From The Archives: SPIDER-MAN 2 Review; "A Groundbreaking, Epic Masterpiece...The Rare Perfect Sequel"

With so much talk about the previous Spider-Man movies following that big Spider-Man 3 casting news, we've decided to revisit Sam Raimi's classic Spider-Man 2! Find our review of the sequel right here...

Review Opinion

By JoshWilding - Oct 11, 2020 11:10 AM EST

Filed Under: Spider-Man 2

Released in theaters in 2004 as a follow-up to Sam Raimi's groundbreaking Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2 is a rarity. Why? It's a perfect sequel. The filmmaker clearly just gets Peter Parker, and while the character is definitely put through the wringer here, the fact he's motivated by guilt means we get to see a faithful, emotionally charged take on the wall-crawler that hits all the right notes.

With Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's work still serving as a basis for this world, the cheesier, sillier moments are easy to forgive, as are apparent leaps in logic or minor "plot holes" which would be put under the magnifying glass in a big way on Twitter and Reddit in 2020. Spider-Man 2 boasts a screenplay by Alvin Sargent (based on a story by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, and Michael Chabon), and as well as taking a deep dive into Peter's relationship with Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire), Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), Aunt May (Rosemary Harris), and Harry Osborn (James Franco), a great new bad guy is brought to the big screen courtesy of Alfred Molina's sinister Doctor Octopus.

The actor is excellent, and Doc Ock is an unhinged, terrific bad guy who serves as an undeniably worthy follow-up to Willem Dafoe's memorable Green Goblin. The returning cast members are great for the most part, though Franco appears to be phoning his performance in at points, with his best work coming nearer the end of the movie. Maguire and Dunst have a tonne of chemistry, though it's J.K. Simmons' J. Jonah Jameson who most often steals the show as The Daily Bugle's endlessly entertaining Editor-in-Chief.

A strong journey for Peter as he declares "Spider-Man, No More!" is bolstered by a compelling love story, Harry's desire for revenge, and Doctor Octopus' unforgettable battles with the web-slinger. While the transition from practical to visual effects are easier to spot today than they were in 2004, the VFX were groundbreaking at the time and still look spectacular now. The battle atop the train in phenomenal, and Danny Elfman's score compliments the action wonderfully. There are plenty of big laughs even if Maguire's Spidey doesn't drop as many wisecracks as his comic book counterpart, and everything about this feels like "classic" Spider-Man. Harry discovering his father's Green Goblin stash would make for a great post-credits scene these days, but serves as an incredible teaser here which we sadly know led to disappointment in Spider-Man 3.

Minor flaws aside (which only really crop up looking at the 2004 movie with a 2020 lens), Spider-Man 2 is a worthy follow-up to that first instalment, improving on it in many ways, and setting the stage for what should have been another amazing sequel a few years later. If Maguire's Spider-Man is indeed set to arrive in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as part of the "Multiverse," then it will be a real treat to spend more time with him - or any other character from this world, for that matter - as this classic take on the web-slinger holds up today and feels like a breath of fresh air in a world of crossovers, stories setting up the next big event, and modern reimaginings (there's not a Stark Suit in site, but we do get some superb Doctor Strange Easter Eggs).

A groundbreaking, epic masterpiece, Spider-Man 2 sees Sam Raimi continue to make great use of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko's classic stories to deliver the rare perfect sequel.

SPIDER-MAN 2: Hot Toys Action Figure Reveals Our Best Look Yet At Peter Parker's New Black Suit

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92 Comments

1 2 3

RohanPatel - 10/11/2020, 8:45 AM

THE GOAT CBM

soberchimera - 10/11/2020, 11:02 AM

@KingPatel -

Se4M4NSt4ine - 10/11/2020, 12:49 PM

@soberchimera -

tmp3 - 10/11/2020, 11:03 AM

GOAT Spidey film

soberchimera - 10/11/2020, 11:05 AM

@tmp3 -

bkmeijer2 - 10/11/2020, 11:25 AM

@soberchimera - I like how I scroll to the comments and see you laughing at GOAT cbm, but agreeing to GOAT Spider-Man. How specifics matter

TheWalkingCuban - 10/11/2020, 11:11 AM

Loved it, but can’t stand Tobey now. So whiny lookin

MCUKnight11 - 10/11/2020, 11:30 AM

@TheWalkingCuban - Yep. Also all of Dunst MJ.

