I still remember the first time I watched the movie “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”: I had been sitting in the living room with my family, laughing and tearing up at certain scenes together, all of us thoroughly enjoying the film. After finishing it, I remember thinking, that was amazing! I can’t wait to watch the next movie!

Lo and behold, five years later, the sequel—“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”—was released in theaters on June 2, 2023. Instantly, I heard countless praises for the movie; I knew I had to watch it as soon as I could. I headed to the nearest theater with a friend the week after the movie was released, and for the next two hours I immersed myself in the movie—it was an incredible experience, for several reasons.

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” follows the character Miles Morales as he navigates the difficulties of being Spider-Man amid traveling across the multiverse and encountering hundreds of other versions of Spider-People. Throughout the course of the movie, Miles grapples with his relationship with his mother and father, who are unaware of his identity as Spider-Man. He also reunites with Gwen, a Spider-Woman from a different universe that appeared in the first movie as well, and meets several new characters, such as Pavitr Prabhakar, Hobart “Hobie” Brown, the Spot (a former Alchemax scientist-turned-villain), and Miguel O’Hara, the leader of the Spider Society. Miles finds himself in the midst of conflict that forces him to make difficult choices involving his friends, his family, the multiverse, and his role as Spider-Man.

First off, the movie was absolutely visually incredible. The first film has long been heralded as groundbreaking in 3-D animation, and the second film went even further. The color palettes and atmospheres were distinct—Gwen’s universe, for example, employed shifting colors in a painted style that amplified the emotion of the scene—and made the visuals breathtaking. The urban environments, too, were fleshed out and unique. For example, a portion of the movie takes place in “Mumbattan” and clearly takes influence from both the urban metropolis of New York City and Indian architectural influences. Like in the first movie, common features of comic books appeared in the film in the form of Miles’s internal thoughts. The action sequences and the way that each character was animated with such attention to detail—Gwen’s fighting style as Spider-Woman takes influence from ballet as displayed through her agile, elegant flips, while Pavitr’s style was inspired by the Indian martial arts form Kalaripayattu. Along a similar vein, the character designs also awed me. The style that Hobie was designed in was unlike anything I’d ever seen, capturing the personality of the character Spider-Punk so well with constantly-shifting backgrounds, outlines, and colors. 

Further, I adore the soundtrack—I’ve listened to the songs dozens of times in the past two months since seeing the movie! The way that each character’s distinct theme is interwoven into the soundtrack is a matter of musical genius, cultivating an atmosphere of tense action, ominous foreboding, or sentimental gentleness depending on the scene. My favorite track would probably be the final song, “Across the Spider-Verse (Start a Band).”

Most of all, I loved the characters and their stories. Miles’s struggle throughout the movie felt so real to me, and I could feel his internal conflict about whether or not to tell his parents his secret identity and the difficulties he faced with his two separate lives. It was incredible seeing Miles’s development throughout the movie as he encountered different people throughout the Spider-Verse. His own belonging and identity as Spider-Man was questioned throughout the film, too, in parallels between a conversation with Rio Morales, his mother, and a later conversation with Miguel. Gwen’s story, too, was expanded upon significantly in the second movie as we are introduced to her past with her universe’s Peter Parker, and her struggles with her father, a policeman. Each characters’ personality was compelling and entertaining; I loved the Spot’s dialogue in the scene with the ATM and especially the quips that he and Miles exchanged, as well as Hobie’s remarks throughout the movie that felt very on-theme with his anti-establishment values. I had so much fun seeing each of the characters interact in such engaging ways, fighting together, fighting against each other, having emotionally-vulnerable moments with each other, and much more.

All in all, I would absolutely recommend “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.” There was never a moment that I was bored, as the movie really pulled me in. My favorite scene would probably be the final scene: that ending had me on the edge of my seat (no spoilers, though)! The story and settings, too, were both incredibly strong. I honestly cannot wait for the third and final movie to be released—especially after that cliffhanger—and to see more of Miles Morales and his journey! If anyone is looking for an incredible movie, I implore you to watch this one—you won’t regret it!

On this blog, members of the Carmel High School chapter of the Quill and Scroll International Honorary Society for High School Journalists (and the occasional guest writer) produce curations of all facets of popular culture, from TV shows to music to novels to technology. We hope our readers always leave with something new to muse over. Click here to read more from the MUSE Summer Series.