Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Synopsis:

After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn's full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. However, when the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other Spiders. He must soon redefine what it means to be a hero so he can save the people he loves most.

Movie Review:

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” is directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson, and it is the sequel to the 2018 critically acclaimed first movie “Spider-Man into the Spider-verse”. Like the first movie, this is an incredible, action-packed movie with an emotional story -- one of my favorite films of 2023. It is filled with fantastic and eye-popping animation that makes this movie standout from other animation movies in the past. Shameik Noore returns to voice Miles Morales who has been the new Spider-Man for a year trying to balance school, crime fighting and lying to his strict loving parents. Hiding who he really is makes this character relatable to many and you like Miles even more. He has an interesting character arc that stands out as this Spider-Man compared to the others in past movies. Hailee Steinfeld plays Gwen Stacy (aka Spider-Gwen), and she steals the show as this lone character with a tragic back story of losing her dad and best friend Peter. Her friendship and romance with Miles are full of chemistry and emotion. This film really turns into ‘her’ movie. I loved having different Spider-people like Jake Johnson (Peter B. Parker), Daniel Kaluuya (Spider-Punk), and Isaa Rae (Spider-Women); they are all unique with different abilities that were fun to watch. Oscar Isaac plays Miguel O’Hara who is Spider-Man 2099 and is the leader of the Spider-Man task force that is trying to protect the multiverse, and he is a great anti-hero who is strongly motivated which makes him a dangerous adversary for Miles. Jason Schwartzman plays the Spot (the main villain) Miles’s nemesis, and he gives a talented performance as the evil villain. I am a huge fan of comic book movies, especially Spider-Man, and this is a well-made, character driven and emotional movie that I loved. I am giving “Spider-Man Across the Spider-Verse” 5/5 stars.

Directors: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson

Cast: Shameik Noore, Hailee Steinfeld, Jake Johnson, Oscar Issac, Issa Rae, Daniel Kaluuya, Karen Soni, Jason Schwartzman, Amandla Stenberg, Andy Samberg, Luna Lauren Velez, Shea Wigham, Greta Lee, Brian Tyree Henry, and Mahershala Ali

Runtime: 140 Minutes