Spider-man (2002) Review

"You can give a dork superpowers,
but he's still a dork. A really, 
REALLY typical dork."

Since the Marvel superhero movies has gone to such wondrous heights over the last decade, it's worth checking out where it all originated from. Blade was just Wesley Snipes fighting vampires, X-men was freakshow black-ops missions...but Spider-man was where we learned Superhero Story 101. 

17-year-old Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is that kid we all saw in high school we never really paid attention to. He took a few pictures, he stared awkwardly at the cheerleaders and was always chasing after the school bus with the hope that his pants wouldn't fall down before the first mile. But when he's bitten by a genetically engineered spider, the side effects leave him with arachnid-like superpowers that will change the direction of his life. 

But taking the words out of Peter's own mouth, "the story of my life is not for the faint of heart." He's always trying to get the girl of his dreams, the popular Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst) but can never seem to get noticed by her. And it doesn't help that he's become the target for New York City's newest super-villain, the mainiac Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) who just happens to be the father of his best friend Harry Osborn (James Franco). 

Whoa. That's one crazy, hectic life you got their, Peter...

Too bad the audience can barely relate to any of it on a personal level. 

In retrospective to this recently rebooted franchise (The Amazing Spider-man) this movie does have strength to stand on its own, but it leaves a kind of cheesy impression. To his credit, director Sam Raimi, famous for his Evil Dead series, actually handles the superhero drama in a very entertaining form. Action comes well choreographed and larger than life, but that last line is absolutely what defines this series: so big you just can't connect. 

Let's address the main moral of the movie, as hammered over the head through the voice of Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson). Say it with me, folks...

"With great power comes great responsibility..."

All fine when you hear it, but Peter comes off as such a responsible boy scout through the duration of the movie that such a motto comes off about as meaningful as, "Drugs are bad, mmm'kay?" He rarely shows moments of irresponsibility or abusing his powers in any form. Its not so much about Peter Parker playing Spider-Man as it is Spider-man playing Superman. 

The film's story is pretty much nothing more than a good guy vs bad guy showdown when you think about it. The first bad guy Spider-man is pitted against is your typical smack'em-around wrestler and his rogues gallery from then on have just as much personality.

Dafoe as the Goblin is basically Jack Nicholson's Joker with double the firepower, twice the crazy but only half as scary. That mask is barely hiding the fact that Dafoe spends the majority of his screen time mugging for the camera. 

What makes the movie strong however is its ability to at least find something for everyone. The chemistry between Maguire and Dunst is nothing short of sizzling. And tons of kids will walk away energized at watching their favourite childhood hero swinging across the screen. If it weren't for the cheesy feel that comes from this script, this could have been a movie to be thoroughly enjoyed by both children and adults.