Of all the
famous superheroes out there, I think Spider-Man lends himself to action better
than most. His web-based powers, and fighting style make him come off like a
ninja with cat like reflexes, and there’s this perfect blend of fast acrobatics
with special effects. His villains also offset his powers perfectly, and offer
a great variety of different things to battle. So, here’s a quick list of my
top 10 personal favorite action scenes from the theatrical live-action Spider-Man movies.
My only condition is that I won’t be including any final battles, as I’ve
already highlighted them in an earlier post. With that said, here are my
personal top 10 favorite battles from the theatrical Spider-Man movies.
#10 The Battle Over Time Square (Spider-Man) (Spider-Man vs The Green Goblin)
Kicking off my countdown is the very first major fight scene from the very first live-action Spider-Man movie. During a special celebration in Time Square, the lethal Green Goblin arrives on the scene to crash the party. I have to say, the build-up in this sequence is fantastic, and when the fighting goes down, it's a lot of fun. While very corny, awkwardly staged and filled with effects that haven't aged very well, this was still a memorable first showdown with Spider-Man's arch foe,
#9 Sinking the Boat from “Spider-Man: Homecoming” (Spider-Man vs The Vulture)
Unlike most other Spider-Man ventures, “Homecoming” focused more on fun
situations for our hero to overcome, as opposed to straight forward brawls with
superpowered villains. The closest we get to a traditional Spider-Man action
set-piece is the battle on the boat, which was cool, and featured our hero
battling both armed criminals, and his winged adversary The Vulture. Seeing our
hero use his webbing to try and bring the ship back together was great, and
echoed back to the train scene from “Spider-Man 2”.
#8 The New Goblin Attacks from “Spider-Man 3” (Spider-Man vs The New Goblin)
After discovering his identity in the previous film, Peter’s former best
friend Harry goes on the offensive as a new Green Goblin, leading into an
awesome opening action sequence. Usually battles of this size come latter into
the film, so it was refreshing to kick things off with all the excitement and fun this
early in the film. This first battle between Peter and the New Goblin is also enjoyably
staged, taking full advantage of what both characters can do in the sky-line of
an open city. However, I have to admit that some of the CGI on display during
this battle is really dated, especially when their flying through the obvious
green screen back ally. Aside from that, it still holds-up overall as a memorable
action set-piece.
#7 The School Attack from “The Amazing Spider-Man” (Spider-Man vs The Lizard)
While this installment in the web-heads film series really didn’t have too many
action highlights, the actual fighting choreography, and movement of Spider-Man
is the absolute best captured on film thus far. When Spider-Man’s monstrous
adversary The Lizard attacks the school, we see the full range of how awesome
our hero’s combat skills are while in close quarters. It’s all very slick and
we see him do things we’ve never seen before. For example, this is the first
time we see Spider-Man fighting on the ceiling, and I love this one moment in
which he uses his webbing to trap his enemy in a cocoon, which was a cool
touch. Throw in one of Stan Lee’s greatest cameo’s, and this school battle is
well worth highlighting as one of his best individual action scenes.
#6 Burning Building Showdown from “Spider-Man” (Spider-Man vs The Green Goblin)
For one of the
first superhero adaptions of the early 2000’s, the action scenes have held up
very well, and in some respects are better then what we get today. When
Spider-Man and the Green Goblin battle in a burning building, I genuinely feel
the excitement, but I can also admire the practicality of the piece. I like
that while special effects are present, there isn’t an overabundance of it. In fact,
most of the action is very much in camera, but still with a lot of flare and
energy. Whenever I think of these two fighting, it’s always the image of them
in a burning building that comes to mind first.
