Spider-Man is without a doubt one of those characters who belongs to the people even more than he does to his creators... Cartoons we would watch down in our living rooms, Comics we would read over and over again, Video Games we would play to feel like him. In a way, Spider-Man has actually grown up with many of us, or helped us grow up even. This was even my case...
From as far back as i can remember, i identified with Spider-Man more than any other character (Daredevil being a close second, i feel) and felt that if i were to be a superhero, i would basically end up being Spider-Man (give or take a few dead girlfriends and friends). I would collect as many of his original adventures as i could, collecting Marvel Masterworks almost all the way from 1962-1973, reading them again and again in different orders. Growing up in France, his cartoons would air on Wedsneday mornings and i would record as many of them as i could to watch them next time i could... Sundays, holidays... Anytime the Television was available Basically.
I even remember breaking my arm when i was 5 and sadly telling my Dad i coudln't be Spider-Man any more, because Spider-Man never broke his arm. In the coming few days my dad bought me a Spider-Man comic where he broke his arm and continued fighting on... Which cheered me up and reassured me i was still very much the local Spider-Man.
Then in 2002 i had my first and clearest Cinema experience since then... On a Sunday morning, me and my family went to see Spider-Man at the Cinema, and i can still remember my reaction to hearing the Theme from Danny Elfman (more on that later on). Norman creeped me out, Mary-Jane was the perfect representation of the first love we all had and Peter over the course of the movie, grew into being Spider-Man as i imagined him, more or less (more on that later as well).
Now obviously, this article is purely opinion based and heavily nostalgia influenced, so do not take my opinion too seriously and i'd be happy to read your comments and see how you felt about the film as well. And i'd like to point out that i've enjoyed every Spider-Man film released for different reasons and in different ways (Yes... Even Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 2), this is just me highlighting what made Spider-Man (2002) so special to me.
Spider-Man as a Character
Spider-Man in 2002 had the heavy task of summing up almost 50 years of Character in 2 hours, and somehow making a Character who grew up with us over that period of time relatable in a much stronger way. Now from the get go, i have to say that physically speaking, Tobey Maguire isn't how i imagine Peter Parker, ironically Andrew Garfield is closer to how i imagined him in many ways. But still i can't lie and pretend that one of the voices i hear in my head when i think of Spider-Man is his voice (Josh Keaton more so, but still i'll give Tobey some credit) and that what he did with the character stuck with me. His Peter wasn't a douche (not for another 2 films, ahem) and he wasn't the coolest dude around (although let's be honest, he was pretty ok as a dude... That attempt at asking Mary Jane out for a burger just before their Iconic kiss was pretty smooth), he was above all a good nephew, a good friend and a good kid. His relationship with his Aunt and Uncle felt sincere, heartwarming and somehow made us feel bad that we knew Uncle Ben only had a little time left with us. His friendship with Harry felt realistic and wasn't irritating at this point, you could totally believe these 2 being roommates and being best friends despite their difference in upbringing and one of them being rich as can be. And above all, the way he handled his relationship with Mary Jane in this film in particular spoke to me, with the cheesiness of it being just about understandable in this one (In real life, any interaction with a girl you've loved in secret for that many years is going to be cheesy, so give the guy a break, at least he's being lowkey pro-active about it).
His Spider-Man visually as a kid seemed great to me, altough i still prefer the Amazing Spider-Man 2 suit (which is'nt quite perfect, but it's close) and i now see a few things about it i'd change, mostly the fact i just don't see how Peter could have made a suit which looks that perfect even by hollywood standards. The way his Spider-Man fought wasn't quite as agility based as i imagined it, and he was a bit too much of a brawler at times, but for the tone of the film it was excellent, and i understand how we'd all interpret Spidey as a fighter differently.
