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"I loved 'Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.' I've seen it twice already, and I'm legitimately looking forward to seeing it again. It's a different kind of superhero movie, and if they were all like this, the genre would probably be my favorite. The tone, the aesthetic and the story all fit what I envision a superhero movie being, and I'm eagerly awaiting a sequel."
These are the words I wrote in December 2018 in my review of "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse." The movie caught me off guard, instantly becoming my favorite Spider-Man flick and one of my all-time favorite superhero movies. The sequel I was eagerly awaiting is finally here, and I was nervous it may be a letdown.
How do you match the near-perfectness of the first movie? The originality and humor were so singular that I didn't think that lightning could strike twice. I walked into the theater with my 10-year-old son on Tuesday with equal parts excitement and hesitation. I walked out with equal parts elation and relief.
Here are a few reasons "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" isn't just a worthy sequel of the original, but possibly superior.
The story is enthralling
Those who have read my reviews in the past — and do not want to burn my house down — know that I am a sucker for a great story with solid characters. The character building in the first film was first-rate. Still, we build on that in the sequel and meet new, exciting characters we immediately care about.
In addition to these tangible characters, we have a story that grabs you from the start and doesn't let go. The beginning is more character development than action, but it works. The relationships it sets up, the tone it's creating and the tension it builds keep you glued to the screen.
The creativity is off the charts
Like most critics, I have dreams that go far beyond writing about movies and, instead, writing movies. I have a million and one ideas floating around my head, and some have even made it to the page, but it is movies like "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" that put those dreams back in the depths of my own mind. I can remove my ego and admit I could not create something as brilliantly creative as this film.
The jokes are seamlessly blended into the drama and action. The world-building is precise and mesmerizing. The personalities are differentiated and personal. The story arc is complex yet accessible. It's a brilliantly crafted film that is in another stratosphere, creatively.
That said, some moments shouldn't work, including a brief journey to a Lego world, but they do and with significant effect. My mind is twisted into knots as I try to think about writing this script with all of the nuance, universes, characters and story threads, and then weaving them together masterfully. The construction and creativity of this movie have me in awe.
The animation is stunning
As I mentioned this same point in my review of the first film — the animation is uncommon. Like the first film, the comic-book vibe is strong, but it's taken in new directions — which may take a few minutes to get used to — but it's a strange and special visual to behold. The amount of hours that went into creating this world, or worlds, is hard to imagine as great detail was taken into each frame of the 2-hour, 20-minute film.
Conclusion
I am gushing about this movie, but I don't care. It was nothing short of brilliant. There have been some wildly entertaining movies this year that I really enjoyed — films like "Air," "Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves" and "Tetris" are a few that stand out but, for my money, "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" is the best movie of the year and it's not close.
You may enjoy the movie less than I did, but this is certainly worth seeing in the theater. I already have tickets purchased to take my family this weekend. In fact, as we walked out of the theater, my son looked up at me and asked, "When can we buy that?" I told him it would be a while, but it will be one that we purchase.
"Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" is officially rated PG for sequences of animated action violence, some language and thematic elements.
