1402 - Film Review Exercise
Tutorial 1
Mohammad Azhar
With Spiderman: Into the Spider-verse setting records and breaking animation
boundaries, a question was on everyone's mind; “will the sequel manage to uphold
this reputation and reach this bar that had been set so high?”. The short answer is a
spectacular yes! Spiderman: Across the spider-verse not only reinvigorated the
visual spectacle that was the forefront of the first movie, it elevated the familiar cast
with the harmonious art direction and the enthralling soundtrack allowing the
audience to better empathise and sympathise with these characters.
The movie opens with a cacophony of drum strokes, leading into our
deuteragonist’s heartfelt drum solo and exposition. Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld),
begins her reintroduction with the quintessential “my name is…” followed by her
monologue. Providing insight to her internal affairs, a theme is being established; the
adolescent problem of feeling like you don’t belong and finding a mentor-figure to
lean on. This dissonance is seen in the relationship with her father, someone who
she knew wouldn’t accept her secret identity. Gwen’s home and her place of comfort,
dismantled by her father’s disdain towards Spider-woman, is no longer a place she
longs for. During a bewildering fight with a not-so-familiar renaissance-esque Vulture
(Jorma Taccone), a reimagined Jessica Drew (Issa Rae), emerges becoming a figure
Gwen looks up to. Miguel O’hara (Oscar Isaac), who had entered the fray, presents
her a device, one that can take her places beyond her world, a way to reach her
friend.​
We are then introduced to the beloved main protagonist, Miles Morales
(Shameik Moore) alongside the main antagonist the Spot (Jason Schwartzman).
Accompanying the bustling atmosphere of New York, we have the staple hip-hop
music playing. The Spot is introduced as a gag character, presented as comic relief,
getting accustomed to his newfound abilities. Miles on the other hand is well-versed
and flaunting the fruits of his labor, quite the juxtaposition. Miles’ negligent attitude
during the altercation fuels Spot’s resentment towards him. A beautifully
choreographed chase scene ensues. We follow Miles and his two conflicting
lifestyles, one where he is your average 15 year-old boy, with a desire for
independence from his parents, and a young superhero with newly refined abilities,
trying to be your friendly neighbourhood Spider-man.
The theme of acceptance is forefront with both Miles and Gwen, being
conflicted, lying to the people they hold dear, while also fearing whether or not they
will accept them after hearing the truth. Miles and Gwen had people they could
speak to for a peace of mind, both were lost by their hands. This increased their
reluctance to turn to the people they have left, their parents. This is what the
directors had envisioned for the film. Justin K. Thompson, Joaquim dos Santos, and
Kemp Powers wanted to capture the relationship between a child and their parent,
as it's a relatable experience [1]. They wanted to put an emphasis on the characters
behind their costumes, and who they are fundamentally, aligning with Stan Lee's
vision when creating Spider-Man, a character that has real world problems, a
character that is just as much human outside the mask as he is behind it.
The directors considered themselves to be the “leading edge of animation”, as
proven by the innovation and ingenuity that the previous film had brought to the
table. To not repeat what they had already done and to bring about a fresh breath of
air, they began experimenting [1].
“Don't let the art get ahead of the story, let the story dictate the art.” Joaquim dos
Santos’ mindset going into the second film [1].
Art director Dean Gordon brought this to life with his masterful vision
alongside the talented animators. Its stylistic use of comic-esque visuals, applied
with visible onomatopoeia along with the screentone and panelling effects, makes it
feel like a page ripped straight from a comic book. The most simple of facial gestures
for the Spider-people provided an astronomical amount of emotion and personality to
an otherwise hidden face. ​
​
​
We see the fruits of their labour in the rebellious, anarchist character Hobie
Brown, AKA Spider-Punk (Daniel Kaluuya). Reflective of his character, he is also
animated very differently from the rest of his peers. They wanted to capture the punk
rock art style with its distinct multi-media aesthetic which all came together in chaotic
harmony. Like how an architect's vision is an engineer’s nightmare, the director's
ambitions with Hobie were far from orthodox for the animators [1]. Different parts of
his body were animated at different frame rates, his colour palette would periodically
change. His kaleidoscopic visual composition made it impossible to avert your gaze.
A gruelling 2-3 years to construct a character who “doesn’t believe in consistency”.
We reach the climax of the movie following Miles and Miguel O’ Hara having a
conflicting moral dilemma. Picking between saving his father, or entire realities. A
multiversal trolley problem. Miles doesn’t want to be bound by an algorithm he has to
follow, he doesn’t believe things are set in stone. This conflict sends Miles escaping
from the Spider-Society, but also finding himself becoming trapped in another
dimension. Gwen, who had sided with Miles, was banished back to her reality.
Leaving both characters to face their personal problems head-on. Eventually
allowing them to receive the peace of mind they so desired. Leaving them stronger
and more unified to face the challenges to come.
This movie is a two-and-a-half hour masterpiece which couldn’t have
contained the story the creators set out, making it a two part film. With a budget of
100 million, the film managed to swing far past its desired revenue with a whopping
400 million accumulated within two weeks of its release [2]. Spider-man: Across the
Spider-Verse left the first film in the dust, challenging the animation and comic
industry once more, bringing the spark of cinema back to life. With a jaw dropping
cliff hanger, fans cannot wait to see what Beyond the Spider-Verse has in store.
Bibliography
[1] Tyrrell, Caitlin. 2023. “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Art Director Breaks
down Gwen Stacy’s Earth.” ScreenRant. August 29, 2023.
https://screenrant.com/spider-man-across-the-spider-verse-clip-gwen-stacy/.
‌[2] Larasati, Dyah. 2023. “‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse’ Budget Breakdown:
Just How Successful Is the Super Sequel?” Collider. June 21, 2023.
https://collider.com/spider-man-across-the-spider-verse-box-office-breakdown/#:~:tex
t=This%20makes%20Across%20the%20Spider.
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