With great power comes great responsibility.

Peter Parker was a shy, quiet teenager until he was bitten by a genetically altered spider. Now, with heightened senses and incredible new abilities, he's become the amazing Spider-Man.Go for the ultimate spin as the comic book legend comes to life with Tobey Maguire (from WONDER BOYS), Kirsten Dunst (from BRING IT ON) and Willem Dafoe (from PLATOON) starring in director Sam Raimi's (THE GIFT, THE EVIL DEAD) action-packed, world-wide box office smash!

Review of Spider-Man by Christopher Pattison

With the success of the first ‘X-Men’ film in 1999, it was inevitable that studios would try and capitalise on its success with other iconic superheroes being bought to the big-screen. Sony and Marvels collaboration with visionary filmmaker Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead Trilogy) with ‘Spider-Man’ in 2002 really solidified the superhero genre.

‘Spider-Man’ captured the nature of the comic book whilst also adding its own spin on the source material. The film feels like a feature-length adaptation of a comic book but in the best way possible. Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker/Spider-Man is amazing. He captures the confidence of Spider-Man whilst also the awkwardness and shy persona of Peter Parker. Williem Dafoe as Norman Osborne/The Green Goblin will go down as one of the best comic book performances of all time. He is menacing, intelligent and devious, absolutely everything that you want from this character. James Franco as Harry Osborn is wonderful as well. You can really feel the jealousy he feels for Peter as Peter and his father (Norman) have a seemingly better relationship then Harry does. This tension builds and builds throughout the film and creates great tension for the sequels. Kirsten Dunst is great as Mary-Jane Watson, you see her grow throughout the trilogy, but she really gives a great performance. We understand her background as we get a glimpse into her home life and all of those story beats work really well for her character, grounding her more in reality. J.K Simmons also debuts as J.Jonah Jamieson, one of the best pieces of casting in film history, he absolutely nails this character, giving us so many quotable lines, and he is just wonderful. The special effects also hold up remarkably well, with some of the sequences involving Spider-Man swinging around the New York landscape still holding up to this day. Sam Raimi’s style suits this material as well, adding his signature campy tone and unique vision to the film. For those unfamiliar with Raimi’s work, Raimi made a name for himself in the 1980’s and 1990’s making the classic ‘Evil Dead trilogy’ and ‘Darkman’. Sam Raimi really understands the camp and the cheese of the source-materials and utilises his low-budget, b-movie background to make the film feel like a comic book, utilising these elements to feel like an alternate reality. From the costumes to the set design, everything feels organic to the material and apart of this larger comic book world. Raimi really understood the characters and the feel of Spider-Man, creating a unique and well-rounded story whilst also respecting the source material. The score by Danny Elfman is also iconic, the score really captures the tension and the suspense of the film. Elfman’s Spider-Man theme is still one of my favourite pieces of cinematic music of all time. ‘Spider-Man’ is one of the best comic book films of all time, with a fantastic cast, great action and even better effects. This film also looks stunning on the 4K UHD transfer. I am giving ‘Spider-Man’ (2002) a 9/10!

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