Definitely Worth My Money

Rating: 10/10 (5 May 2002)

I first heard this movie was coming out some time back in 2000 or maybe even 1999 and instantly got excited about it. Since then I've tried VERY hard not to OVER-HYPE the movie as not to set myself up for disappointment, and let me tell you, it was TOUGH! Anyhow, so I went and saw the movie on opening night (as I always do with movies of this caliber) and I must say that I WAS NOT let down. I was VERY happy with the movie. I wouldn't dare say it flawless, but it was very, very good.
I'm no expert on Spider-man, but I think I know a good amount about the comic. I was surprised that the movie seemed to follow the comic's story very closely. There were a few things that I KNOW were changed, but otherwise, it was pretty much the same story as the comic. ...And if I didn't mention it, that is a good thing. I thought the story was great!
I must admit that when I heard that Tobey Maquire was going to play Peter Parker/Spider-man, I was quite sceptical. I just had to hope that he could pull it off. In the end, I was VERY pleased with his performance. He played the perfect Peter Parker and really worked out to get the physical look of Spider-man. So, I have to give a "thumbs up" to Tobey, he pulled it off and did a great job.
As for the rest of the cast, I thought they were pretty good as well. Willem Dafoe did a good job with Norman Osbourne/Green Goblin, but I didn't really have any doubt that he could pull it off. Kirsten Dunst was definitely a great addition to the film. She did an EXCELLENT job as Mary Jane, and definitely looked the part. I give her a "thumbs up" too. The rest of the cast were pretty much unknown to me, but I'll give them good props too. As for the director, Sam Raimi, I have to say that I was also a bit sceptical of him taking on this project. Don't get me wrong, I loved his other work, (Army Of Darkness, The Gift, For Love Of The Game, Darkman, etc), but I was still unsure if he could pull it off. Well, in my opinion, he did it, Sam did a fantastic job and I gotta give him props too. Oh, and I also loved that Sam threw in a cameo for his buddy Bruce Campbell (also knows as Ash from the "Evil Dead" Series). If you didn't catch him in the film, he was the ring announcer near the beginning of the film.
The only complaint I have about the movie was SOME of the special effects. Sometimes they just looked incredible, but other times they looked VERY cartoon-ish. But, I definitely wouldn't let something like that influence my overall liking of the film.
All in all, I thought the film was great, and well worth the wait and the money I spent for the ticket. I think I may just have to go see this one in the theater again before it's gone. This movie is pretty much for everyone, I can definitely see kids liking it and grown-ups can appreciate it too. There wasn't anything in the movie that was overly kiddy. Anyhow, I hope you like the movie as much as I did, and thanks for reading.
-Chris