'Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse' Review

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse doesn't release for another two weeks (December 14th for those curious), but I saw the film at an early screening tonight, and since the embargo's already been lifted, I figured I'd review it early!

'Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse' Review

Nominated For: Best Animated Feature.

Won: Best Animated Feature.

Bitten by a radioactive spider, teenager Miles Morales suddenly develops mysterious powers that transform him into Spider-Man. He then must team up with Spider-Men from other dimensions to stop a threat to all reality.

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse is co-directed by Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman and features a screenplay penned by Rothman and Phil Lord. Believe it or not, but it's actually the first feature-length animated Spider-Man film to be released in theaters, and as a devout reader of the initial 2015 Spider-Verse comic series run, I was very excited by the announcement of this project. Though I remained skeptical since it would be produced and distributed by Sony's animation division, whose two most recent films were Hotel Transylvania 3 and The Emoji Movie... Not to mention that Sony has done a disservice to Spidey fans many times over the years... 

So it is with great pleasure that I say Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse is an experience like no other! Not only is the hybrid animation style a vibrant and refreshing-of-pace, but it's unlike anything I'd ever seen in an animated film before. Into The Spider-Verse resembles a three-dimensional comic book in the most interesting way imaginable. You get everything from text blurbs and speech bubbles to the web-slinger's trademark thwips and spidey sense. Just as The LEGO Batman Movie was for Batman, Into The Spider-Verse is a fitting tribute to everyone's favorite web-head because there are plenty of easter eggs and references to Spidey's longstanding history across all forms of media. There is, of course, a Stan Lee cameo, and since it's the first time Lee's voice has been heard in a film since his unfortunate passing, my entire audience erupted with applause while I admittedly shed quite a few tears. On that note, stick around through the credits not only for a hilarious post-credits scene but also to read a heartfelt dedication to Lee. 

Though there are multiple versions of Peter Parker to be found in the film, this is Miles Morale's story first and foremost. Fortunately, Morales' cinematic debut offers a very faithful depiction of the character and his origin. However, this strict adherence to the source material may make certain major twists and reveals a tad predictable for any comic book readers already familiar with his backstory. It's admittedly a trade-off because fans would probably be up-in-arms if anything were to be substantially altered, but integrating his story with the Spider-Verse hi-jinks kept things engaging.

Into The Spider-Verse is charming from the outset thanks to the inclusion of so many Spidey-iterations, and the combination of differing animation styles and an A-list vocal ensemble really bolster this group of spider-people. Shameik Moore lends a youthful exuberance and vulnerability to Miles Morales while Jake Johnson portrays an older, burnt out Peter Parker (there's another actor who voices Peter Parker which hasn't been disclosed yet, so I'll preserve that casting secret). Meanwhile, Hailee Steinfeld, Nicolas Cage, John Mulaney, and Kimiko Glenn voice a self-reliant Spider-Gwen, shady private eye Spider-Man Noir, the porky Spider-Ham, and anime-inspired Peni Parker. Cage's Spider-Man Noir and Mulaney's Spider-Ham are honestly a treasure trove of comic relief, but that core ensemble had excellent chemistry between the six of them. Other notable actors are Mahershala Ali, Brian Tyree Henry, and Liev Schreiber as Miles' easy-going uncle Aaron Davis, strict father Jefferson Davis, and hulking mobster Kingpin.

After previously webbing up baddies in seven live-action features, the beloved wall-crawler's assuredly swung into the medium of animation, and Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse captures the spirit of Spider-Man better than any of its predecessors. In a surprising turn of events, Into The Spider-Verse is not only my favorite animated film to be released this year, but one of 2018's best films, period. Determining exactly where it ranks in relation to my other favorite comic-book movies will require at least one more viewing, but one thing's for sure, Stan Lee would have been very proud. 

Film Assessment: A+ 

'Snowden' Review

Snowden is a dramatic biopic detailing Edward Snowden's decision to leak classified government intelligence that revealed the National Security Administration's illegal surveillance methods and his journey towards that choice.

Oliver Stone directs the film adding another political drama to his filmography about controversial figures in history, dramatizing the real life events quite effectively. The film's best moments were the transitional scenes narrated by Joseph Gordon Levitt's monotone Snowden that championed interesting visualization of website data, media clips, and NSA data collection in order to express what the CIA and NSA were up to at those points in time.

Unfortunately, the screenplay written by Stone and cowriter Kieran Fitzgerald leaned heavily towards Snowden's viewpoint failing to show the other side of that coin and restricting the viewer insight into the real controversial bits of the narrative. Snowden breezes through substantial chunks of Edward Snowden's life in the service and has some odd pacing for the first two-thirds and the non-chronological storytelling adds to the somewhat jarring viewing experience as the film will occasionally jump back to the present day. The screenplay also tosses around some relationship drama between Snowden and his girlfriend which are imperative for the purposes of understanding Snowden and also manage to clout the film, as though there's two different types of narratives within Snowden; a romance and a triller.

Joseph Gordon Levitt provides a very strong lead performance as Edward Snowden and helps the viewer maintain focus in the film's dull moments. Levitt not only looks like Snowden but he manages to mimic his voice quite effectively while expertly portraying Snowden conflicted nature.

Shailene Woodley gives one of her best