The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Is Still Underrated 10 Years After Its Divisive Release

Summary The Amazing Spider-Man 2 faced criticism for being overstuffed with imbalanced elements.

Andrew Garfield's portrayal of Spider-Man in the film was comic-accurate and visually stunning.

Garfield's Peter Parker has gained popularity over time, with Spider-Man: No Way Home helping redeem the character.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 has completed 10 years, and while it is one of the most divisive live-action Spider-Man movies, the film had plenty of exciting elements that make it an underrated entry for the Marvel hero. After Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man 4 was canceled, Sony moved quickly to recast the actor, with Andrew Garfield coming in as Peter Parker for 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man. The film introduced a very different version of Peter, with Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy also playing a major role in the franchise. Sadly, The Amazing Spider-Man 3 never happened.

That was due in part to the divisive reception to Garfield's The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The film had many moving parts, with some clear impositions by Sony to establish future spinoffs, which led to Garfield's second solo outing as Peter Parker standing below quite a few other entries among all Spider-Man movies in the eyes of fans. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was released on May 2, 2014, which means it recently completed 10 years. While there is a point to the criticism surrounding the film, Garfield's second Spider-Man solo movie has many positives that make it underrated to this day.

Related 5 Things Andrew Garfield's Amazing Spider-Man 2 Got Right Andrew Garfield's The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was overstuffed, but it was not a bad movie, as the film got some Peter Parker fundamentals right.

Why The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Was So Divisive

There Were Too Many Things Going On

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The biggest problem regarding The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was that the movie had to juggle many plots, and only a few really landed. The Spider-Man film had a particularly hard time in the villain department. First, Garfield's Spider-Man started the movie by stopping Rhino's rampage in New York City. Paul Giamatti is a solid performer, as his recent nomination for Best Actor at the 2024 Oscars for The Holdovers shows. However, the actor's role as Rhino was one of the worst parts of the film, with Giamatti turning in a bizarre take on the villain, which was a misfire.

Rhino's comedic role to start the film was not the only poor use of a Spider-Man villain. One of the most exciting foes Peter has ever faced is the Green Goblin. Instead of Norman Osborn, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 chose to make his son, Harry, the film's Green Goblin. Despite being said to be a childhood friend of Peter's, there was no clear chemistry between Dane DeHaan's Harry Osborn and Garfield's Peter Parker, which made the character feel out of place. Then there's the issue of the main villain, Jamie Foxx's Electro.

Electro's design, fully blue with electricity running through him, made the character look cheesy. The fact that Electro was first shown as the nerdy Spider-Man fan Max Dillon also contributed to Foxx's character not feeling as intimidating as he could have been, and his updated Spider-Man: No Way Home look cemented how Electro could have looked better. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 seemed more interested in setting up a Sinister Six movie, which its ending did with no subtlety, than telling a cohesive story. The decision to make Peter becoming Spider-Man related to his father's DNA was also a miss.

Related Amazing Spider-Man 2's Deleted Ending Completely Changes Garfield's Arc A deleted scene from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 would have recontextualized the film's abrupt ending and changed Garfield's Peter Parker moving forward.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Nails The Spider-Man Half Of Peter Parker

Andrew Garfield Is The Best In This Regard

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While the movie has its faults, there is still a lot to like in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. There was some criticism at the time that Garfield's Peter Parker was too cool for what the character should be, skateboarding around the halls of Midtown High and such. While some fans had issues with the actor's version of Peter Parker, not much can be said against his portrayal of Peter's heroic side, as Garfield is easily the best actor to have brought Spider-Man to life on the big screen, playing to the wall-crawler's strengths.

Garfield's Spider-Man was exactly like the hero is in the comics, with The Amazing Spider-Man 2 seeing him deliver the wise-cracking jokes while fighting crime that Spider-Man is expected to. While iconic, Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man was never like how the character is supposed to be in costume, with the star delivering a much more serious Spider-Man. Tom Holland's version of the hero in the MCU is closer to the comics' jokester Spider-Man, but his one-liners have yet to pack the same punch as Garfield's. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 star also delivered a masterclass in body language in the Spider-Man suit.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Is The Closest To A Living Comic Book Of Any Spider-Man Movie Yet

The Movie's VFX Hold Up To This Day

One of the most common complaints about the MCU's Spider-Man is the lack of scenes of him swinging through New York. Garfield had that in spades in his movies, with The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in particular delivering the best-looking swinging scenes of any Spider-Man movie. Garfield's second solo outing as Spider-Man felt like a comic book come to life, with gorgeous visuals and the perfect kinetic action to match them. Scenes like Spider-Man fighting Electro at Times Square and at the power plant at the end of the film showed the full scope of the film's stunning visuals.

Helping Garfield's Spider-Man pop was the fact that the actor wore the best Spider-Man movie costume to date in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. After having a unique suit in The Amazing Spider-Man, the sequel saw the actor don the perfect translation of Spider-Man's classic costume from the page to the screen, with vibrant colors, big lenses, and more. Even the movie's over-the-top villains contributed to the film's comic book atmosphere, as they felt like characters that could have fit the early Spider-Man stories at Marvel Comics.

The chemistry between Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker and Emma Stone's Gwen Stacy, as well as the comic book-accurate adaptation of her death, also contributed to The Amazing Spider-Man 2's comic book status.

Why Time Has Been Kind To Andrew Garfield's Peter Peter Parker

Spider-Man: No Way Home Helped The Star

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At the time they were released, the two The Amazing Spider-Man movies were not the most beloved among fans; however, as the years have passed, Garfield's version of Peter Parker has only gotten more popular. Spider-Man: No Way Home cemented that by bringing the actor back as his Spider-Man. The movie allowed Garfield to have some of its best scenes, making him stand out among Maguire and Holland's Spider-Men. Garfield's Spider-Man got his redemption in the MCU film.

After Gwen Stacy's death in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Spider-Man: No Way Home saw Garfield's Peter Parker save Zendaya's MJ in a very similar situation, making up for his failure to save Gwen. With a performance that had Spider-Man's characteristic humor and some excellent emotional beats, Garfield's Spider-Man has become more popular than ever. Fans have been asking for the actor to get a third solo film since his MCU debut, and if Garfield were to return, Sony could explore the best aspects of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 to craft the perfect threequel for the Spider-Man actor.