Go Spidey Go

Rating: Null/10 (9 June 2002)

I saw this film whilst on holiday. Now I don't usually watch movies whilst on holiday preferring instead to lie on a beach somewhere but I was so anxious to see this film and it hadn't yet been released in the United Kingdom so I went into the cinema and watched a fantastic movie.
Superhero films are a strange genre. Sometimes they are good such was the case with Superman or Batman. Other times they are plain bad. The success of a superhero film will often determine whether more are made. If a superhero film performs badly at the box office then movie studios are reluctant to make any more. However, if they do well then it gives a green light for more to be made.
I was skeptical about Spider-Man to be honest. I wondered how two hours of film time could do justice to Parker's introduction, the origin of Spider-Man, the birth of the Green Goblin etc. The writers did a great job.
Tobey Maguire was perfect as Spidey, exactly like the original character from Amazing Fantasy Comic no. 15 (1962). Kirsten Dunst was also perfect for the role of Mary Jane. And what can I say about J.K. Simmons as Jonah Jameson-he was spot on.
Credit must go to William Defoe as Norman Osborn/Green Goblin. I would go as far to say this is Defoe's best role in years. I actually felt sympathy for Norman Osborn as he had become a bad guy through fate rather than choice and Defoe made the Green Goblin into an interesting character. The Goblin suit was hi-tech as opposed to the costume from the comics; to be honest if the film would have made the Goblin suit exactly like the comics it would have looked rather corny.
The action was just amazing; seeing Spidey leap around and the Goblin on his glider made me feel really excited. The fight scenes were great exactly as one would expect from Sam Raimi. Raimi was the man behind the fight scenes in Xena and Hercules so if you've watched them and enjoyed the fight scenes you'll love this movie.
Well done to all those involved. I cannot wait until Spider-Man 2 hits our screens.