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Spider-Man is about a really nice geeky lad called
Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) who is growing up in the Queens
area of New York. He lives with his really nice Aunt May (Rosemary
Harris) and Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson), who are not well
off but have raised him with good values.
Next door is the scrumptious Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst)
who barely notices our hero-to-be is alive - and she's lived
there since they were six.
Anyway, on a trip to a museum, young Parker is bitten by
a super spider and begins to take on characteristics of the
multi-legged beastie. Okay, he doesn't sprout six more legs
or giant fangs, but he does get the ability to move extremely
quickly, climb walls and fire webs out of his wrists.
He also develops a pretty damn strong physique (it took Maguire
five months of five-hours a day, six days a week exercise
to bulk up for the role) and an ability to sense danger.
With his new-found strength Parker deals with his school
nemesis and then tragedy strikes as his uncle is murdered.
While a hero, our lad reacts not too well to losing his beloved
unc and the battle between the dark side and good side of
the character is what makes Spidey so special.
While a nice guy at heart, he also has a bit of a temper
and it takes him time to come to grips with using his power
the right way.
Don't get me wrong, this is no darker-than-dark Batman,
but it is a light movie with occasionally surfacing menacing
undertones.
One dark creature to appear in the movie is the Green Goblin,
an armoured nasty who comes about through the insanity of
a military industrialist Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe). While
having no superpowers, the Green Goblin is a high-tech crook
who can zip around on a military hoverboard biffing nuclear
grenades at people.
Seriously annoyed by the success of Spiderman at cutting
the crime rate, the Green Goblin sets out to destroy the red-and-blue
hero and does so through Spidey's love for Mary Jane.
Maguire is just fabulous as Parker. He is perfect for the
nerdy persona and is equally as good as the action man. Dunst
is both the girl next door and sweet love interest and also
a hottie in the rain.
Dafoe uses his rugged features to great effect as the Green
Goblin and is superb as the human deformed by his quest for
science.
The video transfer of Spider-Man is perfect. It is
sharp and colourful and the imagery is just sensational. The
blend of real film and computer graphics is unpickable and
the sound is easily as good as the picture.
Now if you happen to be an arachnaphobe don't fear (so to
speak), there are only a few pictures of real spiders in the
movie.
Mind you, the close-up of the one chomping into Peter Parker's
hand will have you quaking and sweating in your jocks big
time. You can almost feel the teeth piercing the skin!!
This is a beauty, bolstered by an excellent extras package.
Conclusion: 90% Extras: 95%
Continued:
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