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SPIDER-MAN (2002)Starring Tobey Maguire, Willem Dafoe, and Kirsten Dunst.
Directed by Sam Raimi.
MPAA rating: PG-13
"With great power comes great responsibility." These are more than Uncle Ben's last words; they can be applied to the same movie from which they came. Judging from all the hype, Spider-Man had a lot of pressure to live up to in delivering a powerhouse summer film to the viewing public (not to mention all the fanboys that would be let down should the movie flop). The brilliance here is that Spider-Man more than satisfies.
As the story goes, quite true to the original comic book, Peter Parker (Tobey McGuire) is the school nerd. He is constantly picked on for his excessive geekiness and spends his spare time discussing nuclear physics with his best friend Harry Osborn (James Franco). Not a ladies man at heart, Parker also has a rough time trying to impress his neighbour-friend Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), who, like most teenage girls, wouldn't know a great guy if one bit her. You can probably fill in the blanks from here; Parker is bitten by a radioactive spider, gets spidery-like powers, and does spidery-like things, such as web-slinging and climbing up the sides of buildings using his bare hands. It's all fun and games at first, until his Uncle Ben is killed in a carjacking - an accident that Parker is actually responsible for. From then on, his mission is clear. As Spider-Man, Parker will help rid New York City of crime once and for all. Unfortunately, Harry Osborn's psychotically deranged dad Norman (Willem Defoe) becomes enraged at the corporate takeover of his company, Oscorp, and experiments with unstable biological technology on himself - something any good-natured executive would do in the same situation. Something goes tragically wrong, and Norman births an evil alter ego, The Green Goblin. Now it's up to Spider-Man to stop this menace, as well as maintain a steady job at the Daily Bugle and try to win the heart of his dream girl.
Spider-Man shines throughout all aspects of a summer film. Acting is top-notch, especially the whole "good vs. evil" interaction between McGuire and Defoe. Both give new dimension to their comic book counterparts and deliver strong performances as the main protagonist/antagonist. Dunst's role as Mary Jane Watson seems rather Valley Girl-ish, but is not totally flat, and few viewers will argue against the fact that she looks rather stunning as a redhead. Also deserving of praise are Cliff Robertson and Rosemary Harris, the actors who play Peter Parker's Uncle Ben and Auntie May, respectively. Both are bit parts; however, Robertson and Harris fill them with life, especially Robertson during Uncle Ben's death scene.
Special effects get an A+ as well. Sequencing is smooth and nearly without flaw, and a few scenes stand out as comparable to titans such as Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, and The Matrix. One such scene is when Spider-Man attempts to dodge an onslaught of blades thrown out of the Green Goblin's glider. Not only is this scene shot in slow-motion, showing superb articulation, but the raging fire in the background makes it look infinitely cooler. Additionally, there's a ton of action, plenty of humor - McGuire throws out dozens of sarcastic Spider-Man catch phrases - and even a psychological pretense for those who actually like to think while they're watching a movie.
Obviously the main reason to see this film is simply because it's fun, but there is one minor Christian element in Spider-Man worthy of mention. During a scene in which Peter's Auntie May is bedside reciting the Lord's Prayer, The Green Goblin suddenly launches an assault. Since it's a well-known fact that all evil supervillians often have strange issues, Gobby (as he is affectionately called by Spider-Man) forces her to finish her prayer before he cruelly napalms her house. Somehow Auntie May escapes with only a few injuries, and although you probably won't catch it until later, the writers would have us discern that God protected her and allowed her to survive. Subtle as it is, I think it's a nice nod to the Creator.
As with most things that come out of Hollywood, Spider-Man contains a few minor profanities and more than a few scenes of violence, but nothing that will traumatize the kiddies other than The Green Goblin's ugly mug. Except maybe the cameo by pro wrestler "Macho Man" Randy Savage. I'm still having nightmares. But it's best if you see it yourself.
- Rick Foux
June 3, 2002
June 3, 2002
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