TheManWithoutFear - 10/11/2020, 11:11 AM

Not sure why we're reviewing a film from 2004, but I'll play along.

Still the best Spidey film made. It's not even a close contest in my eyes. I wish the new franchise had one fifth the heart that this film has.

Doomsday8888 - 10/11/2020, 11:11 AM

ICONIC.

inkniron - 10/11/2020, 11:14 AM

It was a'ight. Never been a Toby fan though, so that takes it down a few pegs for me.

UXASIS - 10/11/2020, 11:19 AM

This week I watched First Class and Man of Steel after a looong time. Both are perfect origin movies. I wish we had more comic movies where you don't speak only english (First Class had German, French and Russian).

Also, the colours in Man of Steel were phenomenal. I wish we went back to having this kind instead of Harley and Aquaman.

bkmeijer2 - 10/11/2020, 11:30 AM

@DARKSIDEIS - First Class is a first class movie. I don't like Man of Steel that much, since it really has a lot of plotpoints that makes the overall story feel lacking in my opinion (the entire first 30 minutes can be omitted without really affecting the story in any significant way for example)

UXASIS - 10/11/2020, 11:36 AM

@bkmeijer - Yes, that may be true, but I still like the serious (not dark) tone it has. Perfect colour palette, action scenes (battle of Smallvile is still my favorite superhuman battle) and the casting of Kryptonians and even humans is superb.

I wish Faora would come back to fight Wonder Woman, just a dream tho.

bkmeijer2 - 10/11/2020, 12:28 PM

@DARKSIDEIS - Gotta agree with the cast though. Shannon as Zod was superb

AquaClunge - 10/11/2020, 2:11 PM

@DARKSIDEIS - 2 of my favourites origins!!

+ Batman Begins
+ Ironman
+ Spiderman 1
+ Blade
Those are my favourite origins of all time

Nerdman3000 - 10/11/2020, 11:19 AM

The best Spider-Man movie, hands down. Only Into the Spider-Verse and the first Raimi film come even close.

blitzburgh - 10/11/2020, 6:31 PM

@Nerdman3000 - man am I the only one that thought spider verse was completely overrated

ElJefe - 10/11/2020, 7:25 PM

@blitzburgh - Well, there’s me...and then you. So just two of us.

blitzburgh - 10/12/2020, 7:55 PM

@ElJefe - cool

bkmeijer2 - 10/11/2020, 11:31 AM

There isn't one thing I dislike about this movie, and because it does everything right it is my favorite Spider-Man movie (closely followed by Into the Spider-Verse)

MCUKnight11 - 10/11/2020, 11:32 AM

I like the movie but I think the Spiderman no more arc should've been saved for a later entry. Doing it in the first sequel made him go down in my estimation.

FinnishDude - 10/11/2020, 11:43 AM

@MCUKnight11 - It made sense for me. It was still relatively early in his days as Spider-Man, so he hadn't matured enough to to accept and deal with the personal sacrifices he has to make to be a superhero.

MCUKnight11 - 10/11/2020, 11:47 AM

@FinnishDude - When you put it that way, I could see how it would work.

THEDARKKNIGHT1939 - 10/11/2020, 11:32 AM

I'm a simple man, I see Sam Raimi Spider-Man, I click.

1 2 3

From The Archives: SPIDER-MAN 2 Review; "A Groundbreaking, Epic Masterpiece...The Rare Perfect Sequel"

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SPIDER-MAN 2: Hot Toys Action Figure Reveals Our Best Look Yet At Peter Parker's New Black Suit

Sam Raimi Discusses Sony Not Wanting Him To Direct SPIDER-MAN And The Heavy Backlash He Received From Fans

SPIDER-MAN 2 Concept Art Reveals Scrapped Designs For Dylan Baker's Transformation Into Lizard

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