Spider-Man

Poignant, fun and a faithful adaptation to the original comic book. I am very critical of comic book movies since I am a huge fan of the medium and was tremendously disappointed in the Superman and Batman movies (all of them, some greatly!). This film however has again demonstrated that an adaptation of a comic book story can be fun and faithful to the story, yet be a film for all ages and those who may not have ever even read a comic book. The Crow was the only other good comic book movie in my opinion, but it was not an all ages fun ride as this is!

I had the privilege of seeing the film last night, 4-30-02, in SF with the press and 300+ other folks for its "Bay Area Premiere".

The acting is the finest portion of the film with the leads giving us depth that I was unsure would be allowed by the style of story chosen. Maguire was outstanding at being a guy who can rarely catch a break, but attract difficulty with ease and aplomb. He is awkward with the woman he loves, but eloquent when dealing with the familiar, just as most teenagers are even today. He gave us wonderful joy at the prospect of "web swinging" and kicking some much deserved ass! Dafoe is wonderfully scary as the man who has succumbed to the power games of the corporate world that drives a decent man mad striving for perfection in himself while trying to hard to please all the wrong people to no avail and then being consumed by guilt that has built over the years of family neglect which finally helps to push him over the edge when an opportunity to make a huge mistake presents itself.

The rest of cast is nearly as spectacular with the J.K. Simmons turning in the best performance in the film as J. Jonah Jamason. When he appeared on screen things lite up even more and he was on fire making everyone in the audience laugh and myself nearly p** my pants. Harris as Aunt May and Robertson as Uncle Ben were excellent choices and gave the film a great deal of its credibility and finesse. Letting what happens to Ben and Peter (I am not telling) was wonderful and the best punctuation to what makes Peter do what he does and brings complete credibility to the story. I am not a huge Dunst fan, but she was just fine as the love of Peter Parker's life and a person much like Peter only neither was conscious of the fact. This to me is a more real version of "true love".

The script was far stronger than I expected with some wonderful dialog; verbal exchanges, solid plot points and pacing. Many a good parenting lesson can be found in this film as well as interesting thoughts about the choices that we make in life that we might think are no big deal when in the heat of passion, but may well come back to haunt us if we don't think before we act/speak: which is the trust of the film in my humble opinion.

The direction from Raimi was also much better than I anticipated coming from someone who is known (and loved) for his over the top camp and action. Many of the fight and action sequences where more "over done" than I like, but they were solid and much like a comic of the Silver Age from whence the story comes so it fit the film fine. Nice cinematography without the CGI taking over and detracting from the realism, in fact it made much of the web swinging truly believable. A few points made things a bit hard to "believe", but over all I think most folks will be able to suspend their disbelief.

Danny Elfman. Need I say more? He is the man when it comes to "super hero" music and is the closest thing to John Willams and the late great Bernard Herman there is today. He subtly sets the mood and most of the audience probably doesn't even realize it. Tomorrow is my day off and I will be purchasing the score to add to my collection!

"With great power comes great responsibility".These words, spoken by Peter Parker's uncle Ben(Cliff Robertson)during their last conversation and which have become Spider-Man's motto, also perfectly represent the challenge Sam Raimi was facing when asked to bring one of America's most loved superheroes to the screen.

You can relax, fellas: Raimi's movie is definitely worth a look.Loosely based on the origin story and the Stan Lee/John Romita Sr. run, it's a fascinating mix of spectacular action and powerful drama, as it chronicles Peter Parker's(Tobey Maguire) transformation into a superhuman and the responsibilities deriving from said metamorphosis: while fighting crime to avenge his uncle's death, he also has to deal with his feelings for Mary Jane Watson(Kirsten Dunst) and his friendship with Harry Osborn(James Franco); add Harry's father Norman(Willem Dafoe), who's become schizophrenic psycho Green Goblin, and you've got a quite complicated situation.

Raimi's excellent at showing us the hero's pain, as well as the one he causes to others, and he gets terrific performances from the entire cast, particularly Maguire, Dafoe and Robertson.

On its own, it's a very good superhero flick, alongside the sequel, it's an absolute masterpiece.

Recommended even if you don't care about the comics.

Classic! It's a simple origin story that leads into a rivalry between Peter Parker/ Spider-Man and one of his most iconic foes the Green Goblin. The movie gets more intense as it goes on while also being a 50/50 spilt with Peter Parker's personal life. Very easy to follow. If you want to keep your kid busy for two hours, put this on for them, but you'll probably be just as engaged as they will be. The theme is also very recognizable. What makes Spider-Man so great is that he learns responsibility after many mistakes, which makes him relatable. The acting is great while the dialogue is cheesy, but that's what you'll get out of any early 2000 comic book movie. The cinematography is great too, but you'll probably see it improved in the 2nd and 3rd movie, at least in my opinion. It's fast paced and great and iconic scenes just keep coming one after another. The effects look good for its time but nothing mind blowing. Great sound and the score is iconic and one of the best themes for a superhero. Sam Raimi knew how to do Spider-Man right and this movie is truly one of its kind. 10/10. A+.

