35 Years of Summer Blockbusters - May 3rd

May 3, 2002 - 8 years ago "Spider-Man" opened in US theatres and Hollywood accounting was never the same. Spider-Man was the first film to make $100 million during its opening weekend. If the film studios were not convinced there was money to be made in comic book movies before Spider-Man, they were afterward. It went on to be the highest grossing film of 2002, beating out Star Wars Episode II, and the second installments of the Harry Potter and Lord Of The Ring series. It took 25 years of development hell to get Spider-Man on the big screen and the audience was there waiting for him.

I don't remember where I saw the film. It was either on Long island or in Manhattan. Like all summer blockbusters, I enjoyed the viewing experience, but I have mixed feelings about the film. I especially did not like the portrayal of the Green Goblin. I felt the mask he wore was silly and really did not allow for the insanity of the character too come through.

Tobey Maguire was perfectly cast in the dual role of Peter Parker and Spider-Man and the first half of the film where he develops his spidey powers is definitely better than the second half. The ending is weak, lacking suspense and real drama. The scene with the New Yorkers throwing things at the Goblin felt artificial. It was also odd that they chose to adopt some of the story from the now famous issues of Amazing Spider-Man #121 & 122 but not all of it.

At the Movie House Rating **1/2 stars.