But above all... His Spider-Man when he was swinging was majestic, every shot and every jump simply gave me chills as a kid. Again, i can't dispute that the way the Andrew Garfield Spider-Man moved was excellent in it's own right and it got that Todd Mcfarlane type movement just right and that the MCU Spidey might grow into that (The kid's already been to space and swung his way through Portals opened by Dr Strange, he's done his fair share of incredible swinging). There's just something very specific about the way this Spider-Man travelled throughout the city and somehow Raimi knew that it would fascinate us, leading to that wonderful swinging sequence in the Wrestling suit as Peter chased down Uncle Ben's killer. Raimi knew this was a big deal, he knew this was the most iconic image people have of Spider-Man, swinging around and he wanted to give us an image that would last. And even now, 16 years later, i feel he succeeded.
Green Goblin as a Villain
Willem Dafoe as Norman Osborn is one of those bits of Casting which worked on so many levels. His voice creeped us out even if he wasn't in his suit and his eyes we're instantly sinister. He added a layer of charisma and duality to the character which made him so confusing as a child. Sure he was a douchebag from the get go, and he would have been Spidey's enemy even if he hadn't become the Goblin, but you can't help but look at him the same way we looked at Smeagol when talking with Gollum... He was a wretch, but man seeing him that low was a shock. Those sequences of Norman talking to himself in the Mirror and to the Helmet gave both Goblin and Norman more personality and made each one stand out a little bit more (I can't be the only who feels the "HIS HEART NORMAN... First we attack his heart" was one of the best moments from that film).
It has to be said that my perspective on Goblin has changed over the years, and that my opinion has actually improved. Yes.. His costume has too much green and has a slight Power Rangers feel to it, but man that helmet was the bomb and creeped me out. It was only when watching again recently that i realised how brilliant he was as a villain on many levels, how well he started to dismantle Peter's life in a very short period of time between the attack on Aunt May, the brief setting up of Harry against Peter and his kidnapping of Mary Jane. His Goblin felt threatening and felt like he genuinely had the ability to ruin this kid's life... The fact that an older rich man was putting so much effort into ruining a young teenagers life was so morally wrong, it made their hatred of one another so fascinating.
His Goblin had a great balance of being capable in terms of his intellect, his fighting skills and his arsenal, each one those aspects arguably being superior to Spider-Man's. Their was also a hint of respect during the film, espcially during the sequence when Goblin offers a partnership to Spidey... Goblin might have grown to hate Spider-Man, but somewhere deep down you have to wonder if this is exactly the sort of challenge he lives for. All of this came together to make a Goblin who perfectly represented one of the greatest rivalries in Comics. All of this bringing us to...
The Final Fight
The final fight in this film for me remains one of the greatest fight scenes ever put on film, especially for a Super-Hero film. The iconic viusal of seeing Peter's costume so ripped up and that akward realisation that under that iconic mask, there's just a 16 year old kid who's had a bomb set off in his face and he's about to be impaled with some sinister trident. I've never had a superhero film affect me the way this one did, because it wasn't beautifully choreographed like the Winter Soldier and there was no team work element to reassure me or lighten things up like in The Avengers or even Civil War during the airport sequence. This fight was just brutal and even though Peter's screams of pain and barely remaining conscious faces may not be his finest moment, let's just remember that this is a kid being beaten to death by a grown man in armor.
The lack of music at the beginning of the fight only serves to bring home the personal aspect of this fight and how dirty it really is. The fight added character to both Spidey and Goblin because it showed just how strong Peter was, how much he could take and how much his loved ones meant to him. In the same way, it showed how little Goblin was playind around now, that despite the monologue during the fight, he was here to finish things and simply finish off this little brat.
Even the location of the fight was awesome, with the dark lighting and brick walls to go through adding to the brutality of this fight. It was just an awful place to imagine yourself dying, and the fact it was ironically just next to the Bridge where Mary Jane and the New Yorkers were added to this element of solitude during the fight. No one would know what happened during this fight and how personal things had gotten for these 2 enemies.
The Music
Everyone knows Danny Elfman can compose the hell out of a theme, he proved that with the still iconic Batman theme. But man... This music still makes me emotional, hearing that introduction build up into the main theme is truly iconic and helped so many other aspects of the film, because it makes everything cooler (i'm serious, go play this music while your cooking and see how cool opening a jar of tomato sauce becomes). The way the music somehow had a story of its own perfectly encapsulating being shy, being responsible, rising to the occasion is amazing... Its one of those themes which for me sums up a film without even seeing the film. That final swing is as iconic as it is BECAUSE of the music, without it, it wouldn't be even half as good.
