At this point I think we need to post the comic at the top of every new page. Peter was bullied in the comics, yes, but before he let the thief go, everything was going just right for him. His future was secured, he would have had wealth, fame, life would finally be what he deserved. And according to his own words, the rest of the world could hang for all he cared.
Peter in the Movie isn't even that big of a jerk. One of the first things we see, is Peter standing up for a kid, and that's before he got his powers. And even when he gets his ass handed to him, he stands by his decision. And all the things he did, that apparently made him appear self-centered, was just natural progression. He wanted to find out what his father worked on before he disappeared and met Dr. Connors in the process. Once he revealed that he was Richard's son, they quickly developed a mentor/student relationship, and he was doing something important, like his father once did. Alright, he didn't pick up his Aunt, and he should have been responsible enough to know better. But you've got to realize that he was on the brink of a breakthrough. The work he was doing with Connors, could have helped people all over the world. So he neglected his smaller responsibilities. And isn't that what practically all scientist do? Not sweating the small stuff, while they work on something much bigger? Then we get Uncle Ben grinding his ass, not letting off and eventually all the emotions Peter kept bottling up, just boiled over.
You know, I find Tobey's Peter to be actually the bigger jerk here. Oh, big surprise, the Webb defender hates Raimi's movie. Hurrdy durr! But I just look at the car scene. Uncle Ben is being all compassionate, caring, calmy talking with Peter, and all we get is the typical teenager behavior, I know better, stop acting like my dad. Tobey's Peter didn't even have the excuse of looking up what his dad was involved in and secretly working on groundbreaking, scientific experiments. And then getting scolded by Uncle Ben who just won't let go of the issue. No, he just has a ***** for the girl next door.