neumu [ cinematronic ]




	Spider-Man
	Sam Raimi Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Willem Dafoe, James Franco, Cliff Robertson, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons 2002		Modern myth comes alive. Scrawny teenage nerd/high-school outcast Peter Parker is bitten by a mutated spider during a science-class trip and transforms into the wall-crawling, web-shooting, crime-fighting Spider-Man. But his problems only multiply. Sam Raimi was an inspired choice to direct a live-action film about the origin of Marvel Comics' angst-ridden superhero. Having created the pulpy "Darkman" and spoofy "Army of Darkness," Raimi had experience balancing the comic-book melodrama and frenzied Technicolor special effects that make "Spider-Man" such a lark. The only questions about translating Spidey to the screen concerned script quality (serviceable, true to the comics) and casting (ideal). Props to Tobey Maguire as the perfect Parker, a wimpy nice guy turned cavalier-in-spandex; Kirsten Dunst as his juicy crush, vivacious teen queen Mary Jane; and Willem Dafoe as daft industrialist Norman Osborn, who turns himself into the Green Goblin — murderous, schizoid supervillain. The film is pure pop art.