He sure can spin a good yarn
Spider-Man successfully caters to all audiences, regardless of gender, age or background and it has crafted a heartfelt story to go along with the heart-stopping action.
Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is a geeky high-school student who gets bitten by a genetically-engineered spider on a field trip.
He gains superhuman powers including strength, agility, wall-climbing and web-shooting. He has a crush on his neighbour Mary-Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst) since grade school, but she seems to have no idea of his existence.
A violent event (which he could have prevented) rips his family apart and he learns the painful lesson that “with great power comes great responsibility”.
Meanwhile, Norman Osborne (Willem Dafoe), the father of Peter’s best friend Harry (James Franco), tests an experimental performance-enhancing drug on himself with disastrous results, pushing him to insanity as the Green Goblin.
Writer David Koepp has remained faithful to the original spirit of Spiderman while instilling necessary changes.
Humour is balanced with pathos and you never lose sight of the humanity of the characters.
Maguire gives a pitch-perfect performance as Peter, with all the uncertainty and energy that marks adolescence. Willem Dafoe is particularly effective and chilling.
JK Simmons as the cranky J Jonah Jameson, editor of the Daily Bugle where Peter finds work, steals every single scene he’s in.
Spider-Man is a story full of heart, crafted with care by creators with a genuine love for the characters. You will be thrilled by the action sequences, and yet able to feel the emotional resonance at the same time.
