Toby Maguire in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man. Image courtesy of Marvel Enterprises and Columbia Pictures
To this day, I firmly believe that Sam Raimi’s three Spider-Man movies are the best overall. Even though Andrew Garfield and Tom Holland have portrayed Spider-Man, they cannot surpass Tobey Maguire’s masterful depiction of the character and his alter ego, Peter Parker. Maguire truly embodied the role in a way that stands out above the rest.
There was no multiversal chaos like we have today; there certainly weren’t any Iron Man-inspired technologies in the Spider-Man costume, and there was no doubt about the credibility of the superhero we were watching on the big screen. Just as Michael Keaton was the ideal actor to portray Batman in the movies, Tobey Maguire perfectly embodied Spider-Man, making him a natural fit for the role.
Spider-Man was filled with adventure and presented its origin story in a way that was engaging without dragging on. The supporting characters played a significant role, particularly Peter Parker’s love interest, Mary Jane Watson, portrayed by Kirsten Dunst, who was believable in capturing the essence of who Mary Jane Watson was early on in The Amazing Spider-Man comics.
READ: Fil-Am ‘Spider-Man’ star Jacob Batalon now engaged to GF
Then, on the side of the main antagonist, the Green Goblin as the primary villain was a revelation, especially because Willem Dafoe nailed the legendary super-villain, and I would compare it second to Jack Nicholson as The Joker in Batman in terms of how the moviegoers hailed their respective stellar performances. Little things do matter on a bigger scale. One of the intricate details that adds so much to the movie is the Green Goblin’s signature laugh, which is behind only that of The Joker in Batman in terms of its immediate recognition with audiences and how iconic they are. Indeed, with a talented, qualified, and determined cast perfectly embodying their roles, these characters were well aligned with Marvel Comics, specifically from the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man, and they served as the essential elements that tied the movie together.
But you need someone to captain the ship, to guide everyone into shape and be behind the director’s chair for this task. Sam Raimi was the man for the job. Who would have thought that the director and co-creator of The Evil Dead movies, which starred Bruce Campbell, would excel at directing the Spider-Man films? It’s quite a leap from comedy-horror to action-adventure in the superhero genre.
There are a lot of cinematic qualities about Spider-Man that are worth praising. The cinematography, especially the wide camera angles and overview shots, captures Spider-Man web-slinging between buildings. The dynamic camera angles added a lot to the visuals. Sam Raimi enhanced the Spider-Man movies by getting the most out of every shot in each film. In essence, no film was wasted under Sam Raimi’s direction, as all the Spider-Man movies felt very streamlined due to the camera techniques he employed.
If Spider-Man had not been so well received upon its premiere and subsequent release in countless theaters, likely, there wouldn’t have been two sequels, nor would there have been a series of Marvel movies featuring characters like Hulk, The Punisher, Daredevil, Elektra, and Ghost Rider, among others. Spider-Man was pivotal in bringing Marvel into the mainstream awareness of live-action films in Hollywood.
Spider-Man was released during a difficult time and at a dangerous crossroads when it came to global safety from terrorism. Everything that could go right for Spider-Man did. The timing of its release was a blessing in disguise, especially following the events of September 11 in New York City. I do remember hearing rumors that the CGI image of the Twin Towers had to be deleted out of respect for what had happened because the film’s production started more than a year before 9/11 occurred, and post-production was in effect by the time Spider-Man was about to make its global release in cinemas all over the world.
Indeed, the audience not only needed a “feel-good” movie, but they also needed something more: they needed a hero in theaters to lift their spirits. The answer was a big-budget Spider-Man movie. Spider-Man has always symbolized the resilience, heart, and strength of the city where the Twin Towers once stood. In the realm of Marvel Comics, no character represents that spirit better than Spider-Man. He was the ideal answer for what Hollywood needed at that moment in time. Interesting factoid: sometimes certain superheroes represent a specific city in a state, and Spider-Man always represents New York City, even working for a fictitious media outlet in The Daily Bugle headed by his terrible boss J. Jonah Jameson.
Looking back, I find it interesting that the first Spider-Man movie was released in 2002, six years before Iron Man. At that time, the term “Marvel Cinematic Universe” (MCU) didn’t even exist; it was simply a standalone film with no connections to prior movies. It was as solo as a movie could be and marked the first big-budget Marvel superhero film released after the huge commercial and critical success of X-Men.
In terms of one’s personal movie experience, I find it remarkable that Spider-Man mirrors the impact that Batman (1989) had on me when I first watched it at home. Spider-Man felt perfect to me, and I’ve noticed that it’s frequent these days for well-established actors or those on the rise to be cast in coveted superhero roles. However, when they finally get their chance, their performances can often feel flat or underwhelming. This disconnect isn’t due to the quality of their acting; rather, it’s about how the casting resonates with the audience. Certain actors simply don’t seem right for the iconic superhero roles they are portraying.
Toby Maguire and Kirsten Dunst in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man. Image courtesy of Marvel Enterprises and Columbia Pictures
Why so? There needs to be a convincing factor, an innate belief that the actors embody the superheroes we know and love from comic books as if they were truly living those adventures in real life. The transition from comic book pages to film frames is intricate and not to be taken lightly. I’ve never felt the need to research who the other actors were that might have been considered for the role of Spider-Man. Now, while I type this, I wonder what the point would be in knowing when the perfect casting choice has already been made, as history has shown in Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man.
I do want to raise this point as to why this movie has become a classic. One of the biggest reasons the Sam Raimi-directed Spider-Man films have become instant classics, despite other actors later taking on the important role, is that Tobey Maguire never felt like he was “chewing the scenery.” He didn’t appear self-aware or poke fun at portraying one of the most historically significant Marvel comic book superheroes. Especially in his numerous post-interviews after Spider-Man became a box office hit, there were many times that the interviewer would mention that they got to watch and enjoy Spider-Man, and Tobey Maguire was happy with the positive reception it got. On the flip side, other actors tend to ridicule or mock the superhero roles they have done after their runs in cinemas have ended, which is sad. Proof that they only took the role because they felt it was the “in” thing to do at the time. Heck, there were years in which everyone wanted to be in a superhero movie under Marvel Entertainment, but now, not so much.
But perhaps the most important reason as to why these films have become classics is that they were free of DEI initiatives, the Woke Movement, and identity politics. Everything felt organic, handled with professionalism, and simply normal. If the Tom Holland Spider-Man films had been shown in the early 2000s, audiences would likely have been perplexed, confused, and upset with the casting choices, some of the subplots, and how beloved comic book storylines were altered. On the contrary, the Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies are fondly remembered because they didn’t feel like a chaotic mess, nor did they involve hidden agendas or political checklists. The reality is that until things completely revert to the way they were, we will never have another classic like Spider-Man (2002) happen again in our lifetime.
In closing, I am particularly pleased that the late, great Stan Lee, the creator of Spider-Man, not only approved of how Spider-Man was portrayed by Tobey Maguire and the tremendous directorial job of Sam Raimi, all of which he gave them his “Thumbs Up.” This meant that the live-action interpretation closely aligned with how he envisioned Spider-Man, and for me, that’s what truly matters in the end.