Robin Moon
I’m far from alone in saying that Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy is near-perfection. Tobey Maguire’s awe-inspiring charm, the cheesy one-liners, camp yet sympathetic villains, and a sincere emotional core are among some of the elements that make those films shine. But occasionally, dropped in-between the classic superhero shenanigans, are scenes of rather perturbing horror.
It’s no surprise, considering Raimi often gravitates towards directing horror films; he’s most famous for the extremely successful Evil Dead franchise. Therefore, he knows the genre very well. I’m something of a horror fan myself, so, naturally, I’d want to analyse these moments. The one scene in particular that jumps out as highly effective is Doc Ock’s awakening in Spider-Man 2.
Shortly after Doctor Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina) attaches the iconic metal tentacles to himself, the neural inhibitor chip fries in an unprecedented accident. This means that instead of Octavius controlling the mechanical limbs, they control him. The technology is fused to his spine, so he’s taken to the hospital to have the arms surgically removed. Not only does the procedure not work, but it goes horribly wrong.
In the scene, while Octavius remains unconscious, the metal arms do not. Seeing a doctor come at them with a chainsaw, the alarmed appendages start lashing out at all the medical staff. Mercilessly, they lunge, dive, stab, and slash at everyone in the vicinity. Every doctor and nurse is ruthlessly slaughtered, gorelessly cut down, tossed across the room, and smashed into walls until the room is a scene of utter destruction and death. All the while, Octavius is entirely oblivious.
As a horror director, Raimi uses a range of techniques that culminate in such an impressively chilling scene. A significant part of the mise en scène is lighting. Being set in an operating theatre, the light source is primarily from surgical lamps. It’s a very harsh, cold, clinical type of light that frames the scene in a startling way. The point of doctors using these lamps is to starkly illuminate a patient’s body and the tools they’re using for optimal visual capability. Therefore, such bright white light exposes its subject, making it seem vulnerable like a rabbit caught in the headlights. This is what the doctors and nurses are when faced with a formidable attack such as this. There’s no hiding.
Simultaneously, harsh light creates an equal contrast in the form of shadows. What is hidden in darkness creates a sense of fear that works effectively in tandem with its opposite— light and shadows moving ominously in a danse macabre. One memorable shot involves a doctor getting dragged backwards into complete shadow, leaving claw marks in her wake as she tries to stop herself. This particularly strikes me as something straight out of a horror film.
Another shot that utilises shadows is a split-second silhouette on the wall, depicting a doctor with his arms raised in defense against the sharp, grabbing fingers. This feels reminiscent of old black and white horror films, such as Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922); everyone knows the iconic shot of the villain’s silhouette creeping up the stairs. It leaves a lot to be desired, so our minds can fill in the gaps of what horrors we aren’t seeing.
Colour is another key element of mise en scène. Blue is a prominent colour throughout the scene, as we have the cold-toned light in addition to doctors’ scrubs, the sheet covering Octavius, and even a computer screen. In contrast with this, the tentacles have an angry red light emanating from inside the claws. The two colours are complete opposites, and as such have very different connotations. Blue, especially in a hospital, is associated with calm, cleanliness, relaxation; red, on the other hand, is a sign of aggression, violence, bloodshed. This contrast serves to highlight the horror of an evil creature coming to life in what should be a safe environment.
In terms of camera techniques, a mish-mash of approaches, cut together with choppy editing, are used to great effect. I love that the first shot we see of the metal limbs awakening is a reflection in one of the doctors’ goggles, and that’s what alerts the main doctor. However, it’s too late by then.
A combination of wide shots of the carnage ensuing and close-up shots of the medical staff’s reactions are used. The wider shots tend to be still or tracking shots, following the movement of the tentacles as they pin down their victims. A few quick zooms appear now and then, usually honing in on a doctor who is being attacked. This draws us into the pain and terror that the medical staff is experiencing, as well as the jolts emphasising the shock of the event. There’s a slightly earlier shot of the aforementioned doctor being dragged backwards where she appears to be holding the camera and pulling it with her. It almost has the effect of found footage, portraying one of the characters desperately trying to get help from an audience that has no power over the situation.
In a truly intense moment, one doctor manages to grab the surgical chainsaw while pinned by a tentacle. As the other appendages notice he poses the greatest threat by wielding a weapon, they turn their attention towards him. We see numerous first-person point-of-view shots from the perspective of the limbs themselves, split-screened as they approach the doctor. The shots are overexposed, the colours are duller, and the image is distorted slightly. These discrepancies are integral for showing just how alien the creature is and how its worldview differs from ours.
Once all the claws descend on the doctor, it cuts away to an image of his arm, still holding the chainsaw, dropping lifelessly to the floor. No gore or blood is shown whatsoever. Judging by how full-on the attack was, we know that it wouldn’t have been pretty, but Raimi purposely withholds any depiction of it. Now, obviously, the rating for Spider-Man 2 was only PG-13, and Marvel wouldn’t allow any excessive gore, so it was simply adhering to guidelines. However, there’s no blood in the scene at all, which feels intentional.
The refusal to show it actually makes it creepier, in my opinion. It’s all left to the imagination. Think The Texas Chain Saw Massacre and Halloween—as two of the first slasher movies, they were shocking enough for the time, even with notably stripped-back gore. Seeing Leatherface cut up Franklin without so much as a drop of blood is truly visceral, and the hospital scene incites this same feeling. In this respect, Raimi is inadvertently invoking first-generation slashers.
Aside from filming techniques, one of the most effective directorial choices in this scene is the absence of music. The only sounds we hear throughout the entirety of it are doctors screaming in terror, glass smashing, equipment crashing, and the clicking, whirring and slashing of the metal arms. Other specific sounds include nails scratching along the floor, heavy breathing, the roaring of the chainsaw, and mechanical buzzing. The lack of background music insists that the audience isn’t distracted in any way from the horrific violence occurring. It’s an assault on the senses; the shrill screams, in particular, send shivers down the spine. There is only destruction and death.
A threatening yet gentle crescendo of Danny Elfman’s score kicks in once the carnage is complete, and Doc Ock awakens. As realisation slowly dawns on his face, the camera lingers and closes in on him. He can’t look away from what he’s just done, even if he’s not at fault. Octavius’ anguished yell of “NOOOOO” is utterly haunting. After the violence has ended, we’re left alone with the palpable fear of not being in control. When your bodily autonomy is compromised, what then? Your actions, your mind, your life is no longer yours. It’s a complete surrender, and that’s what makes Doc Ock at once sympathetic and to be feared.
Horror scenes in superhero movies aren’t unheard of, but they always provide a unique contribution to the genre. Despite tonal dissonance, they can fit in surprisingly well. Raimi’s flawless integration of horror in this particular scene in Spider-Man 2 is the best example that comes to mind.
With Raimi back in the director’s chair for Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness this year, it’s safe to say many fans of both superhero films and horror are eagerly waiting in anticipation. Myself among them!
