Those who were alert enough to follow the film conversation of the early 2000s may remember the painful turning point the medium reached in terms of visual effects. Many productions moved away from practical effects and relied heavily on CGI. Many audience members were bothered by the technological change, as the CGI effects came across as tacky and unrealistic. While Steven Spielberg may have used CGI carefully and skillfully in his 1993 film “Jurassic Park,” several films from the early 2000s demonstrated that overuse of CGI led to some really bad movies.
Some examples include 2001's “The Mummy Returns,” which featured a scary-looking CGI version of Dwayne Johnson, or 2002's “Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones,” which featured several animated characters and digital sets. And in 2002 Sam Raimi's “Spider-Man” was released, itself, in this writer's humble opinion, a mediocre movie with light CGI-based superhero action that critic Roger Ebert didn't like. “Spider-Man lands very softly when he jumps to the roof,” he wrote in his review, “bouncing too much like a ball.” “He looks like a video game character, not a person who has had an incredible experience.” In the early 2000s, there were a multitude of angry film nerds (I was among them) who decried Hollywood's overreliance on CGI and loved practical effects.
Ebert once interviewed Spielberg and the two had the opportunity to talk about the director's 2002 film “Minority Report,” which Ebert admired. Ebert explained to Spielberg the state of modern visual effects at the time, including how many filmmakers were moving further away from practical effects. Spielberg noted that he always wanted to film in practical settings and felt that the CGI in “Spider-Man” was actually very good. In particular, he enjoyed the film's luminous unreality and how it looked and felt like a colorful fantasy.
CGI in Spider-Man, Star Wars and 2002
Ebert told Spielberg that he received a lot of angry messages after the release of “Spider-Man.” The filmmakers of George Lucas' “Attack of the Clones” despise its gruesome digital images. Spielberg made it clear that he wasn't interested in creating entirely digital backgrounds for his live actors, at least not yet. Instead, he preferred practical settings because the actors could immerse themselves deeply in their characters while interacting with real physical things. In his own words:
“I love George's 'Star Wars: Episode II.' I thought it was a very talented film by George and they gave you ideas on how to play John Anderdon. [from ‘Minority Report’] Because we built your house with four walls and a roof; Every aspect is authentic. There he felt at home and gained insights into Anderton's behavior. “I rue the day when sets are in cyberspace instead of real life.”
Of course, Spielberg eventually became interested in digital cinema and in 2011 created a fully animated film called “The Adventures of Tintin” that used realistic motion capture for its characters. He took a similar approach with 2016's “The BFG” and 2018's “Ready Player One,” the latter of which was his worst film. In 2002, however, when CGI technology was not cutting-edge, the director thought it was best to avoid its excessive use.
Spielberg loved the unreality of Spider-Man
Spielberg really liked the somewhat choppy look of the CGI in Sam Raimi's “Spider-Man.” He understood that “Spider-Man” took place in a fictional world and its scenes were derived from colorful panels of a comic book. As such, it was appropriate that the animated characters not be heavy or realistic. Spielberg felt there had to be an element of realism, but it's okay if you can see the seams a little. As he explained to Ebert:
“Sometimes what I like most about 'Spider-Man' are the CGI effects that make Spider-Man's flight look like something out of a comic book. It really brought me back to all the Spider-Man comics I was reading. . “Sam Raimi was trying to achieve that comic book look, having the live-action shots of Tobey Maguire meet in the middle as much as the CGI of Spider-Man swinging around.”
The same could be said for the bland and unrealistic CGI of supposedly “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone,” released in 2001 and set in a fantasy world. It doesn't matter if a centaur seems shiny and unreal, because it is a magical creature, far from reality.
A generation later, Spielberg's approaches sound dated. Over the past 15 years, most of the big effects-based blockbusters have been shot against green screens, with actors interacting with tennis balls placed on sticks. Computer animation has, of course, improved, but an overreliance on digital effects has opened a whole new can of worms, including overworked visual effects artists and bidding wars. But that's a story for another time.
