With my lucky streak intact at 0-4, I look upon this behemoth and realize that I’m Indiana Jones and Spidey is the Boulder. So, into the fire I go with my prediction for “Spider-Man 2″:

The Stars: While little Toby is good for Parker, I still wonder how the kid from “Donnie Darko” (Jake Gyllenhall for those, like me, that can’t spell his name) would do in this flick. Not that I would want a rotating lead character (ala the ‘89-96 Bat franchise) but still I wonder. I also like to see long-time character actors like Alfred Molina take on bigger-than-life characters. And from what Steve and everyone says, Molina doesn’t turn the role into a lamer version of the Nicholson’s Joker similar to the meltdown by Dafoe. Influence: Positive

The Director: Sam Raimi, a favorite director of mine, looks like he’s on top of his game with this geekfest. In the wrong hands, the Spider-Man movie franchise could’ve tanked royally. But, after the first one, it looks like he’s setting the bar even higher. Influence: Highly Positive

The Geek Factor: Hello, this is Spider-Man after all. If you can’t get geeked for this movie, you’ve got no pulse. Influence: Highly Positive

The Buzz: Similar to the ciccadas here in my neck of the woods, the buzz for this flick has been at a low hum ever since last year. Ya know, loud enough to make you notice it but not too loud to be annoying. Influence: Positive.

The Marketing: More of a spoon-fed approach than forcing it down your throat. Nice and subtle. Like good sipping Whiskey. Influence: Positive

The Quality: Hey, it’s two years after the first one so the SFX should be awesome. And if they look as good as Doc Ock’s arms in the trailers, holee sheet! Influence: Extremely Postive

The Competition: I’m sorry, is there any? Influence: Positively Killer

My Predikshun: I have no idea the amount, other than it’s gonna be huge. It’s somewhat like watching Barry Bonds; you know he’s going to hit one out, it’s all a matter of how long. Plus, having Wednesday to help build for the weekend total doesn’t hurt. MY guess – $145 million with total US grosses topping out at $475 million.

Spread the word!