On June 2nd, 2023, the second installment of the animated Spider-man movies was released, and like the first installment, “Spider-man: Across the Spider-Verse” wowed its audiences with its impressive animation and story.
The film was released on Prime Video, Vudu, and Apple TV on August 8th; available to rent for $5.99 and to buy for $19.99. The movie runs for two hours and 20 minutes, with every minute displaying breathtaking animation reminiscent of a comic book page and countless references, callbacks, and parallels to the movie’s predecessor, “Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse,” as well as the many other versions of the Spider-man story.
For those who haven’t yet seen the first of the “Spider-Verse” movies, I recommend watching it before getting into the second, both so you can understand the story, and so that the animation, references, humor, and more can be truly appreciated.
“Across the Spider-Verse” follows Miles Morales, the Spiderman of his universe, Earth-1610, as he grapples with the effects of the collider, made by Kingpin in the first movie. Despite destroying it, the machine’s activation has led to “anomalies” randomly being thrown into different universes, with no way of getting back to their own.
The machine’s activation also led to one of the scientists who worked on it developing the ability to create holes that allow him to go between both space and dimensions. Giving himself the name “The Spot,” and appointing himself Spiderman’s nemesis, his goal is to make Miles pay for what the collider did to him.
Miles, however, has other things to worry about; school, parents, and missing his friends who are currently in their dimensions. One of these friends, Gwen, has recently joined Miguel O’Hara’s team of spider-people who are working to fix the problem that Kingpin’s collider created. Using a device that allows her to travel to other dimensions safely, Gwen goes to see Miles.
Miles is insistent on joining her and the other spider-people, knowing it’s the one way he could see his friends. However, Miles, Gwen, and two other spider-people, Hobie and Pavitr first follow The Spot into Pavitr’s dimension before Miles is allowed to go to the headquarters for the team’s operation. Miles learns the specific reason behind why he hasn’t been visited by his friends or told about O’Hara’s team, which leads to a chase and Miles eventually getting back home.
This movie is one that I’d highly recommend for several reasons. For those who love the Spider-Man comics and movies, it masterfully connects the stories and experiences of each version of the hero and makes references and jokes that would no doubt bring a smile to your face. For those who love art and animation, the film is a work of art the whole way through; a culmination of four years of animation with different styles used to draw the different spider-people in the film, immersing the audience in the concept of a multi-dimensional superhero team.
You don’t need to have a deep interest in either of these things to enjoy the film, however. As a person with little knowledge of the Spider-Man comics or animation, this film was still one of my favorites from the past year. The movie doesn’t have a dull moment, keeping the audience entertained the whole way through with the interesting dynamics between each character, a solid sense of humor, and the mystery of Miles’ role in the origin of the anomalies.
I only have one warning to those who wish to watch the film, it does end on a cliffhanger, with a promise that Miles Morales will return in the third installment titled, “Spider-Man Beyond the Spider-Verse.” Be prepared to finish the film and feel slightly unsatisfied, not because of a bad story or bad execution, but because you wanted the film to continue.
The four-year wait for “Spider-Man Across the Spider-Verse” was most definitely worth it, exceeding the already impressive animation of the first film and expanding on the wide world of Spider-Man. If you have downtime after school or need something to do over the weekend, this film will most definitely not disappoint.
