Film Spider-Man 2
Looking back, I've realized that most of my love and nostalgia for the original films can be found in this movie. And I can easily say that this is still my favorite Spider-Man film and still one of my favorite superhero films of all time.
This may also be one of the most human superhero films of all time. Essentially, the entire movie makes you connect with Peter Parker and his struggles and emotional turmoil. You root for him, cheer when he succeeds, mourn when he's heartbroken. The tragedies he faces, however, make his victories all the more sweeter.
Doc Ock, of course, is an amazing villain. Aside from looking cool and providing some awesome fight scenes, he also happens to have believable emotional turmoil of his own. Which turns out to be very relevant in the end.
Then there's the action. This movie is where the action really picked up steam. Although the movie takes some time to get moving, and the effects are somewhat dated (being over a decade old and all), the choreography is pretty tight and fluid, and say no more about the Traintop Battle... which is still one of my favorite fight scenes ever. And this was released in 2004.
Also great humor. Mostly from Jonah Jameson. Yup. He had one of the funniest moments ever. Sure, the movie can be corny at times, but really, that's a part of what Spider-Man is. I can easily look past that.
The most touching part of the movie, however, is really the message. When Peter's down on himself, Aunt May delivers it so simply, and yet so sweetly. The simplicity of her description of what a hero really is makes it timeless.
So... yeah. Good movie. Great movie. Amazing movie. Personally, I consider this film a masterpiece. If you haven't seen it yet, watch it!note
Film “I will not die a monster”
I have said before that my favourite SpiderMan movie is SpiderMan1 and that remains the case. I’m not one of the people who thinks this was an even better sequel that said it was still quite good.
I find that Mary-Jane Watson becomes unintentionally unsympathetic in SpiderMan2 after she chooses to leave her fiancé at the altar even though he seemed to be a decent enough chap. It just seems like if she were going to go back to Peter she should have said that to her betrothed anytime before the actual wedding was taking place instead of becoming a runaway bride. Also Peter losing his powers, though well-done seems slightly contrived.
That said, there are a lot of great things about this movie. Doctor Octopus is a compelling villain with an understandable motivation and his arc in the film is a good one. He doesn’t have as much of a prior connection to Peter as the Green Goblin did but Alfred Molina does a great job of portraying him to the point where that can be overlooked.
I like how this film sets up Harry Osborne’s descent into villainy when he conspires with Doc Oc to kill SpiderMan and avenge his father’s death.
J. Jonah Jameson’s near Heel–Face Turn is a wonderfully engaging one and he’s an entertaining character.
I also love how this movie emphasizes the human cost with which Peter is burdened by his heroism. And he could hardly be easier to sympathize with when he confesses to fact Uncle Ben’s death is his fault to Aunt May and she recoils in response. And I can’t even blame her for her reaction. So Both Sides Have a Point.
I like how Peter’s conscience is represented by Uncle Ben. And I like Doc Oc’s Final Scene “I will not die a monster”. I even like how Harry learns Peter’s secret identity setting the stage for the his seeking vengeance in the sequel SpiderMan3.
So all in all, I think this film is quite good. Do I think it surpassed SpiderMan1? No, I don’t. Do I think it’s a great movie? Yes