Spider-Man 2, released in 2004 and heralded as one of “the best screen adaptations of comic book heroes,” won consistently favorable reviews among critics and fans alike (Steve Persall, Tampa Bay Times). Tobey McGuire plays Spider-Man (Peter Parker), perfectly capturing the charming high-school outcast while humorously embodying the unique struggle of balancing school, work, and saving New York. The original comic writer, Stan Lee, designed the character of Spider-Man in 1962 to fill a gap in comics; despite the child and teenage audience, most superheroes were adults. Peter Parker, with all his school struggles, became wildly popular for his relatable charm. Spider-Man 2 captures this same unique spirit of adventure and reality that make it so easy to like and connect to Peter Parker.
Unfortunately, the “fresh” ratings of Rotten Tomatoes turn sour for the third and final episode of this Spider-Man franchise. Spider-Man 3, released in 2007, loses sight of McGuire’s charm and bombards the story with seemingly random villains. Spider-Man 2 scores 93% on rotten tomatoes while Spider-Man 3 receives a mere 63%, and even that seems high to me. The second in a reboot of the Spider-Man movie series, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, released in 2014 and starring Andrew Garfield, echoes the failings of Spider-Man 3 in its oversaturation of villains and plot twists. Both Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 stray away from Stan Lee’s original charming character, prescribing too much to this overused notion of bigger is better.
Spider-Man 3, the final film of the original franchise, is comical—only sometimes on purpose—for its over-the-top nature. Spider-Man must fight Green Goblin and the Sandman, all the while being partially possessed by an evil symbiotic suit (Venom). If you know anything about Spider-Man, you probably know that a key part of his character revolves around his Uncle Ben’s death, which always occurs near the beginning of the story and influences him as a character from then on out (spoilers!). Well, Spider-Man 3 has the audacity to create a retroactive continuity (ret-con) that changes the identity of Uncle Ben’s killer from a burglar that Peter failed to stop to the Sandman. Peter could have stopped the thief before he committed a worse crime, but he didn’t, so he dedicates the first two movies to saving people, driven by his uncles words: “with great power comes great responsibility.” Spider-Man 3 ruins the notion that Peter was in some way responsible for his uncle’s death, thus partly invalidating the personal meaning that quote has to Peter.
Some of Spider-Man 3’s shortcomings can be attributed to the issues it has during production. The director, Sam Raimi, had some disagreements with the studio (Sony), which insisted he add the popular Spider-Man villain, Venom. This symbiotic suit latches onto Peter and turns the lovable, puppy-eyed Parker into a manufactured pseudo-emo that results in some pretty laughable dance montages. Mixing three villains with overlapping plots while manipulating Peter’s lovable qualities made the final film of the franchise a sheer disappointment. Raimi shares some of the blame, but the studio’s cash-grab mentality to insert a misplaced but more marketable character in the film is a grim foreshadowing of how some future superhero films would fall short. They don’t lack in characters, but an oversaturation of ideas does not create a spectacle, it only bombards the audience and de-emphasizes the importance and value of any one character.
Unfortunately, Sony didn’t learn from their first mistake, and they re-booted the franchise, this time starring an effortlessly cool Andrew Garfield. This casting is my first issue with this film. Garfield lacks the original appeal of the Peter Parker who is down on his luck and bullied at school. Garfield’s Peter already seems cool with his swishy hair and skateboard, giving him a different, less sympathetic charm. With this new, hip, Peter aside, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was again oversaturated with villains. Spider-Man has to fight Electro, The Green Goblin (again), and The Rhino, while numerous other characters appear in cameo for the sole purpose of setting up future films. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 also manufactures a strange conspiracy theory surrounding the death of Peter’s parents, and Uncle Ben’s iconic line in this franchise is butchered into “[Peter’s father] believed if you could do good things for other people, you had a moral obligation to do those things.” I think out of all the shortcomings of this film, mutilating Uncle Ben’s famous and eloquent line into an angry stutter is perhaps the worst failure.
Both Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 prove that bigger is not better, and most of the time it’s worse. Part of the problem is that Sony tried to milk a character for all it’s worth, and even tried again when their first attempt started to derail. After the first two films in the original Spider-Man franchise, Sony committed the fatal mistake of trying to make it larger than life. A relatable high school kid wasn’t enough anymore; the studio needed higher stakes and more characters to market into their own film franchises. However, this isn’t what audiences want. Intense action sequences are cool and exciting to watch, but if the film lacks humanity—real human connection—then it’s uninspiring and forgettable. People crave connection, and the real way these studios could succeed is not by making it bigger, but bringing the story back to the character behind the superhero. In some of the newest superhero films, such as the Avengers series, the entire world is sometimes at stake, but it’s hard for humans to comprehend destruction on that level, so instead of making the solution more crucial and dire, people lose interest. You can’t cover-up poor character development with action sequences, and I hope the newest reboot film of Spider-Man—Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)—remembers this.
3,994 Comments
I was pleasantly surprised by your critique. I normally find reviews of major movies disappointing or inaccessible. However, your work was neither of these things. You manage to weave together plot and interpretation successfully, taking me (the reader) through your thought process without going off on tangents.
