Entertaining, but cartoony and shallow

Rating: 6/10 (21 August 2006)

While spectacular when first seen, this movie does not age well at all. Even now, only four years after its opening, the special effects look dated and cartoony, and the story seems shallow and underdeveloped. It could be because of the release of much superior comic book films in that time span, or simply because the film dazzles at first and then begins to fade. Still, this is a very entertaining movie, albeit a bit cheezy and campy, which works at times, but not for the whole movie.
Though the origin story is done very well - one of the best of its kind - the main plot of the movie is weak and pales in comparison. Part of this is the poorly done villain - not nearly developed enough, with a horrible costume to boot. Had the Jekyll-and-Hyde aspect been done better, the Goblin would have been much scarier, but now it just seems laughable. Speaking of laughable, the romance in this film is terrible - some of the lines are cringe-worthy, and it doesn't help that the actors are mostly wooden. Maguire is decent, but better and more believable as the nerdy Peter Parker than the amazing Spider-Man. Dunst is terrible, and unfortunately began the tradition of younger female leads in superhero movies. Dafoe is way over-the-top, but still enjoyable, and Franco is moody and unremarkable. Only J.K Simmons as the newspaper boss Jameson stands out, as he is both funny and true to his character.
That's not to say this is a terrible movie. As mentioned previously, the origin story is very strong, from the original spider bite all the way until his superhero status. Though some of the drama is poorly developed, the comedic aspect of it is perfect, and suits the story perfectly. The action scenes are spectacular, and the poor CGI is only really noticeable during the close-ups. And the film is never boring, and tells its (somewhat weak) story well. So, overall, an entertaining superhero flick, but nowhere near the best comic book flick ever.