Spider-Man 2 (2004) Review

Next in my Spider-Man Review series comes Spider-Man 2 and I re-watched it today and here is my review for it. The premise of the film is set 2 years after the first and sees Peter Parker struggling in balancing his life when a new threat comes to New York. 

Main Character

Tobey Maguire is great as both Peter Parker & Spider-Man. I actually think he is better in this film then he was in the original, his character goes through a real arc as both Parker and Spider-Man and that can sometimes be a real difficult thing to balance in a film like this. He is still to this day known for his portrayal of the character and that is due to his great work, I think especially in this film. 

Supporting Characters 

Alfred Molina plays Dr Otto Octavius and he is fabulous in this film, as Doctor Octopus he is one of the better comic book villains we have seen on screen. He also has a real character arc and Molina really cares about this performance which ranks him up and easily raises this overall film higher up. James Franco gets a bigger role in the film and I actually liked the way the film took Harry Osbourne, his lust to get revenge on Spider-Man is well handled and saw him through his own story in the film. Kirsten Dunst is back as MJ and again I thought she was fine, I felt like the dynamic between her and Maguire was better in this film and I thought she was better written though not perfect and I will give her the benefit of the doubt here. A real scene stealer is JK Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson, they give him more to do in this film and he is amazing, I couldn't stop laughing watching him and as I said in my previous review he is one of the best castings ever made. 

Story   

The story is really effective in this film and that is because it takes more care with its characters and focuses less on the whole relationship dynamic on the film. It balances Spider-Man & Peter Parker really well and characters like Harry & Doc Ock are really given interesting arcs that get you invested in the film. It balances the narrative well and I really was invested in pretty much everything, even the not amazing romance. 

Script 

The script is also better in this film, it isn't as cheesy as the previous. The drama is interesting, with the characters written better. I also found myself laughing more watching this film and that is a credit on the balance that is achieved with this film. 

Style 

The action scenes are really great, I mean the train sequence alone is one of the greatest comic book action sequences ever made. Seeing Doctor Octopus and Spider-Man clash is really exciting and feels completely different from the action scenes in the previous film. But this film has one issue and that is with tone, it is a bit all over the place, with dark moments and really cheesy moments. It isn't the biggest issue in the world but it is here and holds it back from getting my top score. 

Overall

Overall, Spider-Man 2 is a fantastic film. It raises the stakes and delivers on a great superhero action film that should be seen. 

Rating - 9/10