Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

This review may contain spoilers!

 

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a sequel to 2019's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. In this instalment Miles and a group of interdimensional spider-people band together to defeat emerging villain, the Spot. But as Miles races against time to defeat the Spot he learns the unsettling truth about what every Spider must face on their heroic journey throughout the multiverse. This film kicks the doors off right from the beginning by opening with a twist on the original introduction from the first film and also by showcasing Gwen's heartbreaking origin story. This film is a lot of Gwen carrying around a lot of the hurt from the first fifteen minutes and how she copes with that and I honestly thought that raised the storytelling exceptionally. Miles Morales has also grown into himself as a superhero, he works really confidently and competently as a superhero and has moved beyond being a rookie Spider-Man. The interesting character point with Miles here is that he feels quite lost in his personal life, he gives himself to being a hero a lot but hasn't been especially honest to those closest to him and that is creating a rift. Before he can really confront this he is wrapped up into another multiversal adventure that is wild fun, just insanely creative envelope-pushing action. I also think that moment in which Miles resists the idea that fate is determined for all of the Spiders is a key, pivotal point that really defines him as Spider-Man. I cannot even begin to describe the epic cliffhanger we were left on, those last ten minutes presented something that will rock audiences and leave them impatient for the third in the series.

 

When I watched this film I was reminded of what made me truly fall in love with Into the Spider-Verse. The absolute showstopper animation. The style of this film is so fresh and distinct, there are entire elements from the first feature that has gone on to inspire and shape how major studios deliver animation, this has happened over the past few years. So how does one top that? This film boasts a different animation style for every universe our main characters visit. Gwen's dimension is so bright and uses colour to reflect tone tone and character emotion. Mumbattan is a much softer colour scheme that picks a busy palette in an appealling way, I really enjoyed how soft pastels dominated the design here. 2099's world was a bit more cyberpunk, all sharp edges and an almost retro take on a futuristic world. Seeing how prepared the creators were to constantly challenge their own style and give us something visually new was really impressive. I also have some major props to the soundtrack which drives the journey and sets the atmosphere a lot more in this one, the score tugs on the heartstrings while also revving the action right up as well.

 

Shameik Moore, who voiced Miles Morales, brings a new sense of confidence to Miles that I really enjoyed; the most sincere part of his performance was depicting miles' conflict with his parents and the way he struggled with lying to them. Oscar Isaac, who voiced Miguel O'Hara, feels like a character who is clutching at the threads of his former heroic self; Isaac brings a colder take on Spider-Man that becomes more aggressive as the feature progresses. Jake Johnson, who voiced Peter B. Parker, is criminally underused this time around; I loved Johnson returning to the kindly mentor figure while also juggling the giddy new Dad persona. Brian Tyree Henry, who voiced Jefferson Davis, is quite a likeable figure with a lot of love for his community and family; I enjoyed seeing Tyree Henry continue to bring a role who is really stumbling through parenting a teenage son. Luna Lauren Velez, who voiced Rio Morales, is in this so much more than the first film and I loved this film for that; Velez being given some time to work with the character resulted in one of the coolest Mum roles we've had in animation in a long time. Daniel Kaluuya, who voiced Hobie Brown, is such a quietly chaotic figure; the way Kaluuya brought this real indifferent yet confident delivery that really rebelled against the Spider network that had been established. Jason Schwartzman, who voiced The Spot, is such a tragically dorky antagonist when first we meet him; yet Schwartzman does a great job of slowly shifting how he presents The Spot to steadily make him scarier. Karan Soni, who voiced Spider-Man India, was such a fresh fun character; I enjoyed Soni being one of the more together and traditionally heroic Spider-Man figures of the film. Amandla Stenberg, who voiced Spider-Byte, was quite an interesting minor role; Stenberg really brings a bit of intrigue to this cyberspace Spider heroine. Jorma Taccone, who voiced The Vulture, was a great antagonist to kick this feature off with; he brought a wild quality that really made him stand out as an interesting villain. Shea Whigham, who voiced George Stacey, brings one of the more emotional performances of the film; Whigham's gruff police officer and Dad wrestling with his sense of duty over his love for his daughter is my favourite inner conflict of the film. Mahershala Ali, who voiced Uncle Aaron, is downright intimidating this time around; Ali brings a colder edge that sets this portrayal apart from the first film. Greta Lee, who voiced Lyla, is quite a light and fun performance that offsets Isaac nicely; I felt she provided the setting of the 2099 dimension with just a little more personality.

 

However, the best performance came from Hailee Steinfeld, who voiced Gwen Stacy. There's a lot more from Steinfeld in terms of leading the film right from the beginning. We get a real sense of the distress and pain she carries around, the loneliness she feels due to the big hole in her life that is missing Peter Parker and Miles Morales. I loved see the tougher scenes of expressing love between herself and her on-screen Dad, voiced by Whigham. At the core of her performance Steinfeld gives a solid Spider-Woman performance, quipping some seriously great lines and really engaging in the frantic banter of the action scenes. I also think she does a great job of portraying the developing relationship between herself and Moore's character, the romance there feels like genuine young love which is sweet. But what I liked most of all about her performance was how she portrayed Gwen's regret at siding with Miguel and her strength facing against such a big authority figure. Gwen truly becomes the leading hero in this feature.

 

This feels like a perfect comic book storyline in a lot of ways but it suffers some of what Into the Spider-Verse suffered, a stacked cast and a lot of exposition. The film has a lot to introduce and the multiverse aspects becoming even more important means things need to be explained more often. I think this does bog down the pacing in parts, particularly in the first and second act. I also found the idea of Spider characters being bound by 'Canon' events to get a little on the nose, the emotional impact on the story works. But what I found difficult to read in the context of the film was how there was always a dead police captain in every Spider's reality, it just got way too specific and convenient for the direction of the plot. Yes, Spider-Man always faces tragedy but he always faces a dead police captain? This one element could've been written better than it was.

Issa Rae, who voiced Jessica Drew, is a stoic role that is often overshadowed by Isaac's Miguel; Rae is not given a lot of opportunity for range and is squandered as Gwen's mentor figure in the background. Andy Samberg, who voiced Ben Reilly, really just goes fully over the top for this role; his depiction of an overly angsty and broody character feels more like parody than what the rest of the cast is doing.

The feeling of opening a comic book and letting your imagination go wild is the essense of these exceptional Spider-Verse features. I would give Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse an 8.5/10.