Great superhero film

Rating: Null/10 (5 May 2002)

Let me start out by stating that I am not an avid reader of comic books and I don't especially care for most superhero movies (Xmen seemed like a choppy mess made just to please comic readers and kids, Superman was too childish, and the batman films just don't do anything for me). I also wasn't expecting anything better than Xmen to come from Hollywood. However, Raimi's crafting of the spider-man story was, for me, the most engrossing and adventerous movie I've seen in years. The way Peter Parker (Maguire)'s character is played out in the early film really sets up for his character's dynamic and evolving mind set. And Dafoe's Goblin, aside from the character's minor setbacks (which I will mention later), was really one of those villains that you really hate yet somehow feel bad for at the same time. And the portrayal of Mary Jane, Parker's love interest to whom he cannot profess his true feelings, perfectly captures the essence the teenage romance which Parker feels. My favorite aspect of the film is its sense of time. The first part of the film focuses on a young Parker, and the early events which led to him emotionally and physically becoming the spiderman character, while giving a slight introduction to the villain character. After a particuarly poignant incident, the film cuts ahead an unset amount of time, into a time where spiderman is in full costume, understanding more of his powers, and the villain is ready to begin his maniacal plans. What I liked about this transition into a later time period in the film is that it allows the film to show us both the back story on the characters and the more important later conflict. Most superhero films these days stay in the back story part, making the whole film seem like a setup and leave the film lacking a real conclusion, with the hero only truly present (i.e. in costume and right mindset) for only the last portion of the film. "Spider Man"'s unique sense of time elevates it above such films. I also feel I must point out that this film is much more dramatic than most superhero films. Unlike "X-men" or "Batman and Robin" type films, "Spider Man", which remaining fun, has a slight air of reality which the latter films lacked, which may cost it some of its appeal to the viewers who wish only to see their childhood cartoon shows in live action. This slight sense of reality, however, is completely gone in a few distinct parts. And on to my complaints: Well for one thing, the central villain in the film, the Green Goblin, is armed with weapons which were supposedly being invented for the US military (Don't worry, I'm not spoiling anything you don't find out early in the film). But his outfit just begs the question why, if it were being developed for the military, would a suit contain built-in, metallic green muscles like those of a super villain? I can see why his suit wasn't made more realistic (and if it was he probably wouldn't have been as super of a super villain anyway) but it is still off-putting and it's introduction momentarily deducts from the realism. The other part in which I felt this was when Parker's character instinctively does a quadruple back flip to avoid a punch early in the film. Wouldn't it be extraordinary enough for him to just double, or even single backflip away? It's not a major complaint, it's just that when it happens the scene loses the realism. But despite these lapses in the sense of reality, the film manages to be entirely convincing. On another note I would just like to mention that the Goblin's voice could have sounded a little less like that of the Joker in "Batman", I mean, the films are going to be compared enough anyway. In the end, I must recommend this film to anyone who wants to see a good adventure and experience an engrossing story, and if you are bringing a child make sure they can handle some of the scarier scenes with the Green Goblin. And hats off to director Sam Raimi- I can't wait for the sequel, I just hope it doesn't detract from the original.