Really good movie, I enjoyed the whole Trilogy with Toby Maguire but this was the best of the 3. Willem Dafoe made an excellent villain as the Green Goblin. Excellent super hero movie.

Marvel superheroes are hitting the big screen in waves. First there was blade which made a decent amount at the box office with its 70 + million dollar performance. 2000 brought us X-Men which became a box office hit when it opened with 54 million that summer. The sequel is on its way in 2003. Blade 2 was released in March and it opened with 33 million, an improvement from the 17-18 million the first one opened with. Thr Hulk is now in production with Eric Bana playing the Hulk and Oscar winner, Jennifer Connelly also starring. That film is directed by Ang Lee. After that Daredevil is set to be released and that film stars Ben Affleck, as Daredevil and Jennifer Gardner of Alias also starring. Until then however, we have Spider-Man and judging by the early weekend numbers(114 million opening weekend-highest opening of all time) it seems that people are loving this film. I can say that I more than loved it. I thought it was great.

Tobey Maguire takes on the role as Peter Parker a.k.a. Spider-Man, a product of being bitten by a mutant spider while on a school field trip. He is in love with the girl next door, Mary Jane Watson (Dunst; Bring it On) who is a kind sole but barely notices him. Peter lives with his Aunt May (Harris) and Uncle Ben (Robertson)(fans, like myself, of the comic will know why he's in this living situation). At first Parker is confused by his new skills but soon he begins to use them to his advantage.

Parker uses his new skills to fight in a wrestling match to get money for various things, one being a way to impress Mary Jane. After the match however tragedy strikes and Parker fully realizes that "With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility" and through this "Spider-Man" is born.

Spidey's nemesis in the round is Norman Osborne (Dafoe; Shadow of the Vampire), a somewhat mad/determined scientist who needs to prove that his experiments work. After testing them on himself, something goes wrong and the Green Goblin is born.

I was quite surprised how much Tobey Maguire filled into the role; he not only makes it his own but manages to give it a little character behind the mask. He has that innocent, everyday man quality about him that makes you believe in him. It's a performance that has much more depth than you would expect, especially from a comic book movie.

The supporting cast takes a back seat to Spider-Man, lavish sets and ultimately some nice special effects, but they get the job done. Willem Dafoe has gotten back into my good graces after the atrocious Speed 2. He does a good job as the Green Goblin and doesn't overdo it. Now, it's not as memorable or great as Nicholson's Joker, but he makes a formable foe to Spider-Man. What I liked about his performance was that he didn't over-shadow the hero, much like the Joker did in Batman. Dafoe is given the right amount of screentime to establish his character but not too much to the point where it becomes a movie about him rather than Peter/Spider-Man

The other two notable cast mates are Kirsten Dunst and James Franco. Franco had actually gone in to the audition for the role of Peter Parker but ended up playing Harry Osborne, the villain's son. I liked Franco as Peter Parker's roommate and best friend and love the idea of the continuity aspect of the plot.(You'll see when you view the film)

Kirsten Dunst is even a good casting choice. What could've easily been an eye-candy role is taken to another level. She's very likable in the role and her chemistry with Maguire is natural and not forced.

This is good transition into the screenwriting by one of my favorites, David Koepp, who was the master behind films like Stir of Echoes and Panic Room. He brings Spider-Man to life with the help of Maguire and director Sam Raimi (A Simple Plan). The plot even over-shadows the great CGI in my opinion. The storyline is slightly more developed than most movies of this nature and is driven by its characters. I liked that aspect of the film very much.

Spider-Man also features some funny moments like a cameo by Bruce Campbell (of Evil Dead fame) as a Vince McMahon type ring master who gave Parker the name of "The Amazing Spider-Man" and Peter Parker having fun swinging from building to building. The J Jonah Jameson character is also very funny. He makes the transition from comic to screen very well. Dead on representation.

Spider-Man is the ultimate comic book movie that not only looks like it came from the comics, but adds in the sounds and some dialogue. From the opening credits to the last shot, you could see it in an issue of "Spider-Man". Like X-Men, the film is bright with colorful characters and big time action scenes. It reaches the level of my favorite comic book movie, Batman, and maybe after more viewings it could surpass it.

Overall, Spider-Man is a fun romp of comic book action. With a great story, acting, special effects, and a lot of heart Spider-Man is a perfect start to the summer season and i'm glad it's leading the pack.