I'm afraid I only know Mr. Perkins from one prominent role, and I doubt the man who sinks cars into the nearby swamps is the vibe you're relating it to. However, I'm glad you and I are in agreement. I really did like it.

However, I intended to mention Elfman when I first wrote my review, but I forgot. Danny Elfman is my favorite film composer by a long shot--he's utterly brilliant! His soundtracks are like an additional character for each film, and no soundtrack is as good without him. For instance, while I love and prefer the Nolan Batman trilogy, I will always prefer the Elfman soundtracks for the Burton Batmans.

Also I did want to mention the love interest--I far preferred this Gwen Stacey over Raimi's Mary Jane Watson (and his stupid use of a wonderful actress with his Gwen Stacey as well). I watch Raimi's Spider-man and see this girl who is first dating the biggest jerk in the school and only weakly defends Peter from him, then moves onto Harry, then gets a crush on her friendly neighborhood Spider-man, then likes whom she believes is the distinct person Peter Parker. She really seems like such a non-committal flake, and I don't find her that likable until the second film. I was surprised by how swiftly Peter revealed himself in this movie, but it was kind of refreshing and nice to see a more devoted, less superficial girl.

There certainly was an obvious setup for a part 2, but I think that is the aim for most of these movies, and quite obviously for Raimi's Spider-man. But I deliberately did not leave a rating or decide which I preferred. I like both. They are different, and different in good ways. I enjoy a retelling of the same story, and I for one don't often feel a need to decide which is the better way. I really think both movies are good tellings of the Spider-man mythos.