SPIDER-MAN (1977). The First Live-Action Film About Marvel’s Famous Hero

The cinematic career of Spider-Man is exceptionally fast-paced. Few other characters have had three different actors and two reboots in just fifteen years, but the generation raised on VHS tapes still remembers another Spider-Man, who, on the scale of cheesiness, undeniably holds the top spot.

The story behind the 1977 film is a bit convoluted. The 90-minute production was intended as a pilot for a TV series, but at the time, television shows didn’t reach global markets as quickly as they do today. To get the most out of the newly acquired license from Marvel, the material was released in international theaters. The success was a given—Spidey was hitting the screen for the first time in history, and everyone wanted to see him.

As with most first films, it’s an origin story where we witness the obligatory radioactive spider bite, Peter Parker’s early days at the “Daily Bugle”, and all the standard elements. The only surprise is the absence of any mention of Uncle Ben, and therefore, we never hear the famous line, “With great power comes great responsibility.” The loss of his “father” and the guilt over his death have always been Peter Parker’s primary motivation to fight evil, but this time, it seems like his drive comes from an impeccable morality more akin to Captain America or Superman (though not Snyder’s version of Superman, of course). Neither the poor acting, the slow pacing, nor even the mediocre cinematography is as bothersome as this drastic reworking of the character’s psyche, originally crafted by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.

It turns out that even back then, the problem of a proper villain was apparent. We don’t see any of the well-known foes from Marvel’s rich universe; instead, New York is terrorized by a man known as the Guru, whose superpower is mind control. It seems that in the 1970s, this phenomenon was still so mysterious that even its descriptive name needed explaining—in one of the early scenes, Peter Parker recites: “I don’t know much about mind control, except that experiments are being conducted, and people can be forced to do certain things against their will.”

However, the lack of a powerful villain is the greatest strength of the first “Spider-Man” film. The character was conceived as the boy next door, someone any of us could be, and the absence of explosions, CGI, and other supervillains makes this concept more relatable. Parker forgets to take his pills, can’t find a stable job, borrows money from a friend, and even suffers from a cold while wearing the mask. Nicholas Hammond’s version of Spider-Man resembles a street-level fighter in the vein of the TV “Daredevil” or even “Kick-Ass” (especially in the fight with “samurais”), someone who wants to make the world better but still has very down-to-earth problems.

Spidey’s wall-crawling might look fake and comical today, but in the mid-70s, it was impressive. Filming those scenes wasn’t easy—it required a lot of equipment, wiring, and tracks hidden in walls and ceilings. A single scene where the hero jumps from building to building cost a fortune and was extremely risky. It was filmed from multiple angles to reuse shots in future episodes. Hammond is never in the costume; all the masked scenes were performed by stuntman Fred Waugh. However, fans of Z-grade cinema will instantly recognize someone else in the cast. Captain Barbera is played by Michael Pataki, known for roles in “The Return of Count Yorga”, “Death House”, and “Zoltan, Hound of Dracula”. The rest of the cast is mostly anonymous, but Robert F. Simon, as J. Jonah Jameson, stands out in a negative way. The acting itself is hard to fault, but the scriptwriters dropped the ball—how could they create a “Daily Bugle” editor who never raises his voice?

“Spider-Man” is the first live-action incarnation of one of the most popular heroes in history, and as a trailblazing production, it deserves a bit of leniency. E.W. Swackhamer’s film can be incredibly boring, but it’s worth watching for its human portrayal of Spider-Man. Don’t expect the kind of campiness that will have you rolling with laughter—you’ll find that in the “Supaidāman” series produced in Japan a year later.