As a family movie, I'd have to give Spider-Man 2 a 10 out of 10. It's wholesome PG-13 fun but me personally I could care less about that. I watch movies for the acting, to feel something, and for the most part Spider-Man 2 is an emotionally blank experience. Maybe it was because of the writing or all the comedic cameos but the movie doesn't have very compelling acting. Watching Mary Jane get upset over a play or hearing Harry whine about Spider-Man was just annoying to me.
Doc Ock in particular has very weak writing. When he's not talking to his claws, he's building a machine that makes suns. Why? Because robot arms control his mind. Spider-Man doesn't even have much to do with Doc Ock. He's largely unconcerned with him until Mary Jane is kidnapped. The relationship between villain and superhero is sorely lacking in this movie.
Most of the plot though is about Peter's commitment issues and it would've been a fine story if Mary Jane wasn't such a brat. She complains too much and isn't even nice to Peter. She does redeem herself a little in the end but her negativity is one of the worst aspects of this movie. I want a love interest who's sweet and likable because then I would understand why Peter is struggling so much.
Now what I love about action movies are the stunts. I don't know why but there's just something about the physicality of stuntwork that I find exciting. Spider-Man 2 has zero stunts and the fights are all cgi. I know people loved them but I felt they were tedious and overdone (think Transformers).
Overall, I give Spider-Man 2 a C+. It's watchable but there's nothing special about it. My biggest complaints are the acting and weak plot.
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