Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is the sequel to the
2018 surprise hit Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. When I say “surprise hit”
I don’t mean that it was a giant box office hit (it did quite well, though it
started slow) but that it was a game changing animated film. Since then both Hollywood
and Japan have been chasing the style dragon Spider-Verse made famous (Puss in
Boots: The Last Wish, being the most recent example that I can think of). I did
not review the first film, but I did name it #2 of my Favorite Films of 2018.
At the time I said I it was probably the best Spider-Man movie, but
with the benefit of hindsight I think you can make a strong argument for it being
the best superhero movie and the best animated film ever made (even though I
liked Black Panther more at the time).
The original film did well enough that a sequel was
announced soon afterwards. In fact, it was eventually announced it would have
two sequels, making it a trilogy. Unfortunately, it was another Hollywood victim
of the pandemic and delayed by quite a few years, no longer able to strike
while the iron was hot. Even so, with how much it had influenced the movie industry
since its debut, the hype train for the follow-up was still quite strong.
This film was again written by the hitmaker duo of Phil Lord
and Christopher Miller, who also produced the flick, along with Dave Callaham.
This time it was directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K.
Thompson.
Again, this is one of two greenlit sequel with the second,
Beyond the Sider-Verse, being produced alongside this one. The idea of a mostly
standalone film getting two sequels pushed ahead at the same time is reminiscent
of other film trilogies such as Star Wars, Back to the Future, and The Matrix. After five years of waiting, does the Spider-Verse
manage to live up to is predecessor, ala The Empire Strikes Back, or is it a giant
wet fart that should have stayed in the production truck, ala The Matrix
Reloaded?
Full review after the jump.
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| I suspect the writers didn't read much about Ben beforehand... |
While the story is good, it’s not the most engrossing one ever
written (though with plenty of twists and surprises I should add). However, the
film is carried by the strength of its characters and performances. In particularly, a lot of the movie rests on
the shoulders of Spider-Gwen, who plays a much more central role here (essentially
deuteragonist rather than support character) and it’s her arc that we follow
the most. Considering this movie is part one of two (well, part two of three) and
the Miles’ story will likely conclude in the next sequel, having Gwen have a
fully fleshed out beginning-middle-end plot does a lot to make the movie feel
more compete than it actually is. Meanwhile, Miles’s as an older,
wiser, and more experience Spider-Man compared to the previous film is incredibly
well done and felt very natural. Far from the kid bumbling and fumbling his way
through the original, Miles here has an earned confidence and, in fact, that
growth is partially what leads to the driving conflict of the film. Shameik Moore and Hailee Steinfeld both did a
great job as the leads.
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| Spider-Gwen is the real main character here |
The rest of the cast is also excellent, from Jason Schwartzman as the new, and awkward, villain The Spot, to Oscar Issac as the much broodier than we were expecting Spider-Man 2099, the movie juggle its huge ensembles shockingly well and most of the important characters get time to shine. However, special shout out to the real star of the film Spider-Punk/Hobie Brown played by Daniel Kaluuya. Hobie manages to steal every scene he is in and no one came out of this movie looking cooler or more interesting than him.
Unfortunately, this movie doesn’t really include some of the
characters from the previous film in any real capacity (don’t expect Spider-Pig
or Spider-Man Noir to play a role) and Penni Parker only shows up for a second.
Also, some fans might not like the portrayal of their favorite variant of Spider-Man
should they appear. For example, a lot of folks have been furious about the portrayal
of Spider-Man 2099 (though there is a storyline reason that I bet will be
explored more in the sequel). As for me, well, long time readers will remember that
the Scarlet Spider is one of my favorite superheroes and sadly he is played
like a big joke here (played by Andy Sangberg, which wasn’t a great sign when I
heard about that casting choice). So yeah, that sucked, but honestly, I prefer the
writers here turning him into a 90s Comics parody than the garbage Marvel Comics
have been doing to him ever scene they brought him back to life. (He’s some
kind of demon man now? I don’t’ f**king know, man….)
This is also an extremely detailed movie, both in writing
and visuals. So many little things across the screen and throughout the script,
so many things to keep track of it; it’s more sophisticated than most films in
its genre by a country mile. Also, this flick has a great script, and cleaver,
script even if the overall story isn’t as strong.
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| Hobie explaining to Miles that this movie is capitalist copaganda |
The movie is beautiful, and most people will agree that the CG animation here is breathtaking. The big gimmick of this film is that every character for the Spider-Verse is drawn differently, sometimes radically so, to convey that they're from their own reality with its own unique visual style. This was done in the first one as well, with Penni Parker, Spider-Ham, and Spider-Man Noir all having wildly different aesthetics. It’s significantly expanded upon as every major Spider-Man variant featured clearly had a lot of thought put into their art style and seeing them all interact is incredible. Some are more impressive than others, like Spider-Punk who is freaking insane and the level of work that was put into him is mind boggling. Also, since we get to visit other realities beyond Miles’ we also get to see the whole movie change styles periodically.
This is all probably a good thing, but I have to be honest;
the frequent style changes combined with the characters all off-model from each
other actually negatively impacted me when I saw the film. Best I can tell is
that I, someone who is medically diagnosed as being neurodivergent, was often
overwhelmed by the changes and colors, to a very bad degree at times. However,
I am willing to accept that this is a “me” problem and despite my issues I can objectively
say this is one of the most impressive displays of visual arts I’ve ever seen in
cinema.
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| Miguel apparently hit the gym like crazy and I don't like it |
One big, but understandable, issue is that this movie doesn’t have an ending. It’s Part 2 of 3, after all, but the movie still ends on a cliffhanger with most of the plot threads unresolved. It’s a hell of a cliffhanger and I’m all-in for the sequel as a result, but it also means that it’s not really able to stand up on its own the way its predecessor did. No matter how good this movie is you will never be able to watch it without watching it’s sequel if you want the full picture, but this is literally the same deal as Back to the Future Part II and The Matrix Reloaded so it’s not a crime or necessarily a deal breaker. But it is a major reason while Into the Spider-Verse is flat out a better movie.
Despite that, Across the Spider-Verse is another a great experience.
While it may not be a match for its prequal it still manages to do what all sequels
try to do; it went bigger, and it went further into the lore. Unlike many other
sequels, it does the job masterfully. Frankly, this movie is outstanding and
feels like a miracle, and it’s extremely odd to me that this is the same studio
that produced Mobius and the Venom movies.
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| The Spot is back, baby! (This caption is for my fellow 90s Spider-Man cartoon fans) |
I give Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse 5 out of 5 Adorable Pandas.
Pros
-A fantastic cast of characters
-Great script and dialogue
-Spider-Punk!
-Absolutely incredible visuals, with and deep level of
details
Cons
-But said visuals can be overwhelming for some people
-Lacks a proper ending (but this is by design)
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