that is good is that once we have repented and sought forgiveness, we are to try to "make it right." Jesus taught His disciples to put things right with people they have offended even before making an offering to God. Zaccheaus, a thieving tax collector who received a visit from Jesus, untimately repented and promised that everyone he had defrauded would be repaid four fold.
When we do wrong to others, when we sin against them, our responsibility is not to forgive ourselves, but to seek forgiveness from them and try to make right what we have done wrong. It may not be the pop-psychology way, but it is God's way.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
None for this scene.
Topics: Confession Repentance Forgiveness Reconciliation Restoration
Scripture: James 1:23-24 Luke 19:2-10 Matthew 5:23-24 1 John 1:8-10 Psalms 51:1-13
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: confess, confession, sin, sinner, sinning, sins, repent, repentance, forgive, forgiven, forgiveness, reconcile, reconciliation, restore, restoration
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
The Big Idea:
top | print friendly
Revenge poisons the heart.
Scene Setup:
Peter Parker (a.k.a. Spider-Man) comes to tell Aunt May that Spider-Man has finally killed the man who murdered her husband, but he is surprised by her response.
Scene:
Preview the Clip. Download the Clip. Show the Clip!
Click here to bring up the clip player. Find this image
and click on it to preview and/or download the clip for the following application.
Application:
Peter is surprised by Aunt May's reaction to the death of Flint Marko -- the murderer of her husband. She is not happy. She does not believe in personal vengeance. She feels the depth of the loss of her husband, but she tells Peter that it isn't "for us to say whether a person deserves to live or die." As the spiritual anchor in the Spider-Man films, she cuts through all of the notions of who deserves what, and straight to the heart of Peter's motivation -- revenge. She says that revenge is a poison that can take us over and turn us "into something ugly."
God warns us against allowing bitterness to rise up in our hearts to defile us. Revenge, even including murderous desires, may seem right to us when we are victimized, but if the wages of sin are death, then we need to take great care about the sinful paths we put our feet upon.
One of the most common of human emotions is the desire to "get even" when we feel we have been wronged. When people do evil to us, we feel compelled to do evil in response, thinking that doing so will set everything to rights. We want to hurt those who hurt us; some of us even wish death on those who would harm us. We are so steeped in this belief that the message of the Scriptures is counterintuitive -- it doesn't make sense. Some might even call it "foolish."
But Jesus taught that we are not to seek vengeance, but to leave that to God. Instead, He teaches us to love our enemies, and to pray for them. We don't even the score when we repay evil for evil; we just create more evil. Instead, Jesus tells us to "overcome evil with good." All of us were once evil, sinners, and enemies of God. But He chose to love us while we were still His enemies. Jesus did not die for perfect people, but for the very people who hated Him (Romans 5:6-10). If we are to be conformed into His image, and if we are to transform the world with His message, then we need to be prepared to follow in His footsteps, living a life of forgiveness and mercy.
Illustration's Sermon General's Warning:
None for this scene.
Topics: Revenge Violence Sin Forgiveness Murder
Scripture: Hebrews 12:14-15 Matthew 5:43-48 Proverbs 24:29-29 Romans 12:17-21 1 Thessalonians 5:14-15
Verses Powered by StudyLight.org
Keywords: revenge, vengeance, violence, sin, murder, evil, forgive, forgiveness, murder, love
Rating: PG-13 Genre: Action/Adventure
DVD chapter and times not yet available.
http://www.sermonspice.com/spiderman3/downloads/Spiderman3_StudyGuide.pdf
By Craig Detweiler
Director, Reel Spirituality Institute
Fuller Theological Seminary
INTRODUCTION
THEME: RESISTING TEMPTATION
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with
good.”—Romans 12:21
Having turned to crime-fighting to avenge his Uncle
Ben’s death, Peter Parker faces unparalleled
temptation in Spider-Man 3. Should Spider-Man
avenge his uncle by taking out Ben’s murderer, Flint
Marko? Peter also finds a rival photographer in the
Daily Bugle newsroom, Eddie Brock. Eddie’s
deception brings out the worst in Peter. Spider-Man
must also contend with the blame directed at him by
Harry Osborn. Was Spider-Man responsible for the
death of Harry’s father, Norman Osborn, the Green
Goblin? Harry thinks so. How can Peter reconcile
with his best friend?
