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Review
This is probably the most
entertaining “superhero film”. It is fast moving, bright, witty,
packed full of great action scenes and best of all it is simply great fun.
There is a little romance thrown in for good measure. The movie also has a
great “human” element to it. What kid wouldn’t like to wake up with
super powers and go and beat up the school bully?
As Peter comes to terms with his new powers he has the dilemma of
what he will do with them. Will he use them for good deeds or to make some
money? He also has a few funny mishaps before he fully gets the hang of
being Spiderman! The plot itself is fairly predictable and as you would
expect the old “good versus evil” storyline takes over in the end.
There has been some criticism
of the computer-generated special effects but you couldn’t make a man
dressed as a spider, swinging from Manhattan skyscrapers look any more
realistic! The special effects are great and the action scenes fast and
furious.
Tobey Maguire has a certain
innocent, vulnerable wide-eyed look that really suited the part. He was
able to play the somewhat “geeky” schoolboy perfectly and looked
genuinely surprised what he discovered his new powers. Willem Dafoe was
great as the Green Goblin, Spiderman’s archenemy. He definitely looked a
little mad and scary! Kirsten Dunst played Mary Jane the girl next door
and added a bit more character to the role than just the token love
interest.
Lasting
thought: With great power comes great responsibility.
Reviewed by Niall Quinn,
Premier Movie Reviews
2002
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