I had the pleasure of seeing all three tobey maguire led spider-man movies in theaters over the last three weeks. Like most folks seeing them, I imagine, they were very formative movies for me. I personally think they hold up pretty well (though the post-9/11 nationalism is palpable in a few scenes). I think the stand-out feature of the series compared to the later series, and modern super hero movies in general, is the melodrama. They'll let things be sappy, or intentionally awkward, or a little slow. Not everything needs to be either action or jokes. Just a unique feel that feels (to me) to match the feeling of serial comics.
I personally think the movies get worse as they go, but they're all great. I was especially surprised how much the third one felt good in a theater, because I remember it being a slow drag in all my home rewatches since. The pacing actually felt pretty good. I know that popular opinion is that the second movie is the best, but part of me thinks that people like it because it's the only one with a happy ending. I think the lesson learned by Peter is too similar to the first movie. Can't deny Alfred Molina's performance though. The first will always be my favorite though. I just feel like it's lesson is infused in the whole thing, and Willem Dafoe really matches the tone of the film perfectly to me.
Anyways always fun to see a favorite movie back in the theaters again.