Kyler’s Classic Movie Review: Spider-Man (2002)

By Kyler Maynes

I think everybody knows Spider-Man, he’s quite possibly the most well known superhero of all time. And, I’d be willing to bet money that most people got their introduction to him with the 2002 movie. In fact, I’d bet that a good number of people still picture Tobey Maguire in their head when they think of Spider-Man. So, I knew this movie would be perfect to put under the microscope and take a closer look at. Also, it gets me away from Harrison Ford before that becomes a trend.

The first thing I want to evaluate is how accurate it is to the source material and how overall it does a very good job of sticking close to the comics. The main things I look for in terms of comic accuracy in superhero movies is the origin of the hero, their powers and equipment, and their personality. Spider-Man does a very good job in these fields, only occasionally going away from the source material. Spidey’s origin is near one for one with the comics, getting bitten by a radioactive spider at Oscorp, starting with wrestling to make money, and the death of Uncle Ben is all pulled right from the pages. Spider-Man’s powers are pretty much all here as they should be; spider-sense, wall crawling, super strength, agility. The only power they made a major change to was his webs, making them a part of his anatomy rather than the mechanical web shooters Peter used in the comics. Tobey Maguire portrays an almost comic accurate Peter Parker and Spider-Man, being perhaps just a bit too shy when portraying Peter compared to how he was in comics at the time. The design of Spider-Man in this movie is also nearly perfect. Adaptations almost always make their own suit design, and Tobey’s suit is deserving of its iconic status.

Another thing I want to look at is the characters. The cast of this movie is incredibly good. Willem Dafoe is amazing as the Green Goblin and Norman Osborn. He flawlessly pulls off the Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde aspect this rendition of the character makes use of. He’s also a perfect villain to stand opposite Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man. He’s threatening whenever he’s on screen, being unstable enough that you’re never sure what exactly he’ll do. Standing opposite is Spider-Man and Tobey’s version of the character is fantastic. He’s a bit more serious than other adaptations, but does still have the humorous moments that are so important to the character. The version of Kirsten Dunst’s MJ is at her best in this first movie. In my opinion, her later appearances in the sequels damage her character a bit, but she’s a fantastic love interest in this movie. So her role is perhaps a bit dated, but she’s overall very accurate to how MJ was portrayed in comics at the time. The last character I want to look at is James Franco’s Harry Osborn, who honestly borders on being a background character in this movie. He has a hint of the edge we see expanded on in the next two movies, but he’s very watered down here compared to his later appearances. Still, he’s a pretty solid character in this first movie, especially looking at him through the lens of setting up his role in the next two movies.

The last thing I want to talk about with the movie is its famous “We are New York” scene. Given that this movie is set in 2002, soon after the tragedy of 9/11, the writers added in a pretty powerful scene. When Goblin is attacking Spider-Man as he attempts to save MJ and a cable car full of children, a group of New Yorkers stand up for Spidey; throwing objects to disorient Goblin and buy Spidey time. One member of the crowd yells “You mess with one of us, you mess with all of us!” While not directly linked to 9/11, I still find this scene very well done and a great way of showing the unity of New York after such a tragedy, while fitting into the movie. It’s one of my favorite scenes in any Spider-Man movie: showing Spider-Man as a hero of the people, especially New York. To me at least, this scene and the inspiration behind it is part of what makes this movie so iconic.