Who doesn’t love “Spider-Man”? “Spider-Man” is arguably the most famous comic book character ever. Created by the legendary duo of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko in 1962, the character would go on to become the face of Marvel comics. The year 2000 saw the release of the first Spider-Man film, which was a massive success and paved the way for superhero franchises today. We are ranking all the Spider-Man movies, from the Sam Raimi ones to the MCU Spider-Man trilogy. Be noted that only films released in the 21st century will be ranked here.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)
“The Amazing Spider-Man” franchise wasn’t off to a great start with the mixed reaction to the first movie. Marc Webb tried to jumpstart the trilogy with the second movie, which sadly proved to be even worse than the first one. While the first movie had a simple story that suffered due to a lack of character development, “The Amazing Spider-Man” felt like it tried to do too much in too little time. The number of plotlines it has could be stretched into a 10-episode show. Ultimately, this led to plenty of unfinished plotlines and an unjustified final conflict that seemingly came out of nowhere—in short, a mess.
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
Sony tried to restart the Spider-Man saga after canceling a fourth movie with Sam Raimi. In “The Amazing Spider-Man,” it felt as if the studio was trying to fix all the complaints they received from the previous trilogy. It felt more like pandering than telling an emotional and personal story. The movie also features one of the weakest villains (Rhys Ifans) in a Spider-Man movie and a plot that was almost the same as “Spider-Man (2002)” with none of its charms. The only saving grace of “The Amazing Spider-Man” was the performance of Andrew Garfield and his chemistry with Emma Stone.
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
“Spider-Man 3” was the last Spider-Man movie directed by Sam Raimi. There were plans for a fourth installment in the franchise before the studio scrapped it after the mixed reception of the third film. Raimi would later go on to describe the studio interference during the production of the film and how it stopped him from fulfilling his vision for the film. The said studio interference was visible in how the movie turned out to be. In a way, “Spider-Man 3” made the same mistakes “The Amazing Spider-Man 2” did; they tried to do too much. For starters, there were more or less three villains in the film, and on top of that, Peter had a fling (kind of) with Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard), who was purely a side character without any depth whatsoever. The movie is also criticized for its poorly aged CGI and a script that, to put it lightly, is “messy.”
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
This Jon Watts-directed sequel to “Spider-Man: Homecoming” was in no way a bad movie. The fact that it is ranked so low shows the quality of the movies that are above it. This movie is a blast and is a perfect example of a fun, lighthearted film that caters to all kinds of audiences. The performances all around were great, especially those of Tom Holland and Jake Gyllenhaal as Mysterio. The movie also has stunning action scenes, especially a scene midway through the film that has some of the most stunning and creative CGI work in recent years. “Spider-Man: Far From Home” is essentially a high school rom-com with superhero elements. The movie managed to perfectly portray the classic dilemma of Spider-Man, where he has to choose between his responsibility as a superhero and his relationships and a normal life.
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
After being introduced to the MCU as a surprise package in “Captain America: Civil War,” fans were eagerly waiting for a Spider-Man movie set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. “Spider-Man: Homecoming” was a fresh take on the character, with Peter Parker looking like a teenager for a change as Tom Holland was only 21 at the time of the movie’s release. It is also much more lighthearted and fun than the previous Spider-Man films. “Spider-Man: Homecoming” was able to perfectly portray the teenage aspect of the character, where he has to balance between his high school duties and being a superhero, which the previous movies mostly skipped over. Tom Holland proves his acting chops here as he perfectly portrays the character’s naivety and innocence.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” was arguably the biggest event in Marvel Phase 4. The movie is essentially fan service done right. “Spider-Man: No Way Home” brings back both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s versions of Spider-Man, thereby granting the wish of every Spider-Man fan. The movie is full of great moments of callbacks to the previous trilogies, including a few of the villains that appeared in the previous movies, such as Doc Ock, Green Goblin, and Sandman, among others. That being said, the movie isn’t just nostalgia bait; “Spider-Man: No Way Home” might just have the darkest story in the trilogy. The movie also features a poignant conclusion that finds Peter Parker in a unique situation with a ton of potential for interesting and unique storylines in the future. Plus, the joy of seeing all three Spider-Men hang out together and fight evil side by side is an experience to be cherished.
Spider-Man (2002)
“Spider-Man (2002)” saw Tobey Maguire as the nerdy teen Peter Parker before he gets bitten by a spider and eventually becomes Spider-Man. “Spider-Man” achieved something way back in 2002 that movies have been trying to replicate since. It is the perfect introduction to a character. “Spider-Man” had a relatively down-to-earth story about a struggling and naive teenager learning to become a selfless superhero. Even though it is essentially a superhero movie, it seldom feels like one. The story here is intimate and personal, and the characters are so well-written that it’s difficult not to take them seriously. Tobey Maguire knocked it out of the park here, along with Willem Dafoe, who was absolutely menacing as the Green Goblin. The movie also features some brilliant in-camera action scenes with minimal CGI, great direction, and a powerful score that is sure to stay with you for a while. “Spider-Man” stands as a perfect example of a great superhero movie and is one of the pioneers of the genre.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” was a surprise hit on its release. Sony has been messing up with their Spider-Man movies ever since “Spider-Man 3” back in 2007. So, the expectations weren’t that high when it was announced that they would be bringing Miles Morales’s character to an animated film. But boy, did they bring it with this movie! “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is a complete blast of a film. A lot is happening here with various versions of Spider-people making appearances. The movie also looks more like a comic book than any other film before, with an animation style that feels so much like a comic book, with yellow boxes representing the thoughts of a character and loud noises represented in text boxes, and so on. Even with the abundance of characters and storylines, the movie manages to hold them together, mostly with the help of humour, which the movie has a lot of. However, the movie shines best in the way it manages the emotional arc of Miles Morales’s character. His character is so well perceived here, with the classic struggles of Spider-Man along with a few unique ones of his own. The movie does a great job of portraying the difficulties of adapting to newly found abilities and the resultant confusion that ensues. With stunning direction, great action sequences, and jaw-dropping visuals tied together by a heartfelt story with strong characters, “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” is one of the best Spider-Man movies to date.
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
“Spider-Man 2” is not a superhero movie. It is a personal drama and a character study of Peter Parker. This film shows Peter at his lowest. He has a hard time balancing his regular life while being a superhero. Peter also struggles in his friendship with Harry while failing to be there for MJ. His grades are going down, and on top of that, he has money problems; he even temporarily loses his powers. The movie does a very good job of fleshing out all of the characters. Harry, MJ, and the brilliant Alfred Molina as Doc Ock—all these characters are given a lot of depth and room to grow. This makes the crazy action sequences even more captivating, as the audiences are heavily invested in these characters. “Spider-man 2” also has some unbelievable action sequences, namely the bank scene and the jaw-dropping train sequence. Alfred Molina is one of the bright spots in the movie. His character, Doctor Otto Octavius, is one of the best Spider-Man villains ever put on screen. His character is so well-written that you feel pity for him despite him being the villain of the movie. The ending of “Spider-Man 2” is heartwarming; as an audience, you feel relieved for and happy for Peter’s character when he has something going for him at the end of the film. While “Spider-Man 2” may not be the most action-packed movie or the funniest for that matter, it stands tall as arguably the best-written superhero film ever with an intimate portrayal of the beloved character.
