Right Up There With the Original Batman

Rating: 9/10 (4 May 2002)

It's Finally here folks. Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man has hit the big screen. The hysteria surrounding this movie is out of this world. I saw the last showing of it with my friends because every other showing was sold out and the showing i saw was packed and filled with Spidey fans and excited movie goers alike.*POTENTIAL SPOILER* I just read this morning that Spider-Man achieved the highest opening day of all time with 41.5 million and is set to make about 100-120 million opening weekend which would make it surpass Harry Potter as the highest opening weekend of all time. *END SPOILER*. There is no doubt in my mind that this film deserves the praise it got from critics and from the reaction in my theatre this film is headed for the record books.
Spider-Man is a comic book movie with heart. Yes i enjoyed Blade, another marvel adaptation, and I even enjoyed its sequel. I happened to like X-Men as well. But the one thing those movies lacked was a grounded hero which was given a firm backstory. While certain things were glanced over in those films, this picture takes time to develop its characters and by the time we reach the 45 minute mark we care about all their fates. There is a nice family storyline with Aunt May, Uncle Ben, and Peter Parker. There is romance with the Peter Parker/Mary Jane relationship, and there are also family struggles with the Norman/Harry Relationship. The story takes time to develop these stories and you can since that when this script was written it was done with a lot of heart and someone who cared about making us care about the characters and their struggles.
One must talk about Tobey Maguire. I was disappointed when i first heard he got the part. I didn't think he could be tough enough considering his other starring roles. I was pleasantly surprised however when i saw his performance. He brings the comic book character to life in the best way. He induces the character with enough vulnerability in the beginning when he's a nerd that we care for him, but when he discovers he has powers Maguire easily shifts into someone more confident. He balances both personna's well, without falling out of character. Considering that we can't see his face at all when the mask is on, the fact that he still can give a masked character some heart is amazing in my book
Kirsten Dunst isn't just there for eye candy, as the trailer would suggest. Sure, there are several shots of her that plenty of males will enjoy but she also brings her character from the comic book into the real world. Her chemistry with Tobey Maguire is not forced but very natural. There are certain moments when she falls into total damsel in distress mode but over-all it's a pretty grounded performance.
James Franco makes for a very good Harry Osborn. He brings the character's struggles from the comic book and right onto the screen. We respect him because he's Parker's only friend but at the same time he makes you feel for him because he could end up as his father. Franco is able to this well and is very impressive in a few emotional scenes.
Every comic book movie needs a good villian. Batman had the joker. X-men had Magneto and the Brotherhood of Evil Muntants. Spider-Man's greatest foe in the comic was none other than the Green Goblin. He gave Spider-Man the most conflict in the comic book because of the secret that he knew about Spider-Man and the secret that Spider-Man would eventually learn about him. It was very important that they not ruin this character because he's such an important villian in the Spider-Man mythology.
I'm proud to say that Willem Dafoe is quite good as both Norman Osborn/Green Goblin. He makes his Norman likable yet flawed in the beginning but once he turns into the Green Goblin, that's when the fun starts. His performances is borderline over the top but since it never crosses the line he makes the villian much more threatening. You can tell he had fun with the part and while he doesn't quite reach the level of Jack Nicholson as the Joker, he's right up there as one of the better comic book movie villians. What i also enjoyed was the fact that the villian never over-shadowed the hero. This is where Batman made its mistake. Jack Nicholson stole the show, but since Dafoe doesn't get as much screentime as Tobey Maguire, he doesn't steal show. I'm glad the filmmakers chose to do this.
The CGI is a wonder to look at it. You will believe that a man can stick to roles and soar over the city with grace. It's like a comic book come to life. There are some shots that look pretty unrealistic but when you think about it i think they were going for that in a couple of shots. It feels more like comic book when you see certain shots like that. Besides it would be very difficult to make this believeable with the use of a lot of CGI. The characters never lose their depth when they're in costume and the voice over work done when it's obviously not a man but a special effect is quite good as well. The actors deserves major kudos for making their characters believeable, even when it's a CGI shot.
Sam Raimi is a gifted director. From genre films like the Evil Dead series, to compelling films such as A Simple Plan and The Gift, his work never ceases to amaze me. He handles the material well and you can tell he followed the comic book closely. He makes Spider-Man move much like he does in the comic book and he makes sure that there is more time spent on developing an actual story than giving us a lot of action. There is plenty of action, don't get me wrong but the story in my opinion is it's greatest highlight because you can almost identify with all of the characters. This credit should go to screenwriter, David Koepp, who also did well with the Panic Room script. Raimi does offer some campy touches. The wrestling match features a cameo with Bruce Campbell as the announcer, you may remember him as Ash from the Evil Dead movies, The towns reaction to Spider-Man is very campy and cheesy but is handled well. You can tell Raimi really had fun with the material. The J Jonah Jameson character is another example. Out of most of the supporting characters he looks more like his comic book character. The performance is doen pretty well and he does offer us some nice campy laughs.
Spider-Man is more than a summer movie. Most summer movies supply you with much action but a little of everything else. This movie has it all. Action, romance, and a little heart too. The film leaves it wide open for a sequel and by the end of it i couldn't wait to go on another adventure with THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN!