In 2018, Sony’s “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse earned universal acclaim and made enough money at the box office. It became the first Marvel movie to win an Oscar for “Best Animated Feature.” Thanks to the critical and financial success, Sony developed a follow-up titled, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” with Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy traveling different universes to stop a villain named, The Spot. The pair also encounter Miguel O’Hara. A futuristic alternate version of Spider-Man from the year 2099 who’s the leader of an organization called, “The Spider-Society.” Sony’s next batch of animated movies including “Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse,” “Spider-Women” & “Spider-Man: Octopus Girl” are in the works.
In late 2023, Insomniac Games’ highly anticipated sequel to Spider-Man will be released exclusively on the PlayStation 5 with Peter Parker and Miles Morales as playable characters.
This review contains no SPOILERS. Feel free to check out my non-spoiler article.
Full & Empty Qualities
Full: Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Oscar Isaac, Jake Johnson & Bryan Tyree Henry reprise their roles from the first movie. They all did an excellent job for their respective performances.
Newcomers to the sequel such as Daniel Kaluuya, Issa Rae, Karin Soni, Andy Samberg, Amandla Stenberg, Shea Whigham & Jason Schwartzman all did a decent job for their respective performances.
Kemp Powers (One Night in Miami) & Joaquim Dos Santos both did a great job directing.
Filmmaking duo Phil Lord & Chris Miller wrote the script.
Animation’s beautiful to look on the big screen. Whenever a character enters a universe, it feels unique. Makes you wanna explore more universes.
Action Sequences are spectacular. A chase scene with Miles running away from Miguel leading numerous Spideys is worth the price of admission.
Humor has a few funny moments. Especially the pointing meme. Thankfully, it doesn’t contain constant poop jokes depicted in “Teen Titans Go.”
Daniel Pemberton (Birds of Prey, Enola Holmes) orchestrated an instrumental score.
Chemistry between Miles & Gwen serves as the main highlight. Their friendship moves the story forward.
The Tone is slightly darker than the last movie. Kemp stated Across the Spider-Verse takes cues from “The Empire Strikes Back.”
We learn about the tragic back stories involving Gwen & Miguel.
The Spot serves as the main antagonist. First time I’ve heard of him was the ‘90s cartoon.
Primary Themes are Choice, Destiny, Loss, Friendship & Family. Each one’s handled carefully.
You already know every single Spider-Man movie and cartoon is tied to Across the Spider-Verse. Miguel mentioned a nerd from Earth-199999. Tom Holland’s Spider-Man from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Meaning, the MCU, cartoons, Tobey Maguire & Andrew Garfield’s movies are canon.
Speaking of canon, various versions of Spidey including “The Spectacular Spider-Man” Insomniac Games’ Spider-Man make cameo appearances. Josh Keaton & Yuri Lowenthal reprise their roles. I couldn’t find the ’90s cartoon. It would’ve been awesome to hear Christopher Daniel Barnes’ voice. He’s my all-time favorite Spider-Man voice actor. That would’ve been the icing on the cake.
There’s a twist near the end. I can’t tell you all about it. You’ll have to see for yourself.
Don’t bother waiting for a Post-Credits Scene. Once the movie’s over, you’ll be ready to leave and go to the bathroom.
Empty: Pacing can be a drab at times. It’ll take a while to witness every single Spidey at Miguel’s HQ. If you have a small bladder or a short attention span. You just have to be patient. The sequel’s running time is two-and-a-half hours long. Making this the longest animated movie in history.
I don’t wanna get cancelled for this but, there’s a sign in Gwen’s room labeled, “Protect Trans Kids.” Hear me out, Im not a Democrat or a Republican. As a Centrist and a member of the Forward Party, I don’t think it’s necessary to introduce our kids to a controversial subject regarding the trans community. If I had a kid who came out as trans, I wanna talk to him/her there’s shitty people in the world who won’t tolerate acceptance. I would take him/her to a psychologist to talk about personal problems at school or going through peer pressure. Consult with a doctor, discuss when’s the right time to undergo replacement therapy. If my kid wants to have a sex change operation, I’m only gonna tell him/her you have to be 18 and up.
Children deserve to live an innocent lifestyle without being manipulated by Leftist propaganda. If this keeps going, companies will die. Bud Light & Nike’s stocks are dropping after they hired Dylan Mulvaney as a spokesperson. Remember Disney’s “Lightyear” and “Strange World” flopped at the box office due to adding a gay character? I don’t wanna sound homophobic/transphobic, LGBT characters can’t be in kids films? Why? Because they cannot exist in this social climate. If Disney produced a remake of King Arthur as a trans girl in The Sword in the Stone, they’re f**ked or if they make Quasimodo gay in “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” they’re f**ked.
The problem with Disney nowadays is they’re being controlled by Democrats. Disneyland hired a creepy dude as The Fairy Godmother’s apprentice greeting little girls. So, let me get this straight, Disney fired Gina Carano in The Mandalorian over her controversial political views. Meanwhile, Disney allowed Casey Anthony as a guest in Disney World and hired a possible pedophile. The House of Mouse are Hollywood hypocrites.
To paraphrase a line from “X2: X-Men: United.” “Have you tried, not being a Leftist?”
The Final Verdict: B, FOR BRIGHTNESS!
Despite two gripe, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a good sequel. Definitely worth a five-year wait. A must-see for any Spider-Man fan out there. I highly recommend it. I cannot wait for Insomniac Games’ upcoming Spider-Man sequel.
Nickthemoviecritic.com 