A good adaptation, but not quite amazing

Rating: 5/10 (15 June 2003)

Spider Man is hurt by two words; "What if?" What if...James Cameron hadn't backed out. What if...Wes Bentley had gotten the role? What if...they had found someone who could write? What if the guy who directed Darkman hadn't gotten anywhere near it? All that aside... Spider Man was HELPED by a few other factors: Post-911 psyche of American audiences. We wanted a feel good movie, and they gave us one. Next, Toby Maguire surprised me at how well he performed. I never would've guessed this one. Like Christopher Reeve, he came into a role no one thought he'd succeed with, and made it his own. Overall, Spidey's an entertaining flick with SPECTACULAR special effects (CGI/ blue-screening a person in the swinging shots ain't easy, folks), but lacks a dynamic script. It's not on par with the legends of comic-to- movie translations, Superman and Batman (the first films of each), but it'll do.