Sam Rami's second installment in his iconic Spiderman Trilogy remains the best of those 3 movies and one of the greatest superhero films ever made. The reason for this is its ability to tell a very human story even with all the special effects and action.
Set 2 years after the first film, the film throws us into Peter Parker's heroic life as Spiderman and his struggle to balance that with his personal life. These personal problems are further strained by the fact that the love of his life Mary Jane Watson is now engaged to someone else. At the same time, one of Peter's scientific Idols Otto Octavius becomes the villainous Doctor Octopus and Peter must set aside his wants and be the hero the city needs.
Spiderman 2 takes a unique approach to exploring how much it would suck to be a superhero. The first act of the film throws Peter's misery in your face as he struggles to balance his superhero life with his personal life. He shows up late to class, is frequently hassled for rent money at his apartment, and his freelance work at the bugle involves giving pictures of himself away to help his boss paint him as a bad guy. The real tragedy though is the love of his life Mary Jane is engaged to someone else. This is due to Peter's choice at the end of the first film to not pursue a relationship with her because if his enemies found out about her she would be put in danger. All this begs the question, why would anyone want to be Spiderman? and the answer is they wouldn't. Peter didn't become a superhero because he wanted to, but because he saw the cost of what happens when he didn't take responsibility for those powers in the form of his Uncle's death. This made his mission as Spiderman penance for that mistake. When Peter's powers start to fade, it's made clear that all these pent-up feelings are causing a psychological block. Peter at first sees this as a blessing of taking the weight off his shoulders and seems to be enjoying life without having to be Spiderman. But even then something feels off, esspisally in the scene where Peter passes a man getting mugged, and he has an uncomfortable look on his face. There's also a great scene where Peter sees a burning building and even without his powers, still chooses to go inside to rescue a little girl left behind. It's a harrowing sequence as we know Peter with his powers can easily handle this, but without them here, we know he is in real danger and makes his actions here all the more heroic. After rescuing the kid, he overhears the firemen talking about someone else not being able to make it out, and Peter knows he could have saved that person if he were Spiderman.
In recent years, I have come to interpret these scenes of Peter without his powers as necessary to his character. When Peter gives up his role as Spiderman, it's the right choice in a roundabout way. It helps him realize how important it is to stay being Spiderman for the city and himself. None of this would work without Tobey Maguire's honest performance. Throughout the film, you never see him explode in frustration at how much his life sucks. It's mostly through subtle cues and mannerisms, but you can physically tell how much of a toll it's taking on Peter. This is why Tobey is still the best Spiderman for me.
Of course, what is a hero without a villain? That villain comes in the form of Otto Octavius AKA Doctor Octopus, played brilliantly by Alfred Molina. Otto's development into a villain is a reflection of what Peter goes through in the movie. Otto starts as Peter's role model in the scientific field with his groundbreaking work, and Otto is made very likable due to his selflessness and belief that science is to be used for the greater good. This does hide a slight ego problem as he is confident in his experiment despite Peter's concern about the potential dangers. When the experiment goes wrong, the AI in his robotic arms pleads to this egotistical side to continue. This desire to see his project through regardless of consequences is similar to Peter's desire to get what he wants. This all ties together in the climax where Peter imparts the wisdom he has learned to Otto. "Sometimes we have to be steady and give up the things we want the most, even our dreams". This re-ignites Otto's humanity and allows him to see his mistakes, and is even ready to die for them.
The special effects and action sequences are also a big step up from the first film. The way Doc Ock's robotic arms were brought to life was through a mix of practical and computer effects, and this made the movement of his arms look very natural. Even today it still looks impressive. The action sequences are also thrilling with the highlight coming in the form of Spiderman's fight with Doc Ock on the train. The creative ways the two trade blows with each other to the scene where Spiderman uses all of his strength to stop the train from derailing make this still one of the best action sequences you'll ever see. Despite the mature story and action, this film still finds a way to have some great comedy. It's probably the funniest of the Rami Spiderman Films which have all always had good humor. Speaking of the humor, I'd be a fool not to mention JK Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson, who was great in the first film but is even better here. Every time he is on screen it is such a joy to watch.
Spiderman 2 is still a high point of the genre 20 years later. It is everything a superhero film and summer blockbuster should be, but so often are not.
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