A Closer Look At Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse

Believe it or not, but it’s been almost five years since ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ first swung its way onto our screens. The movie hit the big screen in 2018 and went down as an instant success - and not just among fans. The movie is the best-reviewed ‘Spider-Man’ film of all time on Rotten Tomatoes and went on to make almost $400 million across the world.

As if that wasn’t enough, ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ was the first non-Pixar or Disney movie to win the Oscar for Best Animated Feature, a huge feat in anyone’s books. Now, it’s the turn of its sequel, with plenty alive with anticipation now that it’s finally here. A closer look at ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ goes to show that the wait was most certainly worth it.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse offers some helpful recaps before diving in

Just in case you haven’t watched ‘Into the Spider-Verse’ recently - and why not? - ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ jumps into things with some helpful recaps about where Miles Morales (played by Shameik Moore) and Gwen Stacy (played by Hailee Steinfeld) are in their lives. It’s been a year since the first movie took place in the latest addition, but it’s not long before we learn the true scale of things. While the first film focused on Miles and his world, ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ shows just how many fully-developed worlds there are - and how we’re going to be seeing a lot more of them throughout.

The latest Spider-Verse sees Miles Morales have to make some big decisions

Just because the scale of the universes is huge, that doesn’t mean ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ forgets about the beating hearts behind it all: Gwen and Miles. This time. They are tangled up in a web with the Spider Society, made up of several Spider-People across their own multiverse. Miguel O’Hara, aka Spider-Man 2099 (played by Oscar Isaac), is the leader of them all as they try to protect the multiverse from those who might just collapse time and space as they know it. As soon as Miles learns that he might not agree with his new Spider folk, he has to decide what really makes a hero, whether Gwen is there with him or not.

The visuals are out of this world in Across the Spider-Verse

Of course, one of the most obvious things about ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ is how absolutely stunning it looks. It might sound like a cliché, but it’s tough to deny the multiple animation styles - often being used all at once on the screen - really bring the multiverse to life. After all, it clearly defines where the Spider-Men are from and how they live, making for some breathtaking moments. Then there’s the fact there are so many Easter eggs hidden throughout. In fact, there are so many you might find yourself wanting to watch ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ again as soon as it’s finished. The best bit? Although you might forget about the story among it all, there’s never a shortage of things moving forward.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse doesn’t rely on visuals to forget about the story

Just because it is visually stunning doesn’t mean that ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ relies on its good looks and nothing else. Oftentimes, there isn’t a need for extensive dialogue and descriptions about where a Spider-Man has come from, as it’s all explained through the animations alone. The fight between a Renaissance-era Vulture and multiple Spideys alone goes to show how innovative scenes can be, something that’s been lacking in several recent releases.

There is still plenty to come from the Spider-Verse franchise

Standing at 140 minutes might seem too long for some, but ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ uses its extra time to flesh out Gwen and Miles’ arcs even more than the first film. The duo behind the characters continue to show why they were the perfect picks, with both getting full emotional journeys and satisfying conclusions, even if there are some unanswered questions. ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ is a two-parter, after all.

The ending might leave some people feeling a little unfulfilled

The supporting characters, the story, the animation - it’s hard to find something not to love about the latest ‘Across the Spider-Verse.’ That is until we get to the ending. Plenty will only invest hours into something if they know there is a big payoff coming, which doesn’t entirely happen with this film. Being a two-parter means there is the expected cliffhanger, but the final action scene can feel a little drawn out to many. Then there’s the fact ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ doesn’t quite pack the cliffhanger punch of other action franchises, but that shouldn’t stop many from keeping on the edge of their seats until ‘Beyond the Spider-Verse’ hits the big screen in March 2024.

Somehow, ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ takes what could be the stale idea of a multiverse and turns it into something incredible. It might have taken almost five years to see it come to life, but now it’s here, there’s no telling what the third installment might hold.