Spider-Man 2 brings back everything we loved about the first movie while also including some deeper themes and more challenges for our hero to face. Comic book movies were still a relatively new thing for cinema and they were getting off to a good start with movies like The X-Men films, The Incredibles, and of course Sam Rami’s Spider-Man. Even though the original Spider-Man movie is still a well made superhero film, this well put together and superior sequel set a new bar for the franchise as well as superhero movies all together.
Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Things have been for him tough as he has to balance his everyday life of a superhero as well as his life of being a normal college kid. It only gets worse when his relationships start to falter weather its trying to be with Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst) or making amends with Harry Osborne (James Franco) who tries to hunt down Spider-Man who he believes killed his father. Meanwhile a brillant scinetist named Otto Octaivs (Alfred Molina) gets involved in a scientific acident with his robot arms and it leads to him becoming Doctor Octopus as he tries to finish what he started by creating an energy force that is almost like the power of the sun in an abandoned boathouse.
The story still manages to keep the same over the top action packed campiness like before but it also incorporates some very interesting subjects that are very thought provoking and deeply meaningful. The movie is clever in diving deep into Peter’s struggles and a lot of the moments we are ment to feel bad for him are effectively well handled without being to sappy. Sam Rami’s passionate directing is once again visible as he clearly understands the makings of a comic book movie while adding his own unique flare to the Spider-Man source material. The movie still carries the silliness and campiness as last time but it is expertly balanced with just as much seriousness so the characters dilemmas can be brought into the forefront.
The characters still maintain the likeable charm while also being given more depth to make them more interesting than ever. Spider-Man (AKA Peter Parker) has to face new challenges with living a double life of being Spider-man or not being Spider-man. I really like how well they establish how his difficulties of living in a double life as well as his struggle to keep his powers alive. Dr Octopus is an awesome villain and he practically steals the show for me anytime he’s on screen. Not only is his performance so fun to watch but there is also a bit of a tragedy to his charcter that makes him more than just your typical one note villain. Mary Jane poses the biggest challange for Peter she has a decent character arc of being knid of a jerk to peter for him not being in her life. Admitally Mary Jane’s arc can get a little old very fast, but its still engaging none the less as we want to see her and Peter be together in the end.
The Cinematography still keeps the same comic book style as before while also experimenting more with the action and the use of CGI effects. Like before, we get some pretty shots of New York city and some more Spider Man swinging around the place. The effects that caught my attention were Dr Octo’s robo tentacles. The way they move is so mesmerizing and anytime the movie kicks into high gear action the tentacles can do some really awesome stuff. Speaking of which, the action is even better than before and it goes further with showing off some pretty immersive effects and a lot of edge of your seat madness. One of the best examples is the train scene which is one of the most if not the most iconic action scene in all of Spider-Man’s filming history. Sometimes the CGI can look a little fake but everything else is done so well that you don’t even care.
The Music is once again helmed by Danny Elfman. I don’t know if I can say too much about the score because it’s basically the same as last time but I will say that it helps keep to the tone of being action packed or down to earth when needed.
There is a reason why this movie is always talked about when it comes to Spider-Man’s film history. This movie is not only a great superhero movie, but it's a superhero movie that has clever character building and deep morals while also delivering on the campiness and action packed madness that we loved before. This is my second favorite Spider-Man movie after Into the Spider Verse and for good reason. Spider-Man has had its share of highs and lows, but trust me when i say that this movie is one of the highs in superhero filmmaking.
(Final Grade: A)