Vibrant and entertaining superhero filmmaking with a heart as big as its glorious eye-popping visuals, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse delves into the complex web that is the Spider-Man universe and delivers an engrossing, uplifting viewing experience.
Superhero movies are here to stay. They make too much money and are enjoyed by too many people to simply fade into the ether. The trick now is for movie studios to figure out how to keep the momentum going and the shtick fresh. The answer could very well be found in the animation medium, as proven in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the latest and quite possibly best entry in the Spider-Man franchise.
This is not the first time a superhero movie has gone the feature film route. The Incredibles exemplifies the best of the medium, and Warner Bros. have a collection of DC Universe titles that are very popular in the home entertainment market. Yet the grand scale in which Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is presented does mark a substantial shift in how these films are made and marketed, and if the projected box-office of this film matches the quality of the filmmaking, look for many more animated superhero fare to be placed in production.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is an origin story, yet not the same old story we have heard before of “power”, “responsibility”, and the usual. No, this time we follow the story of Myles Morales (Shameik Moore), a half African-American, half Latino teenager from the borough of Brooklyn who (you guessed it) is bitten by a radioactive spider and given superhuman abilities. If things weren’t complicated enough for the young man, an interdimensional wormhole caused by the evil Kingpin (Live Schreiber) has brought all manner of Spider-People (and creature) from other dimensions into Myles’ world. Among them is a down and out Peter Parker (Jake Johnson) and spunky loner Gwen Stacey (Hailee Steinfeld.)
Much like Sam Raimi’s 2002 released Spider-Man revolutionised the superhero movie as we all know it, so too will Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Produced and written by the creative duo of Chris Miller and Phil Lord (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs), and directed by the trio of Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman, …Spider-Verse goes beyond any limitations found in its medium or genre. The animation is simply fantastic, with character designs giving an edge to the usual traditional visual depictions of these characters. Meanwhile the landscape imagery gives a pop and energy to the New York playground which these heroes call home. Indeed, the sight of our favourite wall crawler swinging through the boroughs of New York City has never felt so electrifying.
An excellent assemblage of talent deliver quality voice work to characters who are not only filled with personality and complexity, but a great deal of heart and spirit as well. The films biggest strength is found behind the spectacular colour and infectious energy. There is a pulsating humanity in this story of superhumans who not only have to withstand the hits thrown at them from all matter of villain, but also those haymakers that life likes to throw with full gusto.
Exciting, funny, heartfelt and innovative, Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse is the best superhero movie in a very crowded class of 2018.
