Spider-Man Blu-Ray Review

Rated PG-13 (Stylized Violence and Action)

Running Time: 2 Hours & 1 Minute

Cast-

Tobey Maguire-Peter Parker/Spider-Man

Willem Dafoe-Norman Osborn/Green Goblin

Kirsten Dunst-Mary Jane Watson

James Franco-Harry Osborn

Rosemary Harris-May Parker

Cliff Robertson-Ben Parker

J.K. Simmons-J. Jonah Jameson

Bill Nunn-Joe 'Robbie' Robertson

Elizabeth Banks-Betty Brant

Joe Manganiello-Eugene 'Flash' Thompson

Gerry Becker-Maximilian Fargas

Jack Betts-Henry Balkan

Stanley Anderson-General Slocum

Ron Perkins-Dr. Mendell Stromm

Ted Raimi-Hoffman

Randy Savage-Bone Saw McGraw

Michael Papajohn-The Carjacker
Bruce Campbell-Ring Announcer

Directed by Sam Raimi

Mary Jane: Is it just me or are you happy to see me, Spidey?

Note: Part of the "Spider-Man: The High Definition Trilogy" Blu-Ray set.

When it comes to comic book movies, there's certainly no short supply, with two high profile ones scheduled for this year: the highly anticipated "Watchmen," based upon the celebrated graphic novel of the same name, and the X-Men spin-off "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," with Hugh Jackman reprising his role as the titular character. The most successful comic book movie franchise (so far) is Columbia Pictures/Sony's "Spider-Man" trilogy, based on the famous Marvel character created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko in 1962. One of the most popular comic book characters of all time, Marvel had long sought to do a film adaptation of Spider-Man but the project was stuck in development hell for over twenty-five years. Production finally went underway in 2000, with the film being released on May 3, 2002 to critical and commercial success. I must admit, I was blown away when I first saw it in theaters and must've watched it over a hundred times when it came out on DVD, with all the dialogue firmly ingrained in my mind. The upside-down kiss scene quickly became a pop culture phenomenon. The simply titled "Spider-Man" is now available on Blu-Ray, courtesy of the "Spider-Man: The High Definition Trilogy" box set.

"Spider-Man" tells the story of Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire), who lives with his Aunt May (Rosemary Harris) and Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson) in Forest Hills, Queens. Despite being your average everyday teenager, his peers often bully him due to his strong interest in science. Peter's best friend is Harry Osborn (James Franco), son of wealthy scientist/industrialist Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe), who owns the company Oscorp. His next door neighbor is the beautiful Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), whom he secretly pines for. While on a school field trip to Columbia University, Peter is suddenly bitten by a genetically altered spider (it was a radioactive spider in the comics) and wakes up the next day to find that he has 20/20 vision and a suddenly athletic physique. He soon realizes that the spider-bite has given him the proportionate speed, strength, and agility of a spider and attempts to use his new abilities for his own personal gain by entering a local wrestling contest. Peter easily wins but is cheated out of the prize money. A thief (Michael Papajohn) later steals all of the promoter's money and in retaliation, Peter allows him to escape. However, that same thief murders his beloved Uncle Ben. Peter realizes he could've stopped the thief if he chose to, making him indirectly responsible. Remembering his Uncle's words that 'with great power comes great responsibility,' Peter becomes the costumed crime fighter known as 'The Amazing Spider-Man'! Meanwhile, Norman Osborn has begun experimenting on himself through a pseudo-super soldier serum but everything goes horribly wrong (as they always do!) and becomes the maniacal 'Green Goblin,' who begins to threaten everything that Peter holds dear.

"Spider-Man" is one of the most faithful comic book film adaptations I've ever had the pleasure to see and the first hour successfully captures Peter coming to terms with the fact that he now has super powers (a metaphor for puberty) in both a serious and humorous tone (the scene where he attempts to shoot webbing is hilarious!). The second hour is somewhat derivative and moves at a somewhat rushed pace to lead into the final battle but nonetheless, "Spider-Man" still ranks as one of the best comic book movies ever made. There are some changes from the source material and the most controversial is having the spider-bite grant Peter the ability to shoot webbing organically from his wrists rather than having him invent mechanical web-shooters. Director Sam Raimi said that having Peter make his own web-shooters would've stretched the audiences’ suspension of disbelief too much despite it being a longtime staple of the comic book. Though it irked some fans, the change was more or less accepted. Perhaps the most criticized element of the film was the Green Goblin's costume, which resembled cybernetic armor but fans focused their complaints on the mask, which has a frozen, permanent grin that severely limited Willem Dafoe's expression. While the armor itself is well-designed, I agree with the fans' complaints about the mask. A 100% adaptation of his costume from the comics would've looked silly on-screen but a reasonable alternative could've been the 'medieval chainmail armor' that Osborn wore in Peter Parker: Spider-Man. Overall, these are minor issues at best and despite the second hour not being as good as the first, Raimi's passion for the character allows "Spider-Man" to shine even after seven years later.

The performances surprised everyone and while the initial casting of Tobey Maguire was met with skepticism, critics and audiences alike quickly embraced him and it’s hard to think of anyone else in the role. Willem Dafoe as the malevolent Green Goblin is also excellent and the scene where he begins to talk to himself in front of a large mirror perfectly captures the character's emerging insanity. Likewise, Kirsten Dunst is good as 'the girl next door' (love that red hair!). The only actor that felt bland was James Franco as Harry Osborn, with the actor delivering a flat performance and making the strained father-son relationship not as strong. Even though he's not on-screen much, J.K. Simmons steals every scene as Peter's boss, J. Jonah Jameson. Despite being released in 2002, the CGI holds up rather well, and you'll be wide-eyed with wonder as Spidey swings across the screen through the urban jungle that is Manhattan. Some of the CG is a bit obvious and overused but it doesn't detract from the experience. The final battle is particularly brutal and I was surprised Raimi got away with so much with a PG-13 rating.

Critical reception was overwhelmingly positive when "Spider-Man" finally swung into theaters on May 3, 2002, with an amazing (pun absolutely intended!) 89% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics hailed it for not only providing 'a good dose of web-swinging fun [but] also…heart, thanks to the combined charms of director Sam Raimi and star Tobey Maguire.' The film grossed a whopping $114.8 million over opening weekend, which was an unprecedented record at the time, and went on to gross $403.7 million domestic and $821.7 million worldwide. It is currently the second highest grossing comic book film, surpassed by "The Dark Knight." Released back in October 2007, the Blu-Ray is somewhat of a mixed affair. The video quality is excellent during close-ups but background details can come off a little fuzzy. It still offers quite an improvement from the DVD version. Fortunately, the sound quality doesn't suffer from any problems, thanks to the sharp score by Danny Elfman and the appropriately loud action scenes, befitting a summer blockbuster. Sadly, there are no special features included; it's just the movie itself on a single BD-50 disc. It doesn't matter though because this is pure comic book movie goodness. If you're a lifelong fan like me, you owe it to yourself to experience "Spider-Man" again and go for the ultimate spin!

Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5

"Whatever life holds in store for me, I will never forget these words: 'with great power comes great responsibility.' This is my gift, my curse. Who am I? I'm Spider-Man."