Catches the feel of the comic, but where's Gwen Stacy?

Rating: 7/10 (5 May 2002)

I saw "Spider-Man" yesterday with my wife, who is not a comics reader. Both of us enjoyed the movie, which we can best describe as "fun." The acting is passable, largely because the script is only passable. The only outstanding performance is by J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson; he makes the most of a small role and hits the comics character's tone dead-on. While Tobey Maguire and Willem Dafoe sometimes walk through the movie (except in big dramatic scenes), their performances are satisfying, if not spectacular. Kirsten Dunst, however, is atypically flat as Mary Jane Watson.
Dunst was miscast, in my opinion. M.J. is a stunner, a true knockout, the girl who told Peter Parker, upon their first meeting in the comics,"Face it, Tiger! You just hit the jackpot!" She needs to be gorgeous and sexy, and Dunst is pretty and sympathetic. With her round face and sweet demeanor, Dunst would have been well cast as Gwen Stacy, the first true love of Peter's life.
***SPOILER WARNING***
The love of Peter's life, that is, until Spider-Man failed to save her from the Green Goblin, who knocked the unconscious Gwen off the George Washington bridge. Spidey caught her with a webline, but the whiplash of the sudden stop broke her neck.
This sequence is more or less recreated during the movie when Mary Jane is dropped off the bridge by the Goblin as Peter faces a "Sophie's Choice" situation -- save M.J. or the tram full of kids. The movie cheats by having Spider-Man defy the law of gravity. By pushing off the bridge with his powerful legs, he manages to accelerate faster than the already falling objects, something which is impossible without artificial propulsion. Peter does this twice in the film, the first time during the World Unity Day battle when he dives past the falling M.J. to catch her and "bungie-web" them both to the ground. I guess love is a powerful motivator.
***END SPOILERS***
Despite this, despite the obvious use of CGI in many of the action sequences, and despite the fact that Spider-Man's mask clearly is a separate piece of cloth when necessary but is connected to the rest of the INCREDIBLE costume most of the time (a problem also seen in the comics), I enjoyed the film a great deal. I do wish Peter had been canny enough to pitch his voice differently when suited up (a basic superhero point that both the Superman and Batman movies have used to good effect). People you know well can recognize your voice, even through a cloth mask!
"Spider-Man" is a good, enjoyable movie-movie. It's more fun than "X-Men," certainly more interesting than "Blade," but not quite up there with "Batman Returns" and "Superman." Take a friend, take your spouse if he or she can get into some outrageous action that's more plausible than what you see in the average Schwarzenegger picture.
One caveat: During the show I attended, a child no more than five sat down the aisle from me. He seemed to enjoy the show immensely (at least from his smiles when the credits rolled), but my wife and I both thought the picture was too intense for young children during Osborne's tortured multiple personality discussions and the fight scenes -- the brutal final battle most of all. This movie is rated PG-13 with good reason. I know people drag kids no older than 10 to R-rated films, but the MPAA usually isn't kidding when it says "Parents Strongly Cautioned" and "No One Under 17 Admitted Without Parent or Guardian."