Shy, brilliant teenager Peter Parker is bitten by a genetically altered spider, and soon displays the proportionate strength and abilities of a spider. At first he tries to use his powers for profit and to impress his neighbor, Mary Jane Watson. But when he fails to prevent the murder of his uncle and foster father Ben, he realizes that with great power comes great responsibility, and takes to the streets as Spider-Man. Peter's friend and roommate Harry Osborn has parental problems of his own - his father Norman has exposed himself to an experimental strength-enhancement treatment and gone insane in the process. Calling himself the Green Goblin, the elder Osborn is determined to recruit Spider-Man to join him in his rampages...or destroy him.

Ever since the trailer footage started showing up, I've joked that the tagline for Spider-Man should be 'You will believe a man can web-sling.' Just as Richard Donner and company had to make flight work in order for Superman: The Movie to succeed, Sam Raimi and his team needed to capture Spider-Man swinging among the buildings of Manhattan. The trailers gave me hope that they'd be able to deliver, and now I'm happy to say that for the most, Spider-Man captures not just the powers but the spirit of the title character. More importantly, especially for the non-comics-readers making up a majority of the film's record-breaking audiences, it's a very fun movie.

Spider-Man is a brighter, more kinetic film than most other superhero movies - the hero is dressed in bright red and blue, and bounces and flips from one building to the next. A great amount of CG work went into making the action seem realistic, and for the most part it's successful. There are a few too-cartoony-for-my-tastes moments, but they're more than balanced out by the high points. The action scenes are also on a smaller, more personal scale that fits the tone of the story - rather than trying to save the city or the West Coast, Spidey does more one-on-one rescues. I've seen some criticisms of this approach from critics who prefer an epic good vs. evil battle of the type seen in the better Superman and Batman movies, but I think the choice works here. While those heroes have a larger-than-life feel about them, Spider-Man is all about the everyman-as-hero, and the psychological battle between Peter Parker and Norman Osborn fits that tone exactly.

Between the action scenes is where the cast pulls its weight, and for the most part they do so very well. Tobey Maguire nails the alienated-teenager side of Peter Parker and does a great job showing Peter's joy and amazement as he discovers his powers. The one thing I would have liked to see more is a sense that he enjoys being Spider-Man and saving people - that for all the burden and responsibility, there is also something very liberating about swinging around through New York and crawling up walls. (I think the script lets him down a bit in this regard, but more on that later.) Kirsten Dunst and James Franco as Mary Jane Watson and Harry Osborn are effective, although they don't do much to stand out. J.K. Simmons adds a great comic spark as newspaper editor J. Jonah Jameson, whose bluster and anti-Spider hysteria is nicely balanced by a moment of courage under fire. Dafoe as Norman/Goblin may be my favorite comic-based villain, less because of the Goblin's cackling insanity (which we've seen too many times before) but for Norman's helplessness as he gradually loses his mind. Despite being a bit gruff and distant with his son, Dafoe makes Norman quite likable in a number of places, and that extra layer of sympathy adds a little depth to the usual good-guy/bad-guy dichotomy.

There are a few moments where the script falls short, usually in the overly-earnest dialogue between Peter and Mary Jane. There were moments where I felt the heartfelt speeches either went over the top or were just totally misplaced. (A conversation at Uncle Ben's gravesite is a particular offender in my mind.) Also, while I applaud the movie getting the spider-bite over with as quickly as possible, Peter's personal life in the second half of the movie doesn't feel real - he's supposedly working and going to college, but we never see any of that, nor do we see how he's paying for the very nice Manhattan apartment he shares with Harry. Peter says of his powers, "It is my gift, it is my curse," but we don't see enough of either. On the other hand...there's plenty of room for the sequel. Good thing work on that's already started.

• screenplay by David Koepp
  based on the Marvel Comic by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko
• directed by Sam Raimi
• music by Danny Elfman

• Cast: Tobey Maguire (Peter Parker/Spider-Man), Willem Dafoe (Norman Osborn/Green Goblin), Kirsten Dunst (Mary Jane Watson), James Franco (Harry Osborn), Rosemarry Harris (Aunt May), Cliff Robertson (Uncle Ben), J.K. Simmons (J. Jonah Jameson)