The film begins with the traditional origin story of Spider-Man, narrated by the protagonist Morales, voiced by Shameik Moore. However, it quickly changes pace by introducing parallel universes, and the many variations of Spider-Man. The main villain of the film, Kingpin, voiced by Liev Schreiber, is determined to use a large Hadron Collider to access alternative dimensions in search of a replacement for his lost family. The collider malfunctions, and Morales’s universe merges with several other alternate dimensions, resulting in the arrival of many different Spider-People.
Peter B. Parker, voiced by Jake Johnson, is the first Spider-Person Miles meets in this new reality. Parker is a noir-style Spider-Man from a dimension where he lost his Aunt May and his wife, Mary Jane. The pair set off to stop Kingpin and his henchmen, alongside other Spider-People including Gwen Stacy, a.k.a. Spider-Woman, voiced by Hailee Steinfeld; Peni Parker, voiced by Kimiko Glenn, Spider-Ham, voiced by John Mulaney; and Spider-Man Noir, voiced by Nicolas Cage.
The film boasts of an impressive animation style that breaks traditional boundaries, using a mix of hand-drawn comic book-style animation, computer-generated imagery and live-action comic book halftones to create vibrant Spider-Verse worlds. The animation is also used to develop the film’s character personalities, subtle details like a mouth quivering in fear or a raised eyebrow, adding depth and charm to the characters.
The screenplay, by Phil Lord and Rodney Rothman, pays tribute to various Spider-Man comics and storylines, but it’s creative enough to have its own unique story. The film’s characters confront numerous challenges and tackle the problems of parallel universes in a way that emphasizes the universality of the stories. The movie touches on themes of self-discovery, self-acceptance, loss, and the importance of family, creating a Spider-Man world that is smart, humorous, and emotionally resonant.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is also a pioneering movie in terms of diversity in the superhero world. Miles Morales is the lead character, and his black and Hispanic background speaks to a diverse audience. Furthermore, the film presents an alternate universe Peter Parker, whose older, divorced, overweight, and carrying a considerable amount of emotional baggage. The film shows that there’s more than one person who can wear the Spider-Man mask, and it tears down the notion of a hero needing to look and act a certain way.
The supporting voice cast of this movie is equally impressive. Academy Award-winner Mahershala Ali voices Miles’ Uncle Aaron; Lily Tomlin plays Aunt May, whose house they use as their base of operations; and Brian Tyree Henry plays Miles’ father, a hard-nosed cop. The voice cast is diverse, and the performances are excellent, which brings the characters to life.
In conclusion, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is one of the best superhero movies of all time. It’s an animated movie that is visually stunning, cleverly scripted, and has an excellent soundtrack. It offers everything from humor to action and delivers it in a way that both hardcore comic book fans and general audiences can appreciate. It’s a genuinely groundbreaking movie, it embraces diversity and inclusion, and it’s a joy to watch. It’s a film that deserves all the recognition it has received, and it has set a high bar for future superhero movies.