I don't get it.

Rating: 4/10 (6 December 2014)

I really tried to appreciate the vibe Raimi was going for, the writing, the acting, the special effects, etc. But I can't. As a guy who considers himself an amateur film critic, I cannot sand this movie. I liked it as a child, but as a guy whose almost out of high school (There goes my credibility) this a movie that I hate even more each time I watch it.
Lets start with what I like. The effects are a FAR improvement from the first film. It still looks pretty good honestly, has aged very well. The cinematography is decent, and the action, most of the time, is very satisfying and well done. And the vibe, while I don't personally care for the cheesiness of it, is nailed well. I don't like it, but Raimi did what he wanted. And while I don't like how he's written at all, Alfred Molina is the best actor in the entire trilogy. He just needed a better script.
Now lets go for what I dislike. Main issue: Tobey Mcguire. I can't stand him. There are very few movies I watch where he doesn't instantly incite a fury of anger inside me due to his complete lack of emotion or semblance of acting ability. He's an actor with no charisma, playing a character that is known for having charisma. Yes, Peter Parker is a nerd, he's awkward, but he's not a moron who whispers all his lines, underacts, and has the single worst crying face of any actor in Hollywood. I CANNOT buy him as any incarnation of Spiderman. I have read the comics and watched the cartoon. Every incarnation of spider man has been better, and when your main hero is being poorly played, thats a huge problem for a comic book film to have. And don't give me the excuse that he's doing it all on purpose, not acting on purpose is still not acting, it feels annoying. I want Spiderman to be like Spiderman, courageous, intelligent, quick-witted, and likable. (And yes nerdy.) Mcguire is none of these things. You can't even say he's smart or nerdy because of Raimi's 'Tell don't show' style of filmmaking. We never see him APPLY his brain, and i never buy its him inside the suit.
Other main issue: Kirsten Dunst. I thought it was impossible to underact Tobey, but somehow, Ms. Dunst did it. She actually reads her lines like she doesn't want to be there. Not to mention as far as writing and character goes, she is, by far, the WORST superhero love interest ever. She never helps, she is never independent, she is never caring, she always plays Peter at an angle, she gets kidnapped more than Princess Peach. She is legitimately the OG Bella Swan, but in the end of the awful Twilight movies, she was a vampire and did some cool stuff, Dunst gets kidnapped, screams, and continuously puts Peter in-between a rock and a hard place. He has no reason to like her. Their chemistry is non-existent. It is honestly painful to watch them together. Its painful to watch her at all.
Alfred Molina is a fantastic actor in a bad role. Doc Oc sounds ambitious, starts off pretty well in fact. however his motivations and moral fluctuations make him illogical. If you introduce a smart character, keep him smart. By the time he becomes a villain, he makes so many logical errors it makes him seem like a different person. He looks for Peter Parker and needs to talk to him, so what does he do? Throw a damn car at him! Why? Why are you attempting to kill the person you want to find?? I'm not nitpicking, I have so many genuine questions about choices these idiotic characters constantly make! Why does Octavius steal money to buy the parts he needs... rather than just STEALING WHAT HE NEEDS? Why does he have a sudden hatred for spider man? He knows he's doing something wrong, which is supposed to make him sympathetic, yet he acts like a tool and somehow feels justified in trying to kill Peter? He has no character arc! The plot just says 'Uhhhh, the arms make him crazy, so he's crazy, but you still like him because he constantly monologues about how he's trying to fulfill his dream!' NO! Not to mention, why in the blue hell did he design the arms with artificial intelligence if he was only going to use them to move things? That doesn't make any sense! Why? Its a genuine question! every time I have a legit question about a character decision the reasoning is 'The script told them to, so they did'
And the whole 'losing powers' thing. Why? I'm supposed to suspend my disbelief, its a comic book movie, but why are stupid things constantly happening? Just because you establish a universe where strange things happen doesn't excuse idiotic writing. Why does peter suddenly lose his powers? He's jealous and loves MJ, yeah whatever. She gives him no reason to, but whatever. So, his powers go away when he's sad? The whole second act is a drag because it focuses on this plot point that feels like it comes out of NOWHERE. Not a SINGLE character in this entire franchise has a consistent motivation or tries to logically solve their problems. TL;DR My point is this. Sam Raimi can direct. He cannot write. This movie, I feel, is grossly overrated. Why? It has obvious issues that are ignored by both Raimi, and the fan base of these films. They act like everything is intentional and if you criticize it that 'You just don't get it' or 'You clearly have bad taste'. No. My bias towards movies is that I think about them, and the second you start thinking about this movie, for me, it made it unwatchable.