17 years since it was released Spider-Man 2 is still an enthralling film to watch which pushed the Spider-Man franchise to new heights. Heart inducing action, an engaging villain and an emotional character arc, Spider-Man 2 can still be considered the best Spider-Man film made to date.
What makes Spider-Man 2 such a joy to watch is how perfectly they adapted the “Spider-Man No More” comic arc along with the fantastic performance by Tobey Maguire, Alfred Molina and the supporting cast. The conflict with Peter being Spider-Man was built up within the first thirty minutes of the film as he struggles to balance his social life, college and Spider-Man duties which caused him to lose everything and everyone he loves, his only choice was to stop being Spider-Man. All this conflict is then paid off in an emotionally satisfying way as Peter realises that he needs Spider-Man just as much as New York. Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus is quite easily one of the most underrated villains in cinema history; the struggle we see him go through from losing his wife and learning to adapt to the neurologically fused mechanical tentacles is a compelling one which is eventually paid off by him doing what is right.
Visually Spider-Man 2 still holds up to this day and the mechanical arms still look realistic when they are fused with Doctor Octopus, however the CGI is still at times a bit shaky in the film’s climax. The action sequences are the real highlight of this film where the train battle is still one of the best comic book action sequences ever made followed closely by the bank heist scene.
A well balanced story mixed with fantastic performances, stunning action sequences and a score that is bound to give you goosebumps. Spider-Man 2 has a legacy that will transcend through each generation of movie fans and will always be one of the greatest comic book films ever made.
9.0/10
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