SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE | ©2023 Sony/Marvel

Rating: PG
Stars (voices): Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfield, Oscar Isaac, Jake Johnson, Issa Rae, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Velez, Jason Schwartzman, Daniel Kaluuya, Shea Whigham, Amandla Stenberg, Karan Soni
Writers: Phil Lord & Christopher Miller & Dave Callaham, based on the Marvel Comics
Directors: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson
Distributor: Sony/Columbia/Marvel
Release Date: June 2, 2023

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has for awhile now been walking the self-awareness tightrope. This was wonderfully enjoyable and inventive in 2018’s animated feature SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE, in which teen Miles Morales (voiced by Shameik Moore) not only becomes Spider-Man, but (thanks to a portal-opening villain) discovers that each universe has its own Spider-Man, or Spider-Woman.

This gives us not only all sorts of different characters, but many different kinds of animation as well, from traditional superhero to pointillist to black-and-white to you name it.

The likewise animated follow-up, SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE, is now here. Exactly how delightful or otherwise may depend greatly on how invested the viewer is in exploring Spider-Man minutiae.

“Wait a minute,” the average SPIDER-MAN moviegoing audience member may say here. “Isn’t that the case with all SPIDER-MAN movies?”

To some extent, yes, but SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE arguably takes this to new levels. This multiverse is crawling with Spider-People who sling around terms like “canon event.” Sure, they’re talking about their destinies and not comic book history, but the issue is essentially, exactly what is it that makes a SPIDER-MAN story a SPIDER-MAN story?

This is a perfectly worthy question for a SPIDER-MAN story to tackle. SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE explores it visually as well as narratively. We get 2D animation, 3D animation, and even brief bursts of live action, along with motion-capture.

Maxfield Parrish pastel-hued backgrounds are juxtaposed with the bright red-blue-and-black-costumed Spider-People. There are even sequences where fully animated characters go through their paces in front of sketched rooms with barely visible furnishings.

So, directors Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson, and screenwriters Phil Lord & Christopher Miller & Dave Callaham have us wondering what makes SPIDER-MAN look like SPIDER-MAN, along with what constitutes a legitimate SPIDER-MAN narrative.

The focus of SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE remains on Miles, while extending to fellow teen Gwen Stacy (voiced by Hailee Steinfield), who is Spider-Woman on her home world. Gwen and Miles met in the previous film, which happened sixteen months earlier (at least, in Miles’s dimension). Gwen finally comes to see Miles. When he tries to find out why she hasn’t been to visit sooner, he learns a lot more about the Spider-Verse.

Miles is also dealing with the Spot (voiced by Jason Schwartzman), a deceptively gentle-sounding supervillain who makes dimensional holes and pegs Miles as his nemesis.

This all seems like extremely rich material. What are the caveats?

For one thing, Miles and Gwen have some similar parental problems that play out in pretty familiar ways. Indeed, the plot goes pretty much where we’d expect. This is no doubt intentional, to give us time to contemplate the weight of the film’s stylistic variety and philosophical heft, but it’s less actual fun than we might suppose SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE might provide.

The cast are all on target, with Daniel Kaluuya especially entertaining as someone who Miles accurately describes as looking even cooler without his superhero suit.

SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE is likely mandatory animation viewing for how it combines forms. Its other aspects may be vital to some viewers, while more pleasurable to debate live than to watch for those less engaged.

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