I went in expecting a fun animated Spider-Man movie. I came out thinking I’d seen the best superhero film ever made.
Miles Morales is a Brooklyn kid with a new school, a dad who embarrasses him, and an uncle who actually listens. Then the spider bites. Then a pile of Spider-People from other dimensions come crashing through his city. Origin story and team-up at once, and neither half gets shortchanged. That alone is a small miracle.
The animation earns every word spent on it. A comic book got up and started moving: printing dots, panel breaks, little text boxes popping in mid-chase. It’s a lot to take in the first time. I’d call that a feature.
Shameik Moore makes Miles sound like an actual teenager, awkward and scared and funny without trying. Jake Johnson’s burnt-out Peter B. Parker steals every scene and still never flattens the serious ones. Hailee Steinfeld’s Gwen could have been a sidekick. Instead she carries her own quiet sadness in the background.
Here’s the moment that gets me. Early on, Miles’ spray-painted sneakers are a dorky kid thing his dad gives him grief about. Later comes the leap of faith, the shot flips over, and those beat-up shoes are the last thing you see as he falls up into the city. Same shoes, different kid wearing them. No dialogue needed.
The soundtrack is perfect. The jokes land. The grief underneath is real, not decoration. Every emotional beat is paid for in advance.
Anyone can wear the mask. This is the film that convinced me. Watch it, then watch it again for everything moving in the corners of the frame.
See Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse on TMDB
