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Spider-Man He's everywhere! Spider-Man is on Dr. Pepper cans, on Cingular wireless phone ads, in a million commercials on TV and posing on every poster at your local cineplex. You can't escape him, but, yet, you're not sure if you want to go see it. I know your geek-alarm is up and you fear that you'll be sitting in a theater full of 30- year old fat guys who love comic books, live in their mother's basement and can't get dates on a Friday night. Don't fear, my friend. They don't bite, and Spider-Man is actually a very good MOVIE. Even though it is based on a comic book, which some people just need to accept, Spider-Man is a great film that excels where many other blockbusters fail. Tobey Maguire stars as Peter Parker - a geeky, science loving New York City high schooler who doesn't fit in. Worse yet, he is desperately in love with the girl next door, Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst), but he can't get up the nerve to talk to her. One day on a field trip, he is bitten by a radioactive, genetically altered spider. Slowly, he starts to develop super, spider-like powers. While it seems like a big joke to him at first, tragedy soon makes him realize that he should use these new powers for good and to fight crime. Will Spider-Man be able to defeat the man who becomes his evil nemesis, The Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe)? Will Peter get the girl? I left out a bunch of stuff, because I don't want to ruin the movie for you. Anyway, I can't make it any clearer than this, Spider-Man is a great movie. Director Sam Raimi and writer David Koepp formulate a flick that relies on equal parts action, love story and character development. Best of all, while the movie is very serious, it doesn't forget its sense of humor nor its comic book beginnings. It is respectful of the material and audience. Raimi made his best decision of the film by retaining the story of Spider-Man's genesis. For some time, the suits at SONY thought they should just jump right into an action flick without much explanation of how he came about since Spider-Man is a fairly well-known commodity. However, the genesis of Spider-Man makes the most disbelieving audience member into a fan. During this crucial sequence of scenes, we get to see Tobey Maguire at his best. Whereas Superman and other heroes never seem to be vulnerable, Maguire is able to convey Parker's normalness and lack of ease. He convincingly makes Parker a likable figure by showing his vulnerability and unease around Mary Jane. Contrasted with Maguire's portrayal of a confident Spider-Man, the audience can understand the character better and feel closer to him emotionally. Willem Dafoe also puts in a great performance. He stars as Norman Osborn - a wealthy, highly respected scientist and father to Peter Parker's best friend, Harry (James Franco). Osborn turns into The Green Goblin when he tests a controversial performance enhancing drug on himself, which brings out all of his aggressions and anger. The character could have been very campy and over the top, but Dafoe is able to temper that (almost all the time, but he slips here and there) and make it into the centerpiece of his masterful performance. It's riveting to see Dafoe use this material and portray it with the same type of seriousness you would expect in a Shakespearean production. Because Dafoe takes it seriously, so does the audience. In addition to the crisp, meaningful dialogue provide by Koepp, Raimi is able to use the action sequences to enhance the movie instead of masking faults or overcoming poor material like most directors of summer blockbusters are forced to do. At times, you can tell where Spider-Man has been computer generated, but, for most of the film, you can't. Instead, we are treated to thrilling sequences of Spider-Man flying through the sky, swinging from building to building and using his ability to capture the bad guys. Also, the fight sequences are very exciting. Finally, Spider-Man is also a good story about a love triangle. I won't give too much away, but I think you'll agree that this was used very effectively to set up the unavoidable sequel and, instead of boring us and blatantly being awkwardly inserted to attract women, the love triangle is integral to the film. This is one of the few times where I am glad it was part of the film. If you love movies, you will love Spider-Man. While many of the snootier film critics and moviegoers might not be willing to see past its comic book beginnings, I think those with open minds will find Spider-Man to be a great movie with a likable hero, a dastardly villain, great action, an interesting love story and wonderful character development. Grade: A. Copyright 2002 - WaffleMovies.com
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