I don't quite get it...

Rating: 6/10 (6 July 2004)

Most of the time when a film is hugely popular, I end up agreeing with the majority, especially when it's an action/scifi flick. With both "Spiderman" movies, I've disagreed.
Perhaps I'm simply too much of a nerd to appreciate the very human spin Spiderman has been given by Maguire, though I should venture to say I've never collected comic books, and my familiarity with this particular series is limited to the old Fox Saturday morning cartoons (remember the days when those were something to look forward to?). I'm sorry, but I don't sympathize with the saintlike, penniless genius who's going through a major crisis and responds in a manner that suggests he's quite in touch with his feminine side. Not to imply anything about his sexuality, of course, but I'm an adherent to old-school macho stoicism, and Peter Parker does not display it, despite pursuing a "great power brings great responsibility" lifestyle. How about the responsibility not to become an emotional wreck? I guess being a superhero is hard on the wallet, but I'm sure there's a way he could make things work without breaking any laws. I don't recall his financial situation being quite so dire in the cartoon, and if it is indeed an affectation of this particular rendering, it is an unnecessary one.
Maguire's attempts were somehow more acceptable in Spiderman (1) when he was a full-scale high school geek. Now that he's a superhero, I have trouble forgiving the unterminable stupid look on his face. Additionally, Kirsten Dunst doesn't make me think of MJ Watson, or a community heartthrob.
The comic book story of the movie takes up half its total showing time at most, and is fairly simple and formulaic. Scientist loses sight of his original philanthropic intentions and commits dire offenses in the name of progress. The film fails to explain why Octavian's AI tentacles have so much stock in the success of his project. I realize they think, but why should they *care*?
The quality of the film, ignoring the genre it's in, is certainly less than most give it. Iffy CGI, an inability to decide exactly what sort of movie it is, comedy/romance/action/drama? leads to unbalanced distribution of time for its scenes. It has a poor ending, as well, suffering from the more forgivable LOTR 3's multiple fades as all the loose ends are tied up. Still, let me be positive for a moment, after all, I rated it a 6. The acting is good, the action well-choreographed, and the drama occasionally moving, and it scores on most of its comic notes, even if Spiderman hits the bottom of an alley a few too many times.