These multiple villains test Peter, revealing a darker
side to Spider-Man. Ultimately, Spider-Man’s rising
fame may distract Peter Parker from the woman he
loves, Mary Jane Watson. Peter will need an
abundance of grace and forgiveness to dig out of
these action-packed crises in Spider-Man 3.
Questions:
1. What temptations do you face?
2. Who brings out the worst in you?
3. How do you overcome evil?
PETER PARKER/SPIDER-MAN
THEME: WE ALL NEED HELP
“A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly
spirit gains honor.”—Proverbs 29:23
Peter Parker is enjoying Spider-Man’s fame and
celebrity. His girlfriend, M.J. (Mary Jane), is
struggling to make her way as an actress and
entertainer. Nevertheless, she can see Spider-Man’s
self-confidence growing into an over-confidence.
Mary Jane warns Peter about the dangers of
independence, “We all need help sometimes, Peter.
Even Spider-Man. This pride of his—maybe even
he’s not perfect.”
Peter has been tainted by a mysterious black goo—
a shadow crossing over him. It has attached to
Peter, clinging to him like a dark, new Spider-Man
suit. It causes jealousy, rage, and retribution to grow.
Dr. Curt Connors identifies this black goo as a
symbiote, calling it, “A parasite that amplifies
characteristics of its host, especially aggression.”
Peter’s aggression comes out in how he treats his
friends and co-workers. As a black suited
Spider-Man, Peter attacks Harry with ugly truths
about his father, Norman. Peter also argues with
Brock, his competition at the Daily Bugle. He even
hurts the one he loves, M.J.
Questions:
1. When has pride brought you low?
2. Have you hurt friends and family with things you’ve
said or done?
3. Has darkness overtaken you at times?
FLINT MARKO/SANDMAN
THEME: TRYING TO DO GOOD
“For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot
carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want
to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on
doing.”--Romans 7:18-19
Flint Marko breaks out of jail, eager to straighten out
his life. Marko is desperate to help his ailing daughter.
Yet, his estranged wife, Emma Marko, tells him,
“You’re guilty, guilty as sin.” Flint protests, “I am not
bad. I had bad luck. That’s different. I want to do
good.” Marko has one simple request, “Pray for me!
Your daddy’s gonna make you healthy one day.”
Marko wants money for research to heal his daughter,
Penny. An accident soon transforms him into the
monstrous Sandman.
As Flint Marko, actor Thomas Haden Church told the
Los Angeles Times, “Villains with a conscience have
this sad realization of who they are, and the monster
they’ve become—there’s a sense of regret.” Will the
Sandman gain control of his emotions before it is too
late?
Questions:
1. Have you found yourself unable to do the right
thing, despite your hope or aspirations?
2. Have you felt double-minded, at war within
yourself?
3. How do you embrace and carry out your best
intentions?
EDDIE BROCK/VENOM
THEME: REVENGE IN OUR HEART
“So I find this new law at work: When I want to do
good, evil is right there with me.” Romans 7:21
Peter is tempted to carry out vengeance. But his
gracious Aunt May tells Peter, “I don’t think there’s
any reason to feel jubilation about somebody’s death.
Your uncle wouldn’t want you living one second of
your life with revenge in your heart. It’s like a poison.
It can take us over. Before you know it, turns us into
something ugly.” Peter needs to wash away the
darkness overtaking him. In a church, Peter finds the
solution to his problem.
