Across the Spider-Verse Review: Imma do my own thing
Across the Spider-Verse
Director: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson
9.9
The delicate balance of a dark story, riveting characters, and wonderful animations was executed perfectly.
Without a shadow of a doubt, Across the Spider-Verse was an amazing movie, which even tops its predecessor. With a darker tone, amazing plot, captivating characters, and an otherworldly soundtrack, everything about Across the Spider-Verse was perfection. The only reason this movie doesn’t receive a perfect score is because the other half of this story hasn’t been released.
Man, where do I even start.
I think the first thing I want to mention about Across the Spider-Verse is that it’s just better than Into the Spider-Verse, you can check out my thought here! There’s no comparison. Into the Spider-Verse may have set up Across the Spider-Verse, but something about Across the Spider-Verse just hits different. Honestly, just wow. What an amazing movie.
Now, you’re probably wondering why I’m reacting to this movie this way, but honestly it’s just that good.
Let’s start with the plot, which was perfectly paced and intriguing. Now, Across the Spider-Verse is only the first part of a two part story. And for a movie that sets up for the next part, it does its job perfectly. Compared to the first movie, Across the Spider-Verse is a much darker story. Right from the beginning, we get to experience the death of Gwen’s Peter Parker. Starting on such a somber note really encapsulates the whole experience. Even though Miles gets a few happy moments in this movie, the majority of the time is spent with him struggling through his existence.
From the last movie, Miles has grown up a year, and this is reflected in his actions. The whole plot revolves around Miles rebelling against the expectations forced upon him. I honestly loved watching his expectations of his life shift throughout the movie. From wanting to be a part of the Spidermen saving the multiverse, to casting it aside to become his own person, there was so much happening that it kept my attention the whole movie.
It was also great how the plot explored the “canon” events that all Spidermen share. Explaining it the way they did through a web of connections was an interesting one choice which helped my understanding of the situation. This was also a great time for cameos, though they were for quite sad moments.
Now, besides the plot, which is honestly something you’ll have to experience for yourself, the characters in this movie were amazing, and were even better than the ones in Into the Spider-Verse. Now, there are some returning characters, but the new ones really stood out quite a bit. I think my favourite part of this movie was that there weren’t any real villains besides The Spot. Although Miles does fight against a lot of Spidermen, those Spidermen weren’t necessarily evil. They were just trying to do their jobs. I think another character I really liked in this movie was Miguel.
The person holding the whole multiverse together, Miguel has a special role in the world. Even though his role is mighty, he still acts harshly towards Miles. I think this was perfectly done, as Miguel is trying to protect what he has lost. He knows the consequences of his actions. He knows what happens if he fails. And when Miles ruins everything, I can empathize with his reasons, but I can’t support his method for containing the situation.
Miguel’s suit is also interesting. When it comes to Miles’ dark suit, he still has the characteristics of Spiderman. He still has his sense of humor. But Miguel, on the other hand, has a darker suit with more angles. Even though he’s a hero, his suit makes him look evil. I really liked seeing this dichotomy, because Miguel is a good guy, but at the same time, he looks like a villain. Just visually and thematically appealing.
Quickly, as a side note about characters, The Spot was a great villain. Something about the way he started off so carefree and fun, to being vengeful and murderous, was so cool to see in a Spiderman movie. When the first started, I didn’t take him seriously, just like Miles. But as he got stronger and more dangerous, I found myself loving the character even more. I think I have a soft spot for characters that really delve into the darkness of humanity, and watching The Spot become threatening enough to destroy the multiverse was really enjoyable.
Final thing to note, because you just gotta watch this movie, is that the atmosphere of the movie is much darker. From the music choice, to the colour palette, everything about Across the Spider-Verse is just darker. Since the movie covers some darker topics as well, it all just fits well together. I think a moment that stood out to me the most was when Miles escapes back to Earth 42.
In the wreckage, Miguel stands ominously, his suit pulsating in the darkness. That one scene took my breath away. Besides that one scene, the whole movie itself covered darker topics as well. From the deaths of important characters, to the destruction of worlds, Across the Spider-Verse never ran from these topics. I think because of that, the movie hit a lot harder. Comparing this movie to the first, although there were some dark moments in Into the Spider-Verse, Across the Spider-Verse cranks it up to eleven. A great choice, in my opinion.
All things considered, Across the Spider-Verse has got to be one of my favourite movies of all time. The delicate balance of a dark story, riveting characters, and wonderful animations was executed perfectly. It perfectly sets inup for the third movie, which I’m excited for, once it releases in less than a year. Give it a watch if you haven’t already. It is beyond worth it.
