the ultimate comic book movie

Rating: Null/10 (13 May 2002)

One word best describes this movie: awesome. I haven't had this much watching a comic book-inspired movie since probably THE PHANTOM. Relieving the bad taste left behind by X-MEN, SPIDER-MAN is a powerhouse of what every comic book movie should be. It's amazing how faithful the movie remained to the source material, with only very minor alterations that don't become a problem thanks to Sam Raimi's mastery of the rest of the film. Knowing the film opened with a good deal of focus on the origin story, I was fearing a long drawn-out exposition with lots of talk and little excitement. But watching the development of Peter Parker from a nerdy everyday teen to a man learning to deal with incredible powers was just as exciting as watching Spider-Man and the Green Goblin fight it out over Times Square.
Tobey Maguire makes an appealing Peter Parker, someone we can instantly identify with. We feel sorry for him when he's harrassed by the school bully, and we root for him when he gets the upper hand during a fight with them. Kirsten Dunst is good as Mary-Jane Watson (even though the character was not Parker's first love interest), and though her portrayal of the character is a little different from the comics, it's still one that should win over most of the die hard fans. The always-watchable Willem Dafoe is a delight as Norman Osborn/The Green Goblin. What could have been a typical over-the-top, maniacal super-villain is instead an intriguing struggle between Norman's good and bad side. The scene in which Good Osborn talks to Evil Osborn in a mirror is terrific. James Franco is also good as son Harry Osborn, one of Parker's few true friends. Veteran screen actor Cliff Robertson, Rosemary Harris, and J.K. Simmons (as J. Jonah Jameson, a part I always thought character actor Peter Jason would be perfect for) round out the good supporting cast, with Raimi usual Bruce Campbell doing a great little cameo. Spider-Man creator Stan Lee also has a blink-and-you-miss-him cameo during the parade attack. Watch closely.
With references to Dr. Curtis "The Lizard" Conners and (apparently) Eddie "Venom" Brock, and MJ calling Peter "Tiger," among other references, screenwriter David Koepp obviously did his research in writing the story. Many moments throughout the film are taken verbatim from their original source, and while some may see that as lazy, I see it as excellent: staying nearly 100% true to what has already been established, whereas BATMAN and SUPERMAN had their origins and other things altered for the film versions. The CGI of the film was much better than I had been lead to believe. I've heard complaints that the CGI Spidey was terrible, but it was incredible. Although I feel CGI will never replace live actors, recreating an entire human form and making it appear fluid (at least in regards to making these characters act the way you would expect) now appears very doable.
All-in-all, a really incredible film that that has set a new standard for comic book-to-film adaptations that I think will be very hard to pass. Let's hope the sequels maintain quality, unlike the BATMAN films. 10/10.