Best Spider-Man Movie.

Rating: 10/10 (9 January 2019)

Sony Pictures Animation has had its ups and downs. It had critical and financial success with Hotel Transylvania but stooped as low as the Emoji Movie in 2017. However, they bounced back the following year with Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which is undoubtedly their best movie, and one of the best animated movies of the decade. While Sony has made 5 Spider-Man movies since 2002 (not counting the Venom spin-off), this is the first one to not focus on Peter Parker, but rather on Miles Morales. Miles is hesitant to take on the superhero life due to his school life and his cop father's disapproval of Spider-Man in general but is encouraged after witnessing the death of Peter Parker. While that sounds like a major spoiler, it happens 20 minutes into the movie. He spends the movie learning what it means to be Spider-Man, and how much harder it is than it seems. Miles' arc is handled very well, and he develops well from not wanting to have his powers at all to embracing his new role as Spider-Man.
There are a whole host of Spider-People, as one may infer. There's Miles Morales, Peter B. Parker, Gwen Stacy (Spider-Woman), Spider-Man Noir, Peni Parker, and Spider-Ham. Peter B. Parker is the middle-aged, washed up Spider-Man, who serves as a mentor for Miles. Gwen Stacy appears as Spider-Woman, who meets Miles early on and is the first to join him and Peter. Spider-Man Noir, Peni Parker, and Spider-Ham are mostly comic relief, but they're great at that. There are a whole host of villains, but they mostly aren't that notable. The main villain is Kingpin, whose motives aren't interesting. It's the same thing as Kaecilius from Doctor Strange in 2016. Prowler is actually a very interesting character, and the twist involving him was done very well. Doc Ock (who in this universe is Olivia Octavius) was a fine side-villain. The others (Green Goblin, Tombstone, Scorpion) don't really do much, but they awesome to watch, given the animation. If there's one thing to complain about with the characters, it's that Spider-Man 2099 doesn't have a role in the main film. But the existing cast of Spider-People are great characters, and it's great to get a proper Miles Morales movie.
The animation is absolutely spectacular. This is the closest thing we've ever gotten to a comic book movie in its truest form, meaning that the animation looks like it came right off the pages of a comic. There is nothing like this. From the character designs, to the beautiful flow of animation (especially in the fight scenes, which are mind-blowing), and above all, the text and onomatopoeias that appear on screen. It's one of those movies that's worth seeing in 3D. There is definitely a part of the animation that shows its setting. The soundtrack, which features a lot of rap music throughout fits in well with the visuals. Another great thing about this is how Noir, Peni, and Spider-Ham fit in, despite being done in their own distinctive style of animation. With Peni, for instance, she's an anime character, and the way she's animated follows a distinct anime style, but she never feels out of place. Same goes for Spider-Ham being like a Looney Tunes character. The movie is also well written, and has some excellent moments of humor, but knows when to take itself seriously. When it's funny, it's really funny.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is without a doubt the best Spider-Man movie ever made. As much as I have nostalgia for the Raimi trilogy, I must admit it's been bested. In addition, Spider-Verse is the best superhero of 2018, and one of the best superhero movies of all time. This is an absolute must watch for any fans of Spider-Man, Marvel, or comics in general. It's also worth noting that the movie ends with a touching tribute to Stan Lee, as this is the first Marvel movie since his passing. It's great to see him and Steve Ditko honored at the end.