#5 The Sandman’s Truck Chase from “Spider-Man 3” (Spider-Man vs The Sandman)
While this third instalment has obviously
never been as good as it’s two predecessors … it absolutely contains some of my
favorite stand-alone Spider-Man action scenes. The truck chase with the Sandman
is absolutely a personal favorite that’s always stuck with me. While the past
two movies also featured car chases, this was the first to feature a villain
mixed with all the high-speed excitement. It’s brilliantly stage, features
awesome visuals like Spider-Man sweeping out the Sandman’s legs, with the rest
of the body collapsing to the ground, and it was just a great action set-piece.
#4 White-Knuckle Fight Between Friends from “Spider-Man 3” (Peter vs Harry)
After his first effort to kill Peter failed, he instead goes for the personal
approach, by driving a rift between our hero and his girlfriend, which in turn will bait
Peter to Harry’s mansion, where a trap is waiting. This second match-up trades
in the huge spectacle of the previous fight, with a tight, brilliantly staged,
old-school beatdown. I love this bare-knuckle fight between Harry and Peter in
the mansion sweat, as it’s completely in camera, and doesn’t feature any distracting
CGI.
#3 Mysterio’s Illusion Battle from “Spider-Man: Far From Home” (Spider-Man vs Mysterio)
Mysterio has his own exciting
means to battle Spider-Man, which leads me to one of my favorite sequences of
any Spider-Man movie … Mysterio’s illusion battle with Spider-Man. Once our
hero discovers that Mysterio is a fraud, he goes on the offensive, unaware that
his enemy has an ace up his sleeve, and traps our hero in an illusion nightmare
sequence. This whole scene is extortionary, and one of those rare special
moments in which I felt I was watching something new in a Spider-Man movie. Not
only is the scene pivotal to the plot, and bursting with stunning imagery, but
all the visuals have subtext that ties into the hero’s journey, and it elevates
this confrontation as more then just a flashy spectacle. We have the corps of
Iron Man rising from the grave, Spider-Man battling an army of himself, and
even the image of him trapped in a snow-globe of New York can be interpreted as
our hero being confined to his responsibilities to his city. I love the way
this battle is staged, he tries to punch an enemy only to hit a wall, and leaps
what he believes is a short drop only to fall down a building. It’s just a
great sequence, and easily my favorite scene of the movie.
#2 The Bank Heist from “Spider-Man 2” (Spider-Man vs Doctor Octopus)
“Spider-Man 2” is hands down my favorite of the web-heads live-action movies
by far, and it just happens to feature my two favorite action scenes. The first
is when Spider-Man battles Doctor Octopus in a bank, which escalates into an
awesome duel on the side of a building. Seeing two super-powered characters
fighting on the side of a building is something I’ve only dreamed off, and
seeing it come to life in this film was riveting. The layout, the energy, and a
well-placed Stan Lee cameo would have been enough to call this my all-time
favorite Spider-Man fight, if it weren't for what's coming up next.
Before I
reveal my #1 favorite, here are some Honorable Mentions ...
Battling Sandman in the Subway (Spider-Man 3)
Battling the Elements (Spider-Man: Far From Home)
Bridge Battle (Spider-Man: No Way Home)
Electro
Attacks Time Square (The Amazing Spider-Man 2)
Spider-Man vs Doctor Strange (Spider-Man: No Way Home)
#1 The Train Chase from “Spider-Man 2” (Spider-Man vs Doctor Octopus)
Taking top honors as the greatest action scene of all is this deeply thrilling battle on the train. After MJ is taken captive by Dock-Oc, he baits Spider-Man into a confrontation at a clock tower, which culminates into a deeply thrilling train chase. After all these years, this fight still gets me pumped, and I just love how creative this whole sequence gets. We have Spider-Man getting dragged on the road, balancing himself while hanging onto the side, and ducking oncoming trains and bridges. It’s just one big feast for the eyes, and definitely one of the all-time greatest battle scenes from any superhero movie. I also love when his mask gets damaged, and he just pulls it off regardless of his identity. The scene ends on a high note as Spider-Man practically sacrifices his body to stop the out-of-control train, and the passengers see their savior for who he really is.
Thanks for
reading my countdown … and continue to enjoy the movies you love.
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