Peter Parker's Character Arc in Spider-Man (2002)
One of the things that is great about Spider-Man (2002) is Peter Parker's character arc. Part of that character arc is learning about power and responsibility like in the comic books (Amazing Fantasy #15 and Ultimate Spider-Man Issues #1-5), and the other part of it is his progression into adulthood. I will not talk about the former because it's much more blatantly obvious to anyone who watches the movie, and it happens in the comic books too, so there's no need for me to talk about it because it's nothing unique. What I will talk about is Peter's progression into adulthood, because it's unique to the Raimiverse, and it should be.
One of the things that Spider-Man (2002) does well is that it doesn't depict Peter Parker as a gary stu. He isn’t depicted as a perfect person, but he isn't depicted as a bad person either. Peter is a virtuous person who is old fashioned for his time and age (which is likely because he was raised by his old fashioned Aunt and Uncle), but he isn't exempt from human flaws and weaknesses.
Tobey Maguire plays a Peter who’s in 12 grade, so his version of Peter is approximately 18 years old. He's in the beginning stages of adulthood, but he doesn't quite have the mindset of an adult, which is conveyed by his behaviour after he gets his powers. He has a fight with his high school bully, Flash Thompson, and defeats him due to his new-found powers. But he doesn't just defeat Flash, he absolutely humiliates him in front of a crowd of students, and he's even satisfied about it, which is understandable because Flash bullied Peter, and has probably been terrorizing him for a long time off screen. But fighting fire with fire isn't right, and he shouldn't indulge in the act of humiliating someone. Peter soon realizes this when Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane Watson looks at him with shock, so Peter subsequently runs out of school to get away from the attention.
After Peter runs out of school to experiment with his powers, Peter is amazed by finding out that he can wall crawl and shoot webs from his wrists and whatnot. But when the movie then transitions to the very next scene, Peter arrives home very late at night, which is in stark contrast to the previous scene taking place during day time. This is implying that Peter has been spending so much time fooling around with his powers that he comes home later than he should do, and what reinforces this is that when Peter does come home, Uncle Ben and Aunt May aren't home and the entire kitchen has already been painted. Keep in mind that earlier in the movie, Peter promises his Uncle that he would help him paint the kitchen, which makes Peter come across as irresponsible because he didn't help his Uncle paint the kitchen despite previously saying that he would. But the scene that really conveys Peter's flaws and imperfections is his last conversation with Uncle Ben:
Peter Parker: Thanks for the ride Uncle Ben-Ben Parker: No wait a minute! Peter, we... We need to talk.
Peter Parker: Oh we can talk later.
Ben Parker: Well, we can talk now, if you let me.
Peter Parker: What do we have to talk about, why now?
Ben Parker: Because we haven't talked at all for so long, your Aunt May and I don't even know who you are anymore. You shirk your chores, you... You have all those weird experiments in, in... In your room, you start fights at school-
Peter Parker: I didn't start that fight, I told you that!
Ben Parker: Well you sure as hell finished it...
Peter Parker: What was I supposed to do? Run away?
Ben Parker: No, no, you're not supposed to run away but... Pete, look, you're changing, I know, I went through exactly the same thing at your age.
Peter Parker: No, not exactly...
Ben Parker: Peter, these are the years when a man changes into the man he's going to become the rest of his life. Just be careful who you change into. This guy, Flash Thompson, he probably deserved what happened, but just because you can beat him up, doesn't give you the right to. Remember, with Great Power, comes Great Responsibility.
Peter Parker: Are you afraid that I'm going to turn into some kind of criminal? Quit worrying about me, OK? Something's different, I'll figure it out, stop lecturing me, please!
Uncle Ben: I don't mean to lecture, and I don't mean to preach, and I know I'm not your father-
Peter Parker: THEN STOP PRETENDING TO BE!
............
Ben Parker: Right... I'll pick you up here at 10.
This is one of the best scenes in the entire movie, and it isn't just because it has the iconic "With Great Power comes Great Responsibility" quote. Tobey Maguire and Cliff Roberton perform well, and it's also a character driven scene that prompts Peter's personal growth. The filmmakers do a masterful job at conveying Peter's flaws and imperfections because Uncle Ben is trying to sit down and have a heart to heart conversation with Peter because of his recent unusual behaviour. Peter, in response, is unwilling to cooperate. He doesn't want to have this conversation at this time because he's so focused on winning money for his own personal gain. Ben tells Peter that they need to talk right now because they haven't talked for so long that Ben and May don't think they know who Peter is anymore. Ben brings up how Peter has recently been behaving irresponsibly in that he has neglected his chores, done bizarre experiments in his rooms and "start fights" in school. Peter, in response, gets defensive and angry, telling Ben that he never started that fight with Flash Thompson. Ben makes a remark about the humiliating fashion Peter ended that fight, Peter asks "What I was supposed to do? Run away?" because he is sick and tired of being pushed around by people. Ben says no, but struggles to tell Peter what he should have done in that fight and digresses into a lecture, saying "Pete, look, you're changing, I know, I went through exactly the same thing when I was at your age." Peter shrugs it off, saying "No, not exactly..." because Ben never got superpowers at any point in his life. Ben gives Peter a lecture about power and responsibility, emphasises to Peter that he is in the stage of his life when a man becomes the man he'll be for the rest of his life, and advises him to be careful who he changes into, and says the iconic "with Great Power, comes Great Responsibility."
Peter in response, completely misses the point. He doesn't understand what Ben is trying to tell him because he has this misguided notion that Ben is afraid that Peter will become a criminal. Peter aggressively tells Ben to back off because he wants to figure things out on his own, and begs Ben to stop lecturing. Ben slowly backs off and apologises, saying that he doesn't mean to lecture or preach, and that he knows he's not Peter's father, but before Ben can finish speaking, Peter snaps at Ben, demanding Ben to stop pretending to be his father. There is a brief moment of silence, and Uncle Ben says he'll pick Peter up later.
Peter is a jerk in this scene. The last thing he says to Ben is the one of the most cruel and hurtful things that any father figure could ever hear. However, I think this is great in the context of the movie, not just because it prompts Peter's character arc, it also illustrates Peter imperfections. He's not depicted as a goody two shoes that never does anything wrong. He has a chip on his shoulder. He has feelings of anger and frustration that he exudes to his Uncle, and eventually snaps in an attempt to get his Uncle to back off, but takes it too far. And to be fair, Peter does regret snapping at Ben, which is conspicuously conveyed by Tobey Maguire's facial expressions and body language in the scene itself. This is reinforced later on by this scene:
Peter Parker: I miss him a lot today.May Parker: I know. I miss him too. But he was there.
Peter Parker: I can't help thinking about the last thing I said to him. He tried to tell me something important and I threw it in his face.
May Parker: You loved him, and he loved you. He never doubted the man you'd grow into. How you were meant for great things. You won't disappoint him.
Peter graduates from high school and sits in his room to think about what he said to Uncle Ben in the car, and cries because he has just had his high school graduation, a hugely significant event that Uncle Ben would have definitely attended, but couldn't because he's dead, all because Peter allowed a mugger to get away from the law, despite having all the power to stop that mugger. And what makes this worse is their conversation in the car; Peter can't help but think about the last thing he said to Ben in the car, Ben was trying to tell Peter something important and Peter "threw it in his face" which is more than enough proof for his guilt and regret for snapping at Ben in the car.
The rest of my analysis will be concluded in part 2.