Marvel’s Spider-Man is arguably the most popular superhero ever as his creative powers, unbridled optimism, and incredible heroism are mixed with the relatable vulnerability of young adult life. That has translated extremely well into his big screen adventures.
This perfect blend of the spectacular and the mundane is why Spider-Man has been dominating the box office since 2002’s Spider-Man. With No Way Home breaking several modern box office records, now’s the best time to look back on the franchise’s critical reception throughout the years through Rotten Tomatoes.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) – 51%
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With over $700 million at the box office worldwide, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 certainly made a lot of money, although not quite as much money as Sony would have liked. This was a franchise-low, and there are many factors as to the movie’s disappointing box office performance. While yes, Electro is an unstable supervillain, having their motivation essentially be “Spider-Man didn’t notice me” was dubious at best.
The sudden and frankly unearned transformation of Harry Osborn into an uninteresting version of the Green Goblin was also seen with derision by fans. Lastly, the widely advertised “Rhino” fight in the trailers was the literal ending of the movie, and fans only got to see the start of it. Speaking of the ending, the movie went through so many rewrites and teased so many things without even building them up properly first. Still, it’s pretty funny how the “franchise killer” of Spider-Man only took a few years to recover from, and still made a heck of a profit.
Spider-Man 3 (2007) – 63%
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Spider-Man 3 is a polarizing movie, to put it lightly. You find people who genuinely see the movie as one of the worst butcherings of Peter Parker’s characters of all time and you have people defending the third entry as an unorthodox choice that spiced up the franchise in new and fantastic ways. As for everybody else, they were likely laughing at emo Parker’s sick dance moves. Spider-Man 3 is still a movie that gets people ranting, but Sam Raimi certainly succeeded in making it memorable.
The other mistake, which also happens to be shared by fellow polarizing Spider-Man movie TASM 2, is the overabundance of Spider-Man’s villains who don’t get enough screen time to shine. Sure, Sandman gets a lot of development, and Osborn has had two movies of buildup for his change, but adding Venom at the climax just makes the finale bloated and unearned. Topher Grace could have been a good Venom, but this movie was not the place for that to have happened.
The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) – 72%
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The Amazing Spider-Man is the first reboot of the franchise and was received pretty well by audiences at the time, but critics were not as kind. Following up the iconic Sam Raimi trilogy was a tall order. The movie contends with once again establishing Spider-Man’s origins and characterization. Andrew Garfield’s portrayal, despite some people not enj0ying the fact that Peter Parker wasn’t as nerdy as before, definitely earned the trust of fans.
Garfield throws out some legitimately hilarious quips that even Tom Holland would struggle to keep up with in the future. Instead of MJ, this movie decides to make Gwen Stacy the central love interest, and it’s not even a contest of who was more beloved by fans. No offense to Kirsten Dunst, but Emma Stone portrays a much more active role in her Spider-Man’s life as the inquisitive and headstrong Gwen Stacy. The movie’s ridiculous final battle does dock a few points in critics’ eyes, but it was overall a pretty good, if flawed movie.
Spider-Man (2002) – 90%
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The highest-grossing solo Spider-Man movie domestically until No Way Home dethroned it in 2021, Spider-Man‘s success was the powder keg that the superhero industry needed to finally start becoming cinematic blockbusters. Comic book movies were no longer just a passing fad or banished to corny TV appearances. Now they were massive box office draws. Spider-Man, even after adjusting for inflation, was the first movie ever to make over $100 million in a single weekend.
It can’t be emphasized how important Spider-Man was for the genre. While it’s true that movies like X-Men and Blade were moderate successes, Spider-Man was the beginning of what would eventually become the modern superhero movie. It was not ashamed of being a comic book movie, as shown through the over-the-top performance of Willem Dafoe as the Green Goblin, and its many, many campy moments. However, it retains a strong emotional core that resonates with audiences to this day.
