This movie is like a pack of chips. Enjoyable at the time but ultimately unsatisfying.

Rating: Null/10 (24 June 2002)

I went into 'Spider-Man' expecting the worst, and left it slightly surprised that it wasn't anywhere near as awful as I'd expected. But that's about it, and is that really enough? While a cut above recent blockbuster embarrassments like 'Star Wars Episode 1', this movie is still just glorified teen fare, and NOT the great comic book movie we're all hoping for. Maybe one day if Terry Gilliam ever gets his 12 hour adaptation of Moore and Gibbons 'Watchmen' to the screen we'll be suitably knocked out, but until then 'Spider-Man' is really not all that special, no matter what the hype machine and renta-quote crowd are trying to make you believe.

The two things this movie has going for it is Sam Raimi's direction, and the casting of Tobey Maguire and Willem Dafoe. Raimi has made some juvenile crap in his time (see 'Army Of Darkness'), but 'Evil Dead' is still a classic, and even his "failures" like 'Crimewave', 'Darkman' and 'The Quick and the Dead' are highly underrated enjoyable popcorn movies. (and it must be said, all better than this) Tobey Maguire may not be the greatest actor of his generation but he personable enough when given decent material to work with ('Pleasantville', 'The Wonder Boys'), and suits Peter Parker's likeable nerdiness. The charismatic Willem Dafoe has given some brilliant performances over the years in overlooked movies ('The Last Temptation Of Christ', 'Wild At Heart', 'Light Sleeper'). He isn't required to do all that much here in a duel role as Norman Osborn, driven scientist/businessman, and nutjob super-villain The Green Goblin, but he gives it his best shot, and is always watchable at the very least.
There's not much more to be said about 'Spider-Man'. It does what it is sets out to do, no more and no less, and you'll be hard stretched to remember anything much about it in two years time, but that seems to be all that we can really expect from this kind of movie these days. That really isn't good enough, of course, but that's unfortunately the way things are.