20 years later: ‘Spider-Man 2’ is still the best superhero movie ever made

Sam Raimi’s 2004 film, before the rise of the MCU or the Nolan Dark Knight trilogy, executed the superhero movie formula to perfection.

There are good superhero movies and bad ones. There are original ones, and there are derivative ones. But the elements of the genre came together, in the best way possible, in Spider-Man 2, Sam Raimi’s 2004 sequel, and my pick for the best movie ever made in the genre. 

Believe it or not, there was a time when the superhero genre was not only underdeveloped but also not seen as a great box office bet. Tim Burton’s attempt to get Superman back off the ground in the late ‘90s collapsed without a movie ever being made.