‘Let’s do things differently this time…’
The first Spider-Verse movie demonstrated that it is possible to approach these old stories and inject something new into them. That film was inventive and innovative because it took the Spider-Man myth and through the character of Miles Morales did something that hadn’t been done before. This sequel is more ambitious and complex than its predecessor and there are moments in which it even surpasses the source material…
Still reeling from the introduction to the Spider-Verse, Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) breaks everything when pursuing supervillain Spot (Jason Schwartzman) across time and space. Here, Miles meets a whole new army of Spider-People presided over by their imperious leader Miguel O’Hara (Oscar Isaac) and he soon realises the terrible consequences of his actions.
Rather than stepping back or slowing down, directing trio Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson double down on the mind-bending implications suggested by the first movie. Free from the burden of providing an origin story, Across the Spider-Verse is able to spread its wings and throw absolutely everything at the screen. The result is a breathless and often breathtaking spectacle that puts its live-action cousins to shame. Doctor Strange is namechecked at one point here, a mention that draws attention to just how superior the handling of many worlds theory is here in comparison to anything that was achieved in those movies. The issue here, and I’m loathe to say this, is that this movie is often too ambitious. Clocking in at just under two and a half hours, there is so much plot here as well as meditations on fate, destiny and existential dread. It’s a dizzying assault on the senses that recalls Rick and Morty in its more madcap moments. High praise indeed.
Across the Spider-Verse is perhaps not quite as outright enjoyable as the original film but it also represents a giant leap forward in terms of scale and ambition. A lofty and worthy sequel.