mostly excellent

Rating: 9/10 (7 May 2002)

I loved this movie - 9 of 10. It's the best comic-book-originated movie I've seen, including the original Batman. And I am *not* usually a Marvel fan! "Spider-Man" is a huge, honking, major exception to my usual prejudices.
Tobey Maguire is fabulous - the right mix of soulful, cheerful, and heroic. I didn't mind the modifications from the original comic book character (genetically enhanced vs. radioactive spider bite, as well as the web-glands thing) because Tobey stuck so faithfully to the idea of Petey P as a nerd's nerd.
What I didn't like was the Green Goblin - Dafoe was completely overblown, and the character was so totally unnecessary. I was really disappointed because Dafoe is so great elsewhere, and he was completely wasted here.

The best part of the movie for me, more than anything anything else, was seeing Petey P get used to his alter-ego - the idea of his superhero-side as a signifier for puberty and other weird changes is MUCH more interesting to me than a big technobaddie who laughs menacingly an awful lot. We could have used more of the teen angst and confusion that Maguire does so well (even though he's only 3 years younger than me...).
There were some nice nods to NYC as well - remember the brouhaha that was made over the trailer that contained a web strung between the WTC towers? The writers seemed to compensate well for that - mentioning "the bombing" in passing in a boardroom scene, making it a reality as it is here in NYC today (I work downtown, and I used to work in Tower 1, so this really matters to me). Also, the one building that gets beat up in a fight scene doesn't really exist in NYC, sparing us the heartache of seeing another site get destroyed. Thirdly, of course, is a scene on the Queensboro Bridge, which I won't ruin for everyone except to say that it's a nice feel-good NYC moment - a little hokey, but much appreciated and very sorely needed. Folks in the Chelsea cinema where I saw the film cheered loudly at this bit, which was cool - we all really needed to cheer.
Something else I liked was that the movie was not blatantly sexy, and was therefore VERY sexy. The upside-down kiss in the rain is worth the price of admission alone. Both Maguire and Dunst have a fresh-faced appeal that makes it *nice*, which is rather novel. I've been a fan of Maguire's since "Pleasantville", and of Dunst's since "Drop Dead Gorgeous", so it's nice to see them reacting off each other. The only adult moment happens when Dunst's dress gets awwwwful sheer in the rain - but all things considered, that's really not so bad.
In short, go see it, but keep in mind that it may be scary for young kids. At the same time, it may be great for older kids who need to see a normal-nerd-as-superhero with morals and genuine charm.
Now, where can I find Tobey Maguire? And convince him that 30 isn't so very old at all?