Sightlines · reception
How The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was received
2014 · Marc Webb · The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on Sightlines
The arc
In 2014 it was the sequel that killed its own franchise — mixed reviews and soft box office scuttled Sony's Sinister Six plans and pushed Spider-Man into the MCU deal. Post-No Way Home (2021), it's been warmly re-examined, with fans campaigning hard to #MakeTASM3.
What’s debated
The eternal debate: was Andrew Garfield a great Spider-Man trapped in a studio-mandated, overstuffed movie — blame the film or blame Sony?
Its footprint
Its afterlife is bigger than its release: Garfield's beloved return in No Way Home turned this era into an internet cause, and Electro's whispery dubstep theme 'My Enemy' remains a genuine conversation piece.
Where it stands
A franchise casualty turned sympathetic fan favorite — middling Letterboxd scores, but 'Garfield deserved better' is close to consensus.
Did you know? Hans Zimmer scored it with a supergroup he called The Magnificent Six — including Pharrell Williams and The Smiths' Johnny Marr — and Shailene Woodley actually shot scenes as Mary Jane Watson that were cut from the final film.