WatchSeeLookView - Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse

Seeing as you haven’t had a film-related blog for at least a couple of days, let’s kick off the week with a review of an animated feature that’s currently still just about doing the rounds in the cinema.

Spider-Man:Into The Spider-Verse
Dir. Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, Rodney Rothman / Dur. 117 min.

In a nutshell:- It’s the Spider-Man origin story that you didn’t realise you needed.

The Good:- Funny, bright, exciting, fast-paced, moving - this is the best Spider-Man film in...well, possibly ever. In an opening sequence (sort of) positions this as a follow up to the last Sam Raimi / Tobey Maguire Spider-Man film (and pokes a nice amount of fun at one of the worst moments in Spider-Man 3), we meet a blonde-haired Peter Parker who’s been web-slinging for 10 years. This isn’t his story, however - this is the story of Miles Morales, a teenager introduced as Ultimate Spider-Man in the comics world some time ago. Miles is convincingly a teenager of the modern age and straddles the line between cool and dorky. The film shows him becoming the Spider-Man that this world needs when tragedy befalls Peter Parker and shows his impact on not just this world but the multiverse as a whole.

Things That Are Fun:- As you would expect from the co-writer of The Lego Movie, it’s pretty much a comedy for much of its running time. The repetition of the origin montage for each subsequent Spider-Person is a good running gag. The sequence involving a newly-powered Miles Morales dragging an unconscious Peter Parker across New York is well-executed slapstick. The on-screen graphics for sound effects and inner thoughts that mimic the look and feel of a comic book. Nicolas Cage Cage-ing it up as the black-and-white, ‘30s-style Spider-Man Noir. The Warner Bros-style antics of Spider-Ham. The satisfyingly massive design of the Kingpin. The surprisingly emotional cameo from the late, great Stan Lee (the choice of wording feels very much like they knew this would be one of his last appearances). The post-credits gag scene. And much more besides.

The Bad:- The only real downside is that, as part of the visual stylistic choice, a few sequences have the doubled-up effect of looking at old school red-and-green 3D without the glasses which just make things look a little blurry but it’s really a very minor niggle.

The Verdict:- If you only bother with one Spider-Man film, make it this one. If you’re not really that into superhero films but like funny animated films then give this one a go. I thought this was a 90 min film until I looked up the running time and discovered it was nearly 2 hours! It flew past and I have to say that I’m already looking forward to watching it again. For once, here’s hoping there’s a Spider-Verse 2...