Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)

Into the Spider-Verse (2018) introduced us to four Spiders from other Earths, but Across the Spider-Verse opens it up and introduces us to, or at least shows us, dozens more. Spider-Gwen, who we met in the first movie, is the main Spider focused on from a different Earth. It seems like she and Miles, our Earth's Spider-Man, are more than friends, or they would like to be. There's only one problem, and it's not that they're from two different Earths. It's that a relationship between Spider-Man and Gwen never works out in the long run.

Even though there are all those different Spiders out there, we find out that the "canon" stories each of them follows generally have events that cannot be changed. Spider-Man and Gwen not working out is one of the canon events. Another is: Spider-Man cannot save the people closest to him -- be it, Aunt May, Uncle Ben, their father, etc.

Does freewill not exist anywhere in the multiverse? Miles cannot accept that. He wants to be the author of his own story. He doesn't accept the limitations of the canon. Unfortunately, the movie offers a kind of trolley problem: If Miles tries to save his dad from dying, as the canon story says that he must, for example, can he prevent the consequences? The consequences are supposed to be pretty dire.

We also learn something about Miles. Into the Spider-Verse presents the idea that anyone can be Spider-Man, but Across the Spider-Verse says, nope, not really. Miles, perhaps, "wasn't supposed to be Spider-Man." Why not? Because the spider that bit him wasn't meant to bite him.

Okay, so if something wasn't supposed to happen, then how did it happen? Either things happen according to some "universal plan" or they don't, right? Can "mistakes" really slip through?

This movie is about 30 minutes longer than the first movie. I noticed a slight difference in pacing, too. In this one, there are pauses in the action, where things seem to slow to a stop. Although I think it's good for movies to slow down and speed up, the slow spots might have gone on a little too long.

It's also difficult not to be curious about the dozens of Spiders we only get to glimpse. I appreciated the first film because we got to know the other Spiders a little bit. None where simply shown as background.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

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