Visually stunning film about an unwilling protagonist

Rating: 7/10 (3 January 2019)

It's very hard to break new ground in the superhero genre. Not only have Marvel and DC fallen into their own unique set of clichÃ©s, but movies like "Guardians of the Galaxy" and "Deadpool," each intended to subvert tropes, became old hat by their sequels.
Visually, "Into The Spider-Verse" is indeed a departure from several of these formulas. The animation is unique and fascinating, a colorful blend of digital and comic-book-style animation that was fun to watch (though at times made me wonder if I was watching a 3-D film without the glasses). There's a genuine effort to breathe new life into the genre and have fun with the source material, including its flaws, which was a welcome change from the garden-variety superhero film.
As much as I was impressed by the visuals, I couldn't help but feel a strange disconnect throughout the entire film, like trying to see something through the fog. It broke my immersion just enough to pull me from the story.
A nagging gripe I had about the film is the way the characters were handled. This felt like the cinematic equivalent of the "Overwatch" video game where diversity and character designs are substituted for creating interesting characters. Like Widowmaker and Tracer, these are characters designed to be drawn by a multitude of artists on Twitter - particularly in the NSFW realm, despite many of them being high school age and the Anime-inspired Penny Parker clearly even younger. This is further ironic because Penny has so little screen time and is given an emotional scene during the climax that is completely unearned.
Even Miles, who we spend the most time with in the film, doesn't have a clear motivation to become a superhero. Prior to being bitten, he doesn't have any motivations at all. He's not by nature altruistic and treats his newfound powers as an irritation, something forcing him to conform, just like the prep school his parents put him into. Both as a student and, later, a superhero-in-training, older figures are frustrated that they can't seem to get Miles to focus on improving himself. He's inhibiting himself, and at least one teacher calls him out on it.
About all Miles wants to do in this film is vandalize New York with stickers and spray paint, something he does from the very first moment we see him right up to the end credits. The closest thing he does to channeling this interest is spray-painting one of Spider-Man's suits to make his own. Any arc of him turning his talents toward art, like a similar character in "Equalizer 2," is instead big-footed by a typical Marvel plot to which he is completely unsuited. While there are times that he seems to be picking up skills from his cohorts, none of these lessons have any permanence in his mind. He gives up near the film's climax with frustrating ease, and the group all but gives up on him.
In this way, Miles reminded me of Nick Cannon's character in "Drumline" - someone with clear talents, but no desire to refine them, instead wanting to have respect handed to him without putting in the work. In both films, we do not see a protagonist change, but instead, others around him changing in order to accommodate him. The only difference in "Spider-Verse" is that when the other superheroes change, they do so in spite of Miles, and not because of him.
It's unfortunate because Miles, unlike Nick, is a good kid in this film, despite his lack of motivation. He's not unlikeable - he's just unfocused. It's a consequence of the writing. There's a clear gap between the scared and inattentive Miles through most of the film and the sudden completely-in-control hero who dominates in the last five minutes. The mastery of his skills comes to him suddenly and without reason, which was frustrating because of the care taken in most other aspects of the film. Seeing him actually choose to change in that way would have been so satisfying.
There are a lot of positives to take from "Into The Spider-Verse." It is a bold-looking film that takes a lot of chances, including some very real stakes on both sides. I just wish the characters, particularly Miles, were handled the same way.