How To Watch Every Spider-Man Movie In Order

While it can be argued with good reason that early movies like 1998's "Blade" and 2000's "X-Men" were responsible for kickstarting the interest in Marvel live-action movies, it's filmmaker Sam Raimi's 2002 take on "Spider-Man" that in many ways serves as the blueprint for the modern Marvel Cinematic Universe. Unabashedly colorful and gloriously pulpy, "Spider-Man" heralded the arrival of a new type of superhero movie where the scope and imagination of Marvel Comics could finally be translated onto the big screen with the help of modern special effects. 

Aside from its importance for the superhero movie genre, "Spider-Man" is also generally agreed to be "the" definitive origin story for everyone's favorite webbed hero. Tobey Maguire ably portrays high school nerd Peter Parker, who hangs out with his best friend, Harry Osborn (James Franco), and has modest suburban dreams like owning a car and asking out his long-time crush, Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst).

Peter's life is turned upside down when he is bitten by a radioactive spider that grants him superpowers, and a personal tragedy convinces Peter to use his powers to help people as Spider-Man. But matters are complicated when Peter's sense of duty puts him in the crosshairs of Norman Osborn/Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe in a delightfully scene-chewing performance). Exciting, funny, and at times genuinely heart-warming, "Spider-Man" was the perfect introduction for one of the most famously grounded, everyman superheroes in comic book history.