Yet, even as Peter experiences a fresh start, the
same ugliness overtakes Eddie Brock. Inside a
church, Eddie offers a prayer of rage, “I’m a decent
person. I come to you today, humbled, humiliated. To
ask of you but one thing—I want you to kill Peter
Parker.” As Venom, Eddie revels in his new-found
abilities, which make him every bit as powerful as
Spider-Man. Eddie admits, “I was handed power I
never dreamed of. It just poured down on me as if
from heaven itself.” Yet, what Eddie sees as heaven
sent may actually be a dark gift from somewhere far
away.
Questions:
1. When have you wanted revenge? In what
situation?
2. Where do you turn to resist or overcome such
temptation?
HARRY OSBORN/GREEN GOBLIN
THEME: MADNESS OVERTAKING US
“The light shines in darkness, but the darkness has
not understood it.” John 1:5
Harry Osborn is quite conflicted in Spider-Man 3. He
still blames Spider-Man for his father’s death. He
also continues to harbor secret affections for Peter’s
girlfriend, M.J. Harry is tempted to act out on his hidden
feelings, bringing harm to himself or his friends.
Yet, when Harry wakes up in a hospital with amnesia
and sees Peter Parker and Mary Jane, he thinks, “My
best friends—I’d give my life for them.” His best impulses
have surfaced, his anger washed away.
Harry must let go of plenty of
understandable anger. If not, it threatens to destroy
him.
Bernard the Butler tells Harry: “I’ve watched a
darkness come over you father, a madness that cost
him his life.” Will Harry succumb to the same
madness as the New Green Goblin?
Questions:
1. What old grudges have you held onto?
2. What kinds of madness might you need to overcome?
3. Would you be willing to give you life for your
friends or family?
FORGIVENESS: THE REAL SUPERPOWER
THEME: THE HIGHEST WHICH WE CAN ASPIRE TO…
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving
each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians
4:32
All of the villains in Spider-Man 3 want to start over.
They’re searching for some kind of forgiveness. For
Flint Marko, he’s willing to commit more crimes to
save his daughter, Penny’s life. Can the Sandman
learn to harness his anger for good? Peter Parker
rises above the circumstances, declaring, “I think
there’s been enough punishment.” He wants to forge
a new path.
Peter offers similar encouragement to Eddie, “Don’t
give in to the anger, Eddie. It just wants you to hate.”
Eddie Brock can either resist complications or opt for
a different way of being.
While Sandman and Venom struggle to embrace
hope, Harry Osborn demonstrates a
surprising maturity. Peter learns a valuable lesson
from Harry. Peter declares, “Those things we know
about often get forgotten along the way. That all we
have in this world is the love of our friends and our
family and that they are worthy of the highest which
we can aspire to…forgiveness.”
What a surprising, faith-affirming realization! Spider-
Man 3 offers a graphic demonstration of the darkness
that grips all of us. Yet, Peter Parker shows us
that, through forgiveness, we can wash away that
which covers us and start anew. Spider-Man 3 experiences
firsthand, the necessity and power of forgiveness.
Questions:
1. To what degree, do you desire to forge a new
path?
2. Have you experienced forgiveness?
3. Have you extended grace to others, even those
who have wronged you?
Take a moment to identify the sources of anger in
your life. What thoughts, feelings and actions need
to be forgiven? Who can you offer forgiveness to
today? Close in prayer, grateful for the grace that
God offers. Walk in this biblical promise: “If we confess
our sin, He is faithful and just and will forgive us
our sin and cleanse us from righteousness.”—I John
1:9
Craig Detweiler directs the Reel Spirituality Institute at Fuller
Seminary ( HYPERLINK "http://www.brehmcenter.org"
www.brehmcenter.org). He is a screenwriter, co-author of A Matrix
of Meanings: Finding God in Pop Culture (can we do a link to
amazon.com), and has been featured in the New York Times, on
CNN and on National Public Radio.
