Spider-Man - A Review

[David Meek]

Spider-Man - A Review 05/19/2002



Lot's of hype, lot's of expectations. Does Spider-Man make the transition from comic-book to the big screen? Oh yeah! Right up front, this movie rates :45: out of :5: Don't pass Go, don't collect $200 dollars, just go see this movie!

This film stars Toby McGuire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco and Willem DaFoe. Tobey McGuire nails the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man. He plays the introverted geek that undergoes not only physical, but emotional and mental changes as he grows into the role of Spider-Man. Kirsten Dunst does very well playing M.J., the girl next door. James Franco is good as Harry Osborn, Peter's friend/roommate/competition. Willen DaFoe is excellent as Norman Osborn, driven multimillionaire/The Green Goblin. His depiction of a torn, damaged soul is spot on - look for a stunning scene with a mirror that really shows this man's talent.

The premise on this film is well-known, but just in case you haven't been exposed to the comics, here you go. Peter Parker is bitten by a genetically altered spider in a tour of a laboratory. He develops powers similar to a spiders' and by an accident (or two) of fate, winds up in the role of hero/protector.

The picture is generally very pleasing with good color and detail. There are no washed-out or overly-grainy scenes which have become the norm in many movies. There are multiple "bullet time" scenes which actually add to the film as they are used in the flow of the action sequences. Overall the special effects were excellent. Spider-Man's flights leave you dizzy not only with motion, but with detail. The only reason I didn't rate this movie as 5 stars was due to some poor FX work in some of the early scenes of Peter experimenting with his leaping ability - they stood out by their noticably manufactured look.

Audio is what you'd expect from a comic-book hero blockbuster movie - lot's of it. The surrounds are very active in all but the quieter moments of the film. They add a hefty dose of realism to the "flight" scenes as Spider-Man swoops between buildings, bridges and taxi-cabs.

This turns out to be much more than a slam-fest action movie although there is enough action in it for everyone. A lot of the focus is on the developing relationship (or lack thereof) between Peter and M. J. It's tender, touching, funny and sad all at the right times. There seems to be some real chemistry between Tobey McGuire and Kirsten Dunst and it shows in their scenes.

Unfortunately, it took me a couple of weeks to see this movie. Don't wait like I did. Now that I finally have seen it I'm going back for a second ride. I highly recommend you catch this before it moves on. Way to go Spider-Man!

Run time is 121 minutes.




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[Burke Strickland]

Thanks for the informative review. I agree that Spider Man is an excellent film, very enjoyable and well worth the price of admission. Acting was top-rate all the way up and down the roster -- I cannot think of any character whom I thought would have been played better by someone else.

Those who have seen it already, did you happen to catch the line of dialog that was a "set up" for later scenes, but didn't quite fit the context when first spoken -- seemed maybe a little TOO ”profound” based on what the character who first spoke it knew at the time? (When it was repeated later, it made more sense in the context of those scenes.) "With great power comes great responsibility." And then the character was killed, so the screenwriter had to have him say it when he did, so that Peter would remember those words as his last memory of his uncle and repeat them at every opportunity thereafter to motivate his heroic actions as Spider Man. That contrived bit was what would make me take away half a star -- I didn't even notice a "manufactured look" of the early scenes' special effects -- maybe I was already too busy reaching for the air-sickness bag at that point. :>)

Actually, the effects and the sound were pretty dazzling, but as you state, the underlying human story really comes through too, and "made" the movie for me. So I still give it :45: out of :5: … definately one to see more than once in the commercial theater. And imagine the DVD!

Burke

[Patrick Sun]

Burke, that quote from Uncle Ben comes straight out of the comic books. The film was being true to its roots. Just about any Spidey fan would not see that scene as contrived, just inspiration given the circumstances that shakes Peter out of his greed mode into the heroic mode.




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[Burke Strickland]

Warning -- some of the following may be considered "spoiler" material for thoise who have not seen Spider Man:

The quote is straight from the comics, but in the context of the movie, the set-up for the line could have been handled better. I know what it was there for (as a set-up for future scenes, inspiring Peter to use his powers for the greater good rather his own selfish interests -- and he repeats it several, times later in the film when he is about to perform his feats of prowess, and it works effectively there) but they did such a good job with making the rest of the "human" story believable, that particular scene was a bit jarring when those words were dropped in with no real motivation for Uncle Ben to go quite that far in saying what he said. It was too obviously a quote "straight out of the comic books" and not smoothly worked into the flow of what was happening in the movie. So I'm not giving back the half star. :>) It was great fun, but not "perfect". But I still highly recommend the movie.

Burke

[Patrick Sun]

If you take a half a star for that "clunker" you'll run out of half stars when you go see the new Star Wars flick...




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[David Meek]

Patrick,

How about a review? 8)




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[Patrick Sun]

Which movie? Spider-Man or Star Wars Episode II?

I reviewed Star Wars here - look for post #21 on that page.

I reviewed Spider-Man here - look for post #9 on that page.



But if you want to see a really good film, go see "Y Tu Mama Tambien".




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[David Meek]

I was referring to Attack Of The Clones. I missed your review down it Matt's thread. Nevermind. :?




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[Patrick Sun]

Well, that's a problem without having "The Official so-n-so-movie review thread, so I just tack my reviews to an existing thread, rather than creating yet another review thread, when possible.




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