Now, i know that some people feel it's a little to operatic or gothic for a Spider-Man theme, perhaps more fitting to another character. And you know what, i get it, it's not the type of music i would have associated with the character before i had seen the film. So in that sense perhaps the music to Homecoming and The Amazing Spider-Man is a better fit... But it's not as iconic in my opinion, it doesn't instantly transport you to the scene it was playing in like this Score does (although i'd like to say playing the original Spider-Man score at the beginning of Homecoming is a really nice touch, and actually felt very special in it's own right).
I feel this score is also helped by the fact that it's harder to make iconic Super-Hero scores these days, and not because there are so many films as such... But simply because summing up a character with a theme is incredibly hard work and making it iconic is even more so. Especially because film's having a good score does not guarantee them being good, as many films which people don't like have very good scores (Transformers has some incredible music, Autobots and Arrival are beautiful pieces of music and serve the characters wonderfully). So today we don't get as many iconic pieces of music, even in the MCU it's not always easy to remember the music outside of The Avengers, Guardians Of The Galaxy and Thor. For this reason i feel that the Spider-Man (2002) score deserves a lot of credit.
New York felt like a Character
Every now and then we get a director talk about how important it is to give the city or the district in a film character, how important it is to make it stand out. Batman Begins with the Narrows, Daredevil with Hell's Kitchen and heck, even Gotham in the appropriately named Gotham do have their own respective feels. Many superheroes films don't do this, partially because they don't actually have to... Unlike Batman being the Guardian of Gotham and Black Panther being the King of Wakanda, some characters aren't defined by the cities they protect, with the cities they protect being locations and not being story elements as such.
Now i do respect Spider-Man came at a very specific time... It's no secret that the Twin Towers originally would have played a part in the film's promotional material and even did for a little while. The tragic events which happened on September 11th, altough i was too young to remember and too far to truly be affected by affected the entire world... But nowhere was more affected than New York. So even a scene like the one where the New Yorkers helped Spidey on the Bridge against Goblin had added weight, because it was a period where New Yorkers we're united by a common, horrifying event.
Having never been to NY, i can't judge if its an accurate representaion of New York (heck who knows i could be totally wrong, i know Paris is often represented badly on film), maybe even less accuratet than The Amazing Spider-Man or Homecoming. But both in the lighting (the cinematographer in this film was not the same one who did Spider-Man 2 and 3) and in the general feel of the city, New York felt iconic. Both in big scenes like the first fight in Times Square and little scenes like when Peter spots MJ walking out of the diner, the City feels iconic and like a living breathing character.
Conclusion
Spider-Man is a film which made me love Cinema even more, it made me notice the importance of music, cinematography and character motivations far more than i did before. But above all, it showed me why Spider-Man meant so much to me and used him to teach me important life lessons as every coming of age film should. My father would often use (He's not dead don't worry, i'm just speaking in the past tense) the "With Great Power Comes Great Responsibilty" quote when having important conversations with me (it wasn't as cringey as you might imagine... Just difficult to listen to like any Father-Son talk is), so many of the themes adressed by Spider-Man struck a cord with me. It made me more of a romantic and dismissed ideas that nerd's don't get the girl stereotypes completely. It gave me more confidence when disagreeing with adults (as a young English Teacher, this can be very useful). It made me appreciate how lucky i am to have my family with me and how precious that is. And it showed that being a good person was cool... You didn't have to be Tony Stark with your snappy comebacks and riches or Wolverine with the aggressive demeanor and the threats... You could just be a young kid trying to get on with life, nervously talking to girls, standing up for friends and facing each new problem with a positive attitude. Because really that's what Spider-Man tried to teach us, do your best to do the right thing... And if possible, try to have a comeback while doing it (Yes i know Tobey was lacking in the comback department).
Or at least that's what Spider-Man meant to me. What about you?