DVD Review: Spiderman (B+)

Spider-Man (2002)
Directed by Sam Raimi
Starring Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst and Willem Dafoe
MPAA: PG-13
Grade: B+

Review by Scott Standish

I've heard the phrase "popcorn movie" from time to time, and I guess I never really understood what it meant until viewing Spider-Man. Directed by Sam Raimi, best known for his Evil Dead series, Spider-Man is a heck of a lot of fun, the perfect movie to unwind to with a big bowl of popcorn.

Spider-Man the movie wisely hired Spiderman the comic book creator Stan Lee to Executive Produce, so most of the smart alec dialogue from the comic book remains. The special effects are a little cheesy at times but it actually works here, as Spidey uses his special powers to sweep over and between the buildings of Manhattan, fighting crime.

Tobey Maguire does a surprisingly good job as Spiderman and he has very good screen chemistry with love interest Kirsten Dunst. Willem Dafoe is great as the villainous Green Goblin, a truly evil character that kicks some serious butt in this film.

As you probably have heard, the plot outline concerns young Peter Parker, a mild mannered school boy that when bitten by a genetically altered spider, becomes a spidery super hero. Peter Parker is transformed by the powers he has acquired, changing from the school nerd into a confident young man that realizes that, as the tag line says, "with great power comes great great responsibility".

Spider-Man can get pretty violent at times, but since the production design is so cartoonish, it's really not too scary for the youngsters. Clocking in at a little over two hours, it is also a bit long. The aforementioned fight scenes certainly could have been trimmed down a bit, but these issues don't stop Spider-Man from being entertaining and a heck of a lot of fun.

Sure its not Citizen Kane, but Spider-Man does a fantastic job bringing to life one of the most popular super heroes in comic book history. So make a fresh batch of popcorn, prop your feet up on the coffee table and enjoy Spider-Man, a truly great popcorn movie.

Buy Spider-Man on DVD From Amazon.com