The format works

Rating: 6/10 (12 August 2004)

While this is not a movie to remember for all time, and it isn't even the best super hero movie (X2, despite the tired plot is still better) this is the first comic conversion that actually fully works on screen.
Every aspect of the film that matters is done well. The characters are still paper thin but I do care about them. The story is allowed to work at its own pace without being hijacked by the pixel fiddlers.

The humour is not soulless one liners but small moments or fun riffs. Doc Oc using his arms to do four things at once while lighting a cigar, a terrible musical rendition of the old theme tune, and guess what colour bow tie the next green goblin wears?
The action scenes are the most effective I have seen since Return of the King (which effectively defined year zero for effects based films). This is partly because they have been done properly, but also because they are done at different tempos. From Doc Ocs harrowing escape from the hospital, to bullet time reflex carnage, to silly pranks at the bank.
Like Judge Dredd before it, Spidey has his mask off a little too often for comic fans - but in a film very much about identity, we know this is hollywood trying its best to entertain, and mainly succeeding.