The film rights to Spider-Man are in a weird place right now. Although last year's Spider-Man: Homecoming emerged as the result of an agreement between Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios, this year has seen Sony release several products meant to preserve its hold on the license: a well-received video game, a disastrous Venom movie, and most recently Into the Spider-Verse, an animated film which shifts focus from Peter Parker to Miles Morales, who came to adopt the Spider-Man moniker in Marvel's Ultimate Spider-Man comic book series.
If Homecoming saw Marvel Studios tentatively experimenting with more complex themes, Into the Spider-Verse is more novel for its psychedelic visual style, which combines bright comic-book colours with a wide array of other influences and a healthy dollop of self-referential surrealism. At a time when the Spider-Man brand is reaching peak saturation, it has justified its own existence not only by being arguably the best Spider-Man movie, but also by being the most Spider-Man movie. And yet, as prominent as the film's fanservice is, it's always grounded in genuine pathos and humour, and the film wisely streamlines its story so that the history behind certain plot elements, while enhancing them, isn't necessary for enjoyment. Indeed, beneath all the flashy visuals and goofy references, this is a movie which contains all of the elements necessary for a good superhero film and then some.
If Homecoming saw Marvel Studios tentatively experimenting with more complex themes, Into the Spider-Verse is more novel for its psychedelic visual style, which combines bright comic-book colours with a wide array of other influences and a healthy dollop of self-referential surrealism. At a time when the Spider-Man brand is reaching peak saturation, it has justified its own existence not only by being arguably the best Spider-Man movie, but also by being the most Spider-Man movie. And yet, as prominent as the film's fanservice is, it's always grounded in genuine pathos and humour, and the film wisely streamlines its story so that the history behind certain plot elements, while enhancing them, isn't necessary for enjoyment. Indeed, beneath all the flashy visuals and goofy references, this is a movie which contains all of the elements necessary for a good superhero film and then some.
