In Sam Raimi's Spider-Man (2002), there's a scene where Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) slips in the cafeteria and sends her tray of food flying. In an instant, Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) jumps up, catches MJ in one arm and the tray of food with the other. "Excellent reflexes," MJ says.
Nope, that wasn't CGI—just pure commitment. According to special effects lead John Dykstra in a DVD bonus feature, that was a demonstration of Tobey Maguire's terrific hand-eye coordination. And it only took… 156 takes to get it right.
From Screenrant:
Kirsten Dunst confirmed this and added that they used sticky glue so Tobey's hand would stick to the tray and he could catch the items without a problem. Of course, things like the jello and the sandwich were glued to their plates, so all Tobey had to do was catch them all, which is obviously easier said than done. Surprisingly, Sony wanted to cut the scene, but changed their mind after Raimi insisted on keeping it, as it required a 16 hour-day of shooting.