YOUR STUDY NOTES:
By Craig Detweiler
Director, Reel Spirituality Institute
Fuller Theological Seminary
INTRODUCTION
THEME: RESISTING TEMPTATION
“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with
good.”—Romans 12:21
Having turned to crime-fighting to avenge his Uncle
Ben’s death, Peter Parker faces unparalleled
temptation in Spider-Man 3. Should Spider-Man
avenge his uncle by taking out Ben’s murderer, Flint
Marko? Peter also finds a rival photographer in the
Daily Bugle newsroom, Eddie Brock. Eddie’s
deception brings out the worst in Peter. Spider-Man
must also contend with the blame directed at him by
Harry Osborn. Was Spider-Man responsible for the
death of Harry’s father, Norman Osborn, the Green
Goblin? Harry thinks so. How can Peter reconcile
with his best friend?
These multiple villains test Peter, revealing a darker
side to Spider-Man. Ultimately, Spider-Man’s rising
fame may distract Peter Parker from the woman he
loves, Mary Jane Watson. Peter will need an
abundance of grace and forgiveness to dig out of
these action-packed crises in Spider-Man 3.
Questions:
1. What temptations do you face?
2. Who brings out the worst in you?
3. How do you overcome evil?
PETER PARKER/SPIDER-MAN
THEME: WE ALL NEED HELP
“A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly
spirit gains honor.”—Proverbs 29:23
Peter Parker is enjoying Spider-Man’s fame and
celebrity. His girlfriend, M.J. (Mary Jane), is
struggling to make her way as an actress and
entertainer. Nevertheless, she can see Spider-Man’s
self-confidence growing into an over-confidence.
Mary Jane warns Peter about the dangers of
independence, “We all need help sometimes, Peter.
Even Spider-Man. This pride of his—maybe even
he’s not perfect.”
Peter has been tainted by a mysterious black goo—
a shadow crossing over him. It has attached to
Peter, clinging to him like a dark, new Spider-Man
suit. It causes jealousy, rage, and retribution to grow.
Dr. Curt Connors identifies this black goo as a
symbiote, calling it, “A parasite that amplifies
characteristics of its host, especially aggression.”
Peter’s aggression comes out in how he treats his
friends and co-workers. As a black suited
Spider-Man, Peter attacks Harry with ugly truths
about his father, Norman. Peter also argues with
Brock, his competition at the Daily Bugle. He even
hurts the one he loves, M.J.
Questions:
1. When has pride brought you low?
2. Have you hurt friends and family with things you’ve
said or done?
3. Has darkness overtaken you at times?
FLINT MARKO/SANDMAN
THEME: TRYING TO DO GOOD
“For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot
carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want
to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on
doing.”--Romans 7:18-19
Flint Marko breaks out of jail, eager to straighten out
his life. Marko is desperate to help his ailing daughter.
Yet, his estranged wife, Emma Marko, tells him,
“You’re guilty, guilty as sin.” Flint protests, “I am not
bad. I had bad luck. That’s different. I want to do
good.” Marko has one simple request, “Pray for me!
Your daddy’s gonna make you healthy one day.”
Marko wants money for research to heal his daughter,
Penny. An accident soon transforms him into the
monstrous Sandman.
As Flint Marko, actor Thomas Haden Church told the
Los Angeles Times, “Villains with a conscience have
this sad realization of who they are, and the monster
they’ve become—there’s a sense of regret.” Will the
Sandman gain control of his emotions before it is too
late?
Questions:
1. Have you found yourself unable to do the right
thing, despite your hope or aspirations?
2. Have you felt double-minded, at war within
yourself?
3. How do you embrace and carry out your best
intentions?
EDDIE BROCK/VENOM
THEME: REVENGE IN OUR HEART
“So I find this new law at work: When I want to do
good, evil is right there with me.” Romans 7:21
Peter is tempted to carry out vengeance. But his
gracious Aunt May tells Peter, “I don’t think there’s
any reason to feel jubilation about somebody’s death.
Your uncle wouldn’t want you living one second of
your life with revenge in your heart. It’s like a poison.
It can take us over. Before you know it, turns us into
something ugly.” Peter needs to wash away the
darkness overtaking him. In a church, Peter finds the
solution to his problem.