I also liked how your argument is “expandable” to other movies. Even though I know nothing about comic books, I remember really enjoying the first Toby McGuire Spiderman and then losing interest in the series as it continued to evolve. You were able to name many of the reasons for this. Good work!
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Subverting expectations: You start by acknowledging how you typically find movie reviews disappointing, making your praise for this one even more impactful.
Accessibility and Engagement: You point out how the critique avoids common pitfalls by being accessible and engaging. It effectively weaves together plot and interpretation, allowing you to follow the writer’s thought process without getting lost.
Appreciating the Broader Scope: You commend the writer for crafting an argument that can be “expandable” to other movies. This highlights the insightful nature of the critique and its potential for broader application.
Personal Connection: Sharing your experience with the Spiderman series adds a personal touch and demonstrates how the critique’s observations resonate with your own experiences. This strengthens the impact of your comment.
Overall, your comment is well-written and insightful. It effectively communicates what makes the critique successful and encourages the writer to keep creating engaging and thought-provoking analyses.
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I really enjoyed this. I think you were able to really distinguish between the likable aspects of early Spiderman and the unlikable parts of the new franchise and Spider Man 3. I think this is valuable not only for dissecting Spider Man, but the superhero genre as a whole, which has been so successful since Iron Man. I think your points about over complicated plots and actor choices ring true to the recent failures of DC to produce a decent movie. This is a great analysis that shows the formula Marvel uses so effectively to make tons of money.
This review hit very close to home for me, as I actually loved Spiderman 3 when I first saw it in theaters (whew, that was hard to get off my chest; I agree with you now that the movie is terrible). By the time the reboot Amazing Spider Man was in the works, I had already come around, and had high hopes for the new version. But, as you discuss, this reboot seemed to have learned nothing from the previous trilogy’s mistakes (except to avoid cheesy dance sequences, thank god). I absolutely agree that it is the heart and soul of action films that lends them their power–not just fancy special effects and explosions. But I do think the argument could be made that these films try to reach those emotional depths, only failing to do so because of bad writing and poor focus. For example, in the final battle of Amazing Spiderman 2, Gwen Stacy is killed in what is supposed to be a heartbreaking moment, but after such a messy narrative, the emotion just doesn’t shine through. Failures like this disappoint me because I believe that superheroes are important cultural icons, as much today as when Captain America famously socked Hitler in the jaw. Let’s hope that history stops repeating itself and our superheroes reclaim their value. Like you, I’ll be watching nervously in 2017.
I loved this review! I, too, am a Marvel nerd, so when I saw this headline and Tobey’s goofy face, of course I had to read it. Spiderman was always one of my favorites. My dad got me into comics, and he loved Peter Parker, because like him, my dad was a nerdy high schooler who could relate to Peter more than he could relate to the charming billionaire Tony Stark, Like you, and most of the Marvel fan base, I was disappointed by Spider Man 3 for the same reasons. It ruined Spider Man for me. Who was this suave guy, wooing Mary Jane. No! He should be awkward, stuttering, slowly finding himself as he learns about his powers. Also, it seems that every movie they just try to tack on more and more villains. They become more and more unstoppable. It’s getting ridiculous.
Well, I am very excited for Homecoming. I thought Tom Holland was great in Civil War, and I am excited to see him in his own movie. He reminds me of a young Tobey AH.
Ok, I got off topic. Anyway, great review. One of the things that I love about Marvel is it’s deep and and expansive universe. I think you explore this very well here. There is something extremely relatable about Peter Parker, it’s why people love him. So while you may just be critiquing a superhero movie, you’re discussing so much more.
I’ve always wanted to read something like this because I also did not like the Amazing Spider Man 1,2 and Reimi’s Spider Man 3! Personally, I thought the Amazing series were worse then Reimi’s third Spider Man.
As I was reading your critique, I thought to myself about the difference between a fun movie and a good movie. I enjoyed all five movies. Honestly, I had fun watching the second Amazing spider man though I did not think it was good. I really love (and think good of) the first two Spider Man series. I watched them many times and found something new every time I watched it; they were ‘good.’
When my friend asked me whether I had fun with the Amazing Spider Man 2, I answered I did. I said it was a fun movie to watch because it obviously has bigger and advanced scale or skills; in a way, it is everything commercial. However, they are never good. As I was reading your critique, I thought about how bigger things could be fun but not good. At the same time, commercial Hollywood movies make movies that sell to its audience; are audience becoming more thirsty for bigger explosions and better effects rather than for ‘quality’ movies?
I really enjoyed your piece, thank you!
Really enjoy it. Thanks. Yola
Anna —
Look at all the comments your post inspired. That’s a good sign that you are channeling your inner Anthony Lane (the funniest of the current New Yorker film reviewers). I take the underlying theme of your review to be: ” if the film lacks humanity—real human connection—then it’s uninspiring and forgettable.” This notion of character development and what it means in the particular case of Spider Man might be worth spending just a bit more time with. How is the fact that Peter Parker is a bullied teen the hinge upon which all portrayals of Spider Man must turn? Why is that the secret element to this film in particular as compared to the broader point about character portrayal being more crucial than action or even plot perhaps, which is true, but not as within the web (ugh, sorry, couldn’t resist) of Spider Man in particular as a character.
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