SPOILERS FOR NO WAY HOME!!!!
Spider-Man: No Way Home came out yesterday, and the hype for this movie is real. It's already setting box office records and looks to be the biggest hit since Avengers: Endgame. So, with the awesome release of that movie, I updated my ranking of the Spider-Man and Venom movies. Also, there are some minor spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home in this ranking.
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11. Venom
Venom is a mess from start to finish. It's a bad movie that suffers from a muddled plot and a cliche villain. The tone is all over the place. The story is incredibly convoluted. It uses a ton of science jargon that I do not like. I guess I can enjoy the bromance between Eddie Brock and Venom, as well as Tom Hardy's whack job performance. But everything else just gives me a headache. I honestly don't plan on ever watching this movie again. I really don't like it.
10. Spider-Man 3
I laugh every time I think about Spider-Man 3. The only reason it isn't last on this list is because it's almost in the "so bad it's good" range. I mean, we have an emo Peter Parker dance in this movie! It's hilarious. However, when you are actually trying to take the film seriously and want it to be a good finale to Raimi's trilogy, it's pretty disappointing. Once again, the emo Peter Parker is just a complete misfire. The inclusion of Venom was completely forced. None of the characters are likable here...at all. It's a wobbly ending for an overrated Spider-Man trilogy, and it cements my opinion of the Raimi films.
9. Spider-Man 2
I don't understand the love that this movie gets. It's not a good movie at all. Any time Peter Parker is in the Spider-Man suit, it is a good movie. The action holds up surprisingly well for 2004, and Doctor Octopus is a compelling villain with a very good redemptive arc. But, dude. Tobey Maguire is just not a good actor. Kirsten Dunst is not a good actress. Anything to do with the two of them is this saturated, terrible, flat relationship that I hate. The dialogue is so cringe-inducing. There are scenes of exposition where characters are just talking to themselves. This isn't a good movie! It's not the best superhero film of all time. How could people compare something like this to The Dark Knight? That is insulting.
8. Venom: Let There Be Carnage
A better sequel, but still not a very good film. Let There Be Carnage embraces the campiness that was somewhat present in the first movie, and that helps the movie out...a lot. Instead of feeling like a tonally inconsistent mess, Let There Be Carnage has this fun vibe to it that Venom was simply lacking. Unfortunately, Carnage (not Cletus) and Shriek are underdeveloped villains that I do not enjoy. I think that it gets too weird at times as well. This is a very middle-of-the-road movie, and not even close to top-tier Spider-Man/Venom.
7. The Amazing Spider-Man
Yes. I am of the opinion that The Amazing Spider-Man movies are better than the Sam Raimi movies. Are they great? Of course not. But the dialogue doesn't make you want to die and the performances are about ten times better. I think some of the action is pretty cool. I don't mind Lizard as a villain. And, of course, Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone are great. Now, of course, the plot line surrounding Peter's parents is terrible. There are a few very bad decisions like that. But I still think this movie works. It's not anything unique. It's telling the classic Spider-Man origin again, and I do think Raimi's first Spider-Man does it better, but this is a decent movie.
6. The Amazing Spider-Man 2
On the complete flip side of Spider-Man 2, people hate The Amazing Spider-Man 2. I can understand why, but I don't understand why they hate it much more than Spider-Man 2 and, in some cases, Spider-Man 3. Yes, Electro and Green Goblin are not very good villains. The screenplay is kind of clunky and kind of cheesy. And while those are valid complaints, I think that's the case with both Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3. I just find this film to be ten times more entertaining. It's more emotional. Gwen's death is one of the best scenes in a Spider-Man movie. The visuals rival Far From Home with some of the coolest sequences to look at. I do not at all think that this is a great movie. But I enjoy it as a guilty pleasure.
Point of reference: every film from now on is great. I would give all of these next four movies a Sweet.
5. Spider-Man: Homecoming
Homecoming is tons of fun. It delivers everything you'd want from a solo Spider-Man movie in the MCU. Tom Holland brings a new sense of charm and innocence to the character. It deftly blends the vibe of John Hughes rom-coms with the superhero genre. Vulture is one of the best MCU villains. The twist near the end of the film is also one of the best moments in the MCU. And it really establishes Spider-Man in a universe already filled with great, established characters. He is one of the funniest, coolest, and best characters in the MCU, and that's a really good thing. Jon Watts and Tom Holland nailed the titular character, and that's the most important part.
4. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
In a world where superhero movies dominate the industry of film, Into the Spider-Verse blew expectations out of the water with one of the most unique superhero films ever made. The animation style here is nothing like you've ever seen before. The idea of the Spider-Verse is a super fun concept in and of itself. There's just so many great things about this movie. I love the mentor-student relationship between Peter and Miles. I love how it's able to juggle a bunch of characters and villains and not be overstuffed. I'm super excited to see where Across the Spider-Verse (Part One) takes us.
3. Spider-Man
I know I've crapped on the Raimi trilogy during this ranking. And I still don't think it's a good set of movies at all. But the first film is a great movie. Instead of focusing on Peter Parker, this whiny, unlikable brat that is played by a garbage Tobey Maguire, this film focuses on Spider-Man and his origin story. Parallel that with the insane Green Goblin, played to absolute perfection by Willem Dafoe, and you've got an amazing movie. The themes of accepting responsibility are poignant and touch you on a personal level. Batman Begins is the perfect telling of Batman's origin. And Spider-Man is the perfect telling of Spidey's origin. From the spider bite to Uncle Ben's death to the ultimate showdown with Green Goblin, this movie just excels.
2. Spider-Man: No Way Home
No Way Home was a great finale not only for Tom Holland's trilogy of films, but the Spider-Man franchise as a whole. Instead of feeling like a fan-service drenched mess that suffered from too many villains, characters, and plot lines, this movie developed each of it's characters so that you understood where all of them were coming from. It continued the character arcs of the villains and gave you all the payoffs and fan service you would want, while not relying on it. Homecoming and Far From Home, while great movies, don't really follow the classic, iconic Spider-Man story. There isn't a giant weight on his shoulders. We don't know what happened to his Uncle Ben. He hasn't learned that with great power comes great responsibility. But through the journey of Homecoming, Far From Home, and No Way Home, he is able to have that arc. And that was really cool. It may move up to number one eventually, but right now, it's my second favorite.
1. Spider-Man: Far From Home
This movie is great. It wraps up the Infinity Saga with a nice epilogue that displays the consequences of Endgame really well. Mysterio is one of the coolest villains I can remember. He is menacing and cruel, but also has the Jake Gyllenhaal charm to him. The visuals and action are amazing, especially that illusion sequence near the end of the movie. This movie set up No Way Home for success with that shocking after-credits scene, and I love it for that. The Home trilogy, in my opinion, rivals both The Dark Knight trilogy and possibly even the original Star Wars trilogy for greatest film trilogy of all time. And a lot of that is thanks to Far From Home.