Yet, even as Peter experiences a fresh start, the
same ugliness overtakes Eddie Brock. Inside a
church, Eddie offers a prayer of rage, “I’m a decent
person. I come to you today, humbled, humiliated. To
ask of you but one thing—I want you to kill Peter
Parker.” As Venom, Eddie revels in his new-found
abilities, which make him every bit as powerful as
Spider-Man. Eddie admits, “I was handed power I
never dreamed of. It just poured down on me as if
from heaven itself.” Yet, what Eddie sees as heaven
sent may actually be a dark gift from somewhere far
away.
Questions:
1. When have you wanted revenge? In what
situation?
2. Where do you turn to resist or overcome such
temptation?
HARRY OSBORN/GREEN GOBLIN
THEME: MADNESS OVERTAKING US
“The light shines in darkness, but the darkness has
not understood it.” John 1:5
Harry Osborn is quite conflicted in Spider-Man 3. He
still blames Spider-Man for his father’s death. He
also continues to harbor secret affections for Peter’s
girlfriend, M.J. Harry is tempted to act out on his hidden
feelings, bringing harm to himself or his friends.
Yet, when Harry wakes up in a hospital with amnesia
and sees Peter Parker and Mary Jane, he thinks, “My
best friends—I’d give my life for them.” His best impulses
have surfaced, his anger washed away.
Harry must let go of plenty of
understandable anger. If not, it threatens to destroy
him.
Bernard the Butler tells Harry: “I’ve watched a
darkness come over you father, a madness that cost
him his life.” Will Harry succumb to the same
madness as the New Green Goblin?
Questions:
1. What old grudges have you held onto?
2. What kinds of madness might you need to overcome?
3. Would you be willing to give you life for your
friends or family?
FORGIVENESS: THE REAL SUPERPOWER
THEME: THE HIGHEST WHICH WE CAN ASPIRE TO…
“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving
each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Ephesians
4:32
All of the villains in Spider-Man 3 want to start over.
They’re searching for some kind of forgiveness. For
Flint Marko, he’s willing to commit more crimes to
save his daughter, Penny’s life. Can the Sandman
learn to harness his anger for good? Peter Parker
rises above the circumstances, declaring, “I think
there’s been enough punishment.” He wants to forge
a new path.
Peter offers similar encouragement to Eddie, “Don’t
give in to the anger, Eddie. It just wants you to hate.”
Eddie Brock can either resist complications or opt for
a different way of being.
While Sandman and Venom struggle to embrace
hope, Harry Osborn demonstrates a
surprising maturity. Peter learns a valuable lesson
from Harry. Peter declares, “Those things we know
about often get forgotten along the way. That all we
have in this world is the love of our friends and our
family and that they are worthy of the highest which
we can aspire to…forgiveness.”
What a surprising, faith-affirming realization! Spider-
Man 3 offers a graphic demonstration of the darkness
that grips all of us. Yet, Peter Parker shows us
that, through forgiveness, we can wash away that
which covers us and start anew. Spider-Man 3 experiences
firsthand, the necessity and power of forgiveness.
Questions:
1. To what degree, do you desire to forge a new
path?
2. Have you experienced forgiveness?
3. Have you extended grace to others, even those
who have wronged you?
Take a moment to identify the sources of anger in
your life. What thoughts, feelings and actions need
to be forgiven? Who can you offer forgiveness to
today? Close in prayer, grateful for the grace that
God offers. Walk in this biblical promise: “If we confess
our sin, He is faithful and just and will forgive us
our sin and cleanse us from righteousness.”—I John
1:9
Craig Detweiler directs the Reel Spirituality Institute at Fuller
Seminary ( HYPERLINK "http://www.brehmcenter.org"
www.brehmcenter.org). He is a screenwriter, co-author of A Matrix
of Meanings: Finding God in Pop Culture (can we do a link to
amazon.com), and has been featured in the New York Times, on
CNN and on National Public Radio.
YOUR STUDY NOTES:
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