Spider-Man: Into the Spider Verse

Erica Nazimowitz, Staff Writer

Spider-Man has been very busy over the past two years. He’s popped up in two movies, including Avengers: Infinity War, which was one of the biggest blockbusters of 2018. He also got his own self-titled video game on the PlayStation 4, one that was very well-received for its unique take on the web slinging hero and its open-world gameplay.

But this isn’t the only interesting version of Spider-Man released this year, either. Into the Spider-Verse inserts Miles Morales, a half Puerto-Rican and half black high school freshman bitten by a radioactive spider. The movie chronicles his struggles in a new school away from his friends, alongside his newfound spider powers.

Miles in the lead role isn’t the only uniqueness in this movie, as it also boasts an incredible animation style, inspired by the comic books these superheroes came from. It looks as if all of the characters have leaped directly off the pages, with onomatopoeia scattered all around and the animation sometimes shifting into comic panels. The action scenes left me on the edge of my seat; one of them that stood out in particular to me was Miles’ “leap of faith,” in which he jumps off the side of a building to fully test out his spider powers. The other Spider-People in this movie also have varying animation techniques, such as the cartoony Spider-Ham, with an almost flat-looking style, and Peni Parker being inspired by anime in her animation.

All in all, Spider-Verse is a must-see for all new and old Spider-Fans, a spectacular and incredibly fun movie well-deserving of the Golden Globe it recently took home this year for Best Animated Feature.