A Scene from Spider-Man
Sunday, September 11. 2011
Spider-Man had the unfortunate timing to be the first major movie set in New York City after September 11, 2001. The iconic towers had been used as a large part of the early marketing for the movie, and were featured heavily in both the first teaser and the early poster, but these were quickly changed to honor the sensitivity of the issue. The towers were similarly removed from the movie itself, with a few exceptions. They do still appear in a couple of quick "flyby" backgrounds, as well as the above image from around the midpoint of the movie.
At this point in the story, Peter Parker has accepted his role as Spider-Man and is shown swinging among buildings, saving lives, stopping criminals, and so on while intercut scenes of news and "on the ground" reactions play out. Among the shots of Spidey is this view of him with the Trade Center reflected in his eye. He turns his head slightly in that direction, and leaps off-camera to finish the montage.
It had first appeared in a somewhat different context in the above-mentioned teaser, likely making it one of the first views of Spider-Man to be completed. It's an extremely brief shot, but the way that it's handled in the finished film - no dialogue, the glance (and subsequent travel) in that direction, and the overall composition of the shot - make it one of the best tributes I've seen in a film. Keeping it exactly as it appeared in the teaser with the slightly different framing let the filmmakers acknowledge what happened while staying classy.
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