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.
