Can't wait for the sequel

Rating: 9/10 (3 May 2002)

My son works in a movie theatre and we were able to go to an advanced screening last night.
Wow! It was kind of funny being a theater where they were smoking, drinking beer and eating Wendy's. It actually didn't bother me, despite being an old fart, I kind of enjoyed being with a rowdy crowd
It was a terrific movie, a real crowd pleaser. If you don't like this film, you have no business being at a movie based on a comic book. The movie reminds you a little of the first Batman film, partly because Danny Elfman did the music for both films, partly because of the awesome use of visuals and a city as a virtual character in the story, and partly because of similarities in the storyline. Overall, this is a much better movie than Batman. It's witty, well acted, has state of the art special effects and puts the effects to the exactly the right use.
Most of all, the movie captures the essence of the Comic. On the surface, Spider-man is just a blending of the Superman and Batman story. What made it unique, however, was that behind the hero was a less than super everyman who didn't always have his personal life in order and was misunderstood by the public.
The film gets this just right, and has a lot of fun with it. The transformation of Parker from high school geek to Spidey is handled perfectly, with great humor. There is also a parallel transformation of upright businessman Norman Osborne into the insanely maniacal Green Goblin.

In lesser hands, this could seem stupid and trite. Instead, the fast pace, great visuals, awesome score and solid acting make it easy to set aside the implausible premise and just enjoy the ride.
The music and special effects should get top billing, but they aren't just thrown at you for their own sake. They are there to advance the story. The makers of this film were smart enough to employ an excellent cast, and give them just enough to do to make you care about the characters.

The movie ends with the premise for the sequel all setup. I can hardly wait!