Spider-Man: Far from Home (2019) – 90%
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The very first Spider-Man movie to break the $1 billion dollar mark at the box office, Spider-Man: Far from Home introduces one of Spider-Man’s most cerebral foes, Mysterio, into the MCU. Jake Gyllenhaal steals the show here, and his plotting and fantastic nightmare sequence easily make him one of the most memorable villains in the MCU. Peter also gets some great characterization as he adjusts to a post-blip world without Tony Stark.
Overall, it’s a fun MCU movie and is deserving of its 90% fresh score. However, despite its quality, it does have one issue that often gets brought up in the Hollandverse, and is most present here. Tom Holland’s Spidey is too close to Iron Man instead of being his own person. Spider-Man before the MCU often defined himself as he had no real role models besides his Aunt May. It’s that clash of identity that gets dealt with in this movie, and while it doesn’t quite resolve that, it builds up No Way Home amazingly.
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) – 92%
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Sony, along with Disney’s help, gets their surprisingly quick “redo” of the Spider-Man franchise. Homecoming skips over the Uncle Ben plot and goes straight into exploring Peter Parker’s high school life. Out of every Spider-Man, Tom Holland is the only one who gets to see start hero work at a very young age. Most comics start Spidey out at 15, particularly Ultimate Spider-Man, and this movie captures that vibe perfectly. MCU’s Peter Parker has basically zero experience as a superhero, or just as a person in general.
Peter’s immaturity, is explored really well in this iteration. His homemade suit is lame (but still looks pretty cool), and the moment he gets the fancy new one, he ends up relying on it way too much. The villain here is The Vulture, played by Michael Keaton, which the casting agents were probably laughing about because they literally made him a Birdman. Overall, a fantastic reset for the character!
Spider-Man 2 (2004) – 93%
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Despite being the lowest grossing of the Raimi franchise overall, Spider-Man 2 is considered by many to be the best of the series. That success is easily attributed to the simple fact that Sam Raimi gave fans m0re of what they had loved from the first movie. Peter Parker’s life continues as an adult struggling to pay rent as well as pursuing his relationship with Mary Jane. It also has a fantastic tragic villain by the name of Otto Octavius. Much like Norman Osborn, he is something of a mentor to Peter before his turn to darkness.
The movie plays Doc Ock in a much more subtle way than the megalomania of Green Goblin. Otto is clearly a tortured man, being pulled from place to place by his fracturing mind. There are many moments of lucidity for the scientist, but it’s quickly set aside by his fury. Meanwhile, Peter Parker contends with his hero duties, giving the viewers a look into the constant struggle Peter faces balancing his life as Spider-Man and Peter Parker. Plus, that great train scene.
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) – 93%
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Spider-Man: No Way Home is the highest-grossing film of the entire Spider-Man franchise and the highest-grossing solo movie in the MCU. These titles are well-deserved because No Way Home is in the running as the best Spider-Man movie of all time. The return of iconic characters from other Spider-Man film universes is definitely the biggest draw, but the writing of this movie shouldn’t be understated either.
No Way Home tackles something that no other Spider-Man movie has done before. Here, Spider-Man’s secret identity is out to the entire world, and he has to deal with how that affects his closest friends and family. His careless requests to “make everyone forget he’s Spider-Man” and refusal to learn from the past two movies finally catch up with him, leading to one of the most heartbreaking conclusions ever. No Way Home deserves all the love it gets and ensures that Spider-Man isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) – 97%
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It certainly speaks to the hero’s reputation that this completely new Spider-Man, in an animated medium, is at the bottom of the box office earnings for theatrical Spider-Man movies and is still a massive success. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was a fantastic return to form for Sony Animation, and easily made back its budget of $90 million domestically.
The movie’s success can be attributed to its amazing visual style, bringing the cel-shaded look of the comics to life with its oddball framerates and zany proportions. The characterization is the best that Miles has gotten in years. The movie gives a lot of traits and even powers to Miles that Peter can’t do, separating Miles from his mentor. Lastly, the soundtrack was simply phenomenal, perfectly capturing the street life of New York City. Audiences and critics just loved it, and hopefully, the sequels continue the trend.
