Web-Spinning Entertainment!

Rating: Null/10 (31 October 2004)

"Spider-Man", while not quite the spectacle and extravaganza as its successor, is definitely something special, working freshly and effectively as a blockbuster, and as a human story of overcoming adversity. Peter Parker (Toby Maguire) is a beleaguered outcast who genetically transforms into a superhuman with spider senses, thus enabling him to become a superhero who nets criminal offenders in a web, while vigorously swinging from building to building above the streets of New York City. His nemesis is also one of his most loyal acquaintances, Norman Osborn (who becomes the notorious Green Goblin, wreaking havoc on his "glider" and combating the heroism of Spider-Man), his best friend Harry (James Franco)'s father, who promises, whatever Peter needs "just give me a call". Now all that is in need is a love interest and vulnerability for the impervious Spider-Man, and Kirstin Dunst plays Mary Jane Watson, the girl whom Peter Parker desires more than any other and whose life he "has a knack for saving". The action throughout the film is exhilarating and sensational, and watching Spider-Man exhibit his superhuman capabilities is nothing short of breathtaking, especially set amidst the interference of the ruthless Green Goblin. The story is deeper and more concentrated upon than what might be expected from a summer blockbuster, yet not nearly as personal or even engaging as "Spider-Man 2" two years later. The technical aspects of course are nothing short of marvelous, with the CGI entirely believable (if somewhat cartoonish, a feat much corrected in "Spider-Man 2"), the music sensational and portentous to the spectacular action, and the editing of Spider-Man slinging high above the streets of New York, battling his nemesis the Green Goblin, and rescuing Mary Jane and a bus load of innocents is extremely effective and really builds the intense atmosphere the film is trying to convey with the action. Perhaps a major complaint can be had with the cliché and by-the-numbers script, which features some really cheesy one-liners such as "You're not SuperMan you know" and "I was in the neighborhood"--- blah, blah, blah. Yet what a remarkable achievement "Spider-Man" really is, when it manages to be both an exhilarating, special-effects laden blockbuster, and a really human and somewhat captivating story, and as entertainment, it's a real web-spinner! ***1/2 out of ****