Possibly the Best Spider-Man Feature Film Ever Made

Rating: 10/10 (11 December 2018)

Growing up, I grew an appreciation for the character of Spider-Man that I've never been able to develop for any other comic book character. It was Sam Raimi's original live-action trilogy that hooked me and had me scrounging for more. Watching countless episodes of every cartoon iteration, and even starting to read a few of the comics, I found myself becoming a huge fan of this generational icon. Once Spider-Man 3 hit theatres, the character had lost all hope on the big screen, until Andrew Garfield took the role from Tobey Maguire, which didn't last too long, and also crashed and burned. Finally, he found his footing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, played by Tom Holland, but none of that matters when watching Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Not only is this the best that this character has been in a while, but I believe there's a real argument to made that this is possibly the greatest feature-length film based on this character, period.
In this film, which is loosely based off of storylines that are very similar to how this movie plays out, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse follows Miles Morales as he's bitten by a radioactive spider and develops the same (and more) powers as his hero, Spider-Man. After an event opens a portal, it's revealed that his universe isn't the only one. There are endless dimensions out there with parallel characters and creatures, all with similar backstories. From Spider-Gwen to Spider-Ham, this film explores the classics as well as the bizarre, which I fear will probably turn off some average moviegoers who haven't experienced these characters yet, but if you can't embrace a film like that, it's probably not for you anyways.
From the very first teaser trailer, I was very intrigued by the look of this film and how different it looked from most animated films out there today. With only a couple of notable films in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Arthur Christmas, Sony Pictures hasn't had the best track record in terms of releasing animated movies theatrically. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has given new life to that notion, because this isn't only the best they've ever produced in my opinion, but it's the best animated movie that has come out all year. The unique style leaps off the screen and made me find another layer to love, on top of the fantastic storyline and characters surrounding it.
Yes, the origin story of Peter Parker is the one that everyone knows. That is very much present here again, and nearly every one of these characters share similar backgrounds, but it feels as though the filmmakers expect the audience to be in on the joke of that. This movie is very meta at times, and it works very well if you're invested in the movie as a whole. At the emotional core of this movie is how these characters differ from one another and how certain circumstances can be worse than others. There are some fantastic life lessons to be learned by children here, and for that, I only loved this movie even more.
In the end, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse impressed me on many levels. It gives you the Spider-Man action that you've come to expect from this character, as well as giving new life to it. The character of Miles Morales has just as many layers to his story as the classic Peter Parker one, but the inclusion of each one of the side characters here fleshes him out even more. This is one of the best superhero origin stories I've seen on the big screen in years. Filled with heart, emotion, plenty of action, and eye-candy as far as the eye can see, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is one of my favourite films of the year.