Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse – a breathtaking and bombastic ride through the Multiverse

Spider-Man is and always has been one of my favourite superheroes. As a child and early teenager, I absolutely devoured the comics. Every now and then, there would also be periods of radio silence between me and the superheroes. That changed in 2002, when I turned 25 and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man hit theatres.

Even though I somehow never quite warmed up to Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker, the film was still a throwback to my childhood. It reminded me of all the fascinating, exciting, and carefree hours that superhero comics – especially Spider-Man – had given me. Since then, I’m back in the game, at least when it comes to DC and Marvel movies and series. And after Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse knocked my socks off, it was absolutely clear that I wouldn’t miss the sequel under any circumstances. And it was worth it. The makers of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse sure did deliver again!

Before we get into the nitty-gritty, rest assured that you can keep reading without hesitation. This movie review contains no spoilers. Everything mentioned here has already been revealed in trailers.

Spider-Man, Spider-Man, does whatever a spider can do

A good year has passed since the events of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Miles Morales, your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, sees to peace and order in Brooklyn.

In day-to-day life, he has to deal with the typical struggles of a 15-year-old: parents who don’t get him, planning his future … and there’s Gwen Stacy, aka Spider-Woman from the first movie. Miles just can’t get her out of his head, even though they’re literally worlds apart.

Gwen, on the other hand, is now working on a secret mission and has her hands full in the Multiverse. When she lands in Miles’s dimension during her mission, the two reunite.

Once Miles finds out who Gwen is working for, it’s inevitable – he goes on a wild ride through different worlds. Along the way, he meets old acquaintances and new allies with whom he has more in common than he thought. At the same time, danger is brewing that could have devastating consequences for the entire Multiverse. And the further away Miles moves from his loved ones in the process, the more it becomes a journey towards finding himself.

From «Into» to «Across»

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse hit theatres in late 2018 and was groundbreaking in more ways than one. The idiosyncratic and rather unique animation style takes you back to the good old comics. Add to this the outrageously exquisite soundtrack, which could hardly capture and reproduce the groove and vibe of a vibrant Brooklyn better. And then, of course, there’s the whole story about a fresh-faced Miles Morales, who unexpectedly becomes Spider-Man, meeting Spider-Mans from other worlds in the process.

Into the Spider-Verse rightfully snagged heaps of awards, including both the Oscar and the Golden Globe for best animated film. Given this success, it was only a matter of time until a sequel came along. And, after the premiere was postponed by over a year due to the pandemic, it’s finally here with Across the Spider-Verse. Was it worth the wait?

Heck, yes! The second part of the Spider-Man franchise centred around Miles Morales does everything the first film already did right. These animations are inspiring and even more manifold and offbeat. And again, the soundtrack seems perfectly planned out; I really felt and heard Brooklyn.

In keeping with the inspiring images and harmonious music, Across the Spider-Verse continues to tell the story of Miles Morales in a thoroughly entertaining way. The film picks up threads from part one and interweaves them, again telling a story with a lot of wit, lightness and, above all, action. There’s fist-swinging, butt-kicking and web-slinging as far as the eye can see. It’s a lot of fun to watch, especially because it seems the creators knew no limits to their creativity. Without giving too much away, you’ve certainly never seen so many Spider-Men, Spider-Women and Spider-Animals; I’m talking guest appearances and cameos and all.

Despite all the lightness and action, Miles Morales also gets a bit more depth in the second part. The youthful recklessness seen in Into the Spider-Verse morphs into a kind of coming of age story, which I personally like. The events in the first part undoubtedly matured Miles, both as a person and Spider-Man. Now, he’s trying to find his place in both dimensions. His double life is also enormously taxing. With great power comes great responsibility, as all Spidey fans know. And shouldering this responsibility is anything but easy, especially for a 15-year-old.

What didn’t really get to me, surprisingly enough, were the saddest scenes. I say surprisingly, because I’m known to get teary-eyed very quickly during sentimental scenes. Perhaps these scenes felt too set up or predictable, I can’t quite put my finger on it.

The lowdown: bring on part three!

Regardless, I’m a huge fan of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. «Harder, better, faster, stronger!» is what the makers seem to have thought after part one. If you ask me, this mantra has proved a total success. Now they just have to be careful not to go totally overboard text time, that is, in 2024, when the sequel, Beyond the Spider-Verse, is set to hit theatres. They’re already close to doing so; the movie boasts a runtime of two hours and 20 minutes. With too much nonstop action, that can prove tiring.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will be in cinemas in German-speaking Switzerland and Ticino starting 1 June 2023, and in French-speaking Switzerland from 31 May 2023. Runtime: 140 minutes. Age rating: 10 years, recommended from 12 years.