Plot: A high school nerd, Peter (Tobey Maguire) is bitten by a genetically modified spider and gains spider-like abilities. He uses these abilities to fight evil as tragedy befalls his family. In the film, he must battle the Green Goblin as he terrorizes New York.
Review: I was never a big fan of the superhero genre, so I was slightly reluctant to watch this. I do believe it's because I never really found a superhero movie that I enjoyed. Until I watched this.
I didn't read the Spider-Man comic books that much when I was a kid. But I did watch several episodes of the animated series when I got older.
We all know the plot of Spider-Man. Peter gets bitten by a genetically modified spider. And in this film, he faces the Green Goblin. I liked the film's plot in general, but there were some slight flaws. One thing that bothered about the film's plot is that when Peter gets his abilities, there's really no inner struggle or reluctance to his new powers. Instead, he kind of accepts them quickly and uses them to his advantage. In superhero movies, I usually expect to see some struggle of sorts in accepting the new life that has fallen upon them. And there really wasn't much of it in this film so I was disappointed in that respect. They did explore this in the second film so that satisfied me. I will say that I also believe they did it intentionally because adolescence is a time where you don't want to face the entire grasps of new responsibilities that you have.
The acting is very strong. Toby Maguire is brilliant as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. Kirsten Dunst is also very good in this. She's able to portray Mary Jane's innocence and grace perfectly. James Franco plays Harry, Peter's friend, and I think he did a marvelous job. Willem Dafoe plays Norman/The Green and he is very convincing in both roles. He's very creepy when he transforms into the Green Goblin. But he also had a creepiness to him when he was Norman as well. Cliff Robertson plays Uncle Ben. For me, he was one of the best parts of the movie. I also enjoyed Rosemary Harris as Aunt May. I do wish we were able to see a little bit more of Uncle Ben and Aunt May together because I think the actors had a good spark between them. I honestly feel that J.K. Simmons can't be applauded enough for his role. He is absolutely hilarious and so over the top. It's never a dull moment.
The film's visuals are fantastic. Whether it's the costumes of Spider-Man and the Green Goblin, the Green Goblin's weapons, the fight sequences, New York and all other special effects were really well done. It didn't feel too cheesy to me.
I did like the film's ending. Even though the filmmakers couldn't be a hundred percent sure if they would make additional films, I did like that there was a big character development for Peter. And Mary Jane's reaction is a pivotal moment that I think is one of the more remembered moments in the film, even though it's very brief. But I think the film's ending was well-suited and that it connects well with the second film's plot and story.
Spider-Man is a thrilling, entertaining, funny and action-packed film.
Rating: 4/5
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