7. Spider-Man 2 (2004) (Christopher Diggins)

Why I Love It: The year was 2004. It would be four years before the one-two punch that was Iron Man and The Dark Knight opened our eyes to everything superhero movies could be. Back then, nobody had quite figured out the formula yet. It’s not that pre-2008 superhero movies were bad, mind you. But they were self-consciously weird, seemingly always aware that superheroes are kind of silly and shouldn’t be taken seriously. Still, as much as I love both the fun action and gritty realism that modern comic book adaptations have been able to harness, that kind of wonderfully cheesy camp is a part of the heritage of superheroes. And almost as if it knew that the end of this era was coming, 2004 decided to gift us with the crown jewel of campy superhero movies, a film that embodied everything this vision of superheroes got right: Spider-Man 2.

It’s easy to forget now how popular the old Sam Raimi Spider-Man movies used to be, but they were once considered the pinnacle of superhero movies. Even now, it’s not hard to see why. Raimi brings his trademark camp, playing up both the drama and the action to absurd heights. The end result is actually remarkably funny; Spider-Man may not quip like he does in the comics, but there’s more than enough slapstick and great lines to keep you laughing (if you don’t think that “Hey, he stole that guy’s pizzas!” is a fantastic joke, then I don’t know what to tell you). But more than any of that, Raimi understands Spider-Man in a way that no other filmmaker has. Because Spider-Man 2 is all about the daily grind of being a hero, all the little compromises Peter Parker has to make to live up to his great responsibility. Not just the huge stuff, like being with Mary-Jane, but everything suffers: he falls behind on his schoolwork, can’t hold down a job, constantly disappoints his friends, all so he can save a city where half the people think he’s a deranged crook. That’s the real Spider-Man right there, and no other superhero movie brings that idea to life quite so well.

Sure, there’s plenty of problems with Spider-Man 2. A lot of the effects don’t hold up too well, it often descends into melodrama, the romance between Peter and MJ is pretty awkward, and some of the plot is honestly kind of dumb. But there’s so much heart behind it all, so much love for the character and his world, that it’s easy to forgive. So yeah, the Marvel Cinematic Universe may have revolutionized superhero movies and brought countless Marvel heroes to the big screen. And given their track record, I’m certainly interested to see what their version of Spider-Man is like in the upcoming Civil War. But I’m not sure even Marvel themselves can put together a better version of the character than we got in Spider-Man 2, and that’s saying a lot.

(And besides, J.K. Simmons is the most perfect J. Jonah Jameson ever conceived. Why does anyone bother hiring anyone else?)

Favorite Line: Aunt May’s speech to Peter

Okay, so it’s an unbelievably corny speech, and it’s kind of silly that Aunt May would just happen to give this big speech that perfectly applies to Peter’s exact situation. But that’s exactly the kind of corny silliness that the whole movie is thriving off of, and it just works. Aunt May is telling us, directly and sincerely, why Spider-Man is important, how much he affects the lives of others. If you can check your cynicism and just appreciate the sentiment for what it is, it’s a truly wonderful moment, and one that gets at the heart of everything Spider-Man (and his movies) should be.

Favorite Scene: The train fight with Doctor Octopus

This is THE action set-piece of the movie, and boy does it show. The fighting is perfectly choreographed, as Spider-Man and Doc Ock duke it out on top of a train while swinging and clawing their way around. Just as things start to get stale, they mix it up by involving the civilians, first by having Ock throw a couple into the air, then by having him send the train careening towards the ocean. Spider-Man is always at his best when he’s protecting the people of New York, and seeing him give his all to save these people’s lives really brings home everything the movie is trying to say about who Spidey is. And I didn’t even talk about Doc Ock himself before now! There’s a lot to praise, but suffice it to say that Alfred Molina is a great actor, and he puts in a great performance.

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