• Release year: 2023
• Director: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson.
• Producers: Avi Arad, Amy Pascal, Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Christina Steinberg.
• Screenplay by: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and Dave Callaham.
• Art Director: Dean Gordon.
• Music by: Daniel Pemberton.

Shotgun Commentary: the references, cameos and animation are so perfect you won’t even care about the predictable story.

Review

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is one random ball of craziness filled with colours, amazing music and jaw-dropping animation.

First things first, the film begins with a recap of the instalment, a clever move considering Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse dropped in 2018, and a lot of things have happened in our lives since then. So, unless you are a super fan of the movie and have watched it a thousand times since then, a recap is very much necessary.

High hopes, big regrets

The story picks up from the first instalment’s ending, this time focusing on Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld). While said focus doesn’t last long, and we are soon taken to Morales’ life, there is a very significant shift on the importance of the female characters in this feature. They are more relevant and their opinions are seen, heard and shared with the same attention as the male characters. Also, pregnant Spider-woman (Issa Rae)? Hell yes!!

Apart from the wonderful additions, which will be further analysed later on, the narrative is…a bit disappointing. It is so targeted to children that it gets boring for anyone over the age of thirteen.

The storyline is predictable, and the characters think and react so slowly to new developments that the audience is two or three steps ahead most of the time. Additionally, some issues are so easily resolved that the plot becomes senseless and frustrating.

The only factor that makes up for all this is the enormous amount of humour featuring the dialogues and the endless references to memes, comics, films and other Spider-Man related products.

Out with the old

Most of the characters were introduced in the first part of the Miles Morales trilogy, and sadly they don’t evolve much since then. Gwen is a specially frustrating character because she began her story as a hot-headed teenager who thinks she’s super special and acts recklessly without thinking about the consequences… And she ends this instalment just the same. The last two minutes are promising, but only Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse will tell.

Miles and Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson) don’t change much at all, either. Despite Peter having a kid and Miles learning about a possible tragedy in his dimension, they stay the same. Their personalities and decision-making criteria are not affected at all. In Miles’ case, much like with Gwen, there is an exceptional opportunity for change in the last minute, but only the next instalment can confirm it.

In with the new

Regardless of the simplicity of the characters, their voice actors are fantastic. Oscar Isaac as Spider-Man 2099, Daniel Kaluuya as Hobie Brown, Karan Soni as Pavitr Prabhakar and Issa Rae as Jessica Drew (Spider-Woman) are simply perfect. They give their parts so much life and personality that every other character fades when they shine their light.

Spider-Man 2099 is a specially interesting and complex character from which very little is shared in the film, and his origin story feels so off that it adds to the mystery instead of solving it. For his part, Hobie is the type of character that seems superficial and fake at first, but hints at something deeper, which makes him incredibly charismatic and gripping.

As for Pavitr and Jessica, they both have big, likeable personalities that help pickup the pace of the narrative and make it lighter in grave moments. All of them add something that mas missing in the previous feature, whether it is complexity, a surprise factor, depth, or meaning; prompting a huge improvement in terms of cast.

Imagination imitating art

The indisputable winning factor of the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is the animation. It makes you forget all about the story. It could be a two-hour-long video clip or a screensaver, and it would still be the best animation you’ve ever encountered.

The mix of styles and colour palettes is a masterpiece. Every technique complements each character and their personality. The colours used are an explosion of light every single time, and the combination only gets better when taking the cinematography into consideration.

The camera movements and special effects have nothing to envy from any Marvel live action feature. They are beautiful, striking and as powerful as it can get. Every single element on screen complements the rest and sings an ode to the incredible amount of work and talent that the animators have put into the piece.

Love for your hearing

The auditory part of the story is also not far behind in terms of flair and technique. Every scene is accompanied by the perfect beat, setting the exact mood you need to watch what’s coming next and making sure no one is left behind in the emotional trip that Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse wants to take you in.

Advice to take from this movie:

• Stories become irrelevant when the piece is beautiful enough.
• If something smells fishy, there is a reason.
• Never trust a person who acts like they are better than you, they are most likely not.

What’s your take? Are you a Marvel fan? Have you watched Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse? Maybe Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018) and you wanted to know if the next instalment is worthy? Don’t hesitate to let me know your thoughts in the comments section below, or leave a message in my contact page! For more reviews and cinema-related articles, check out the rest of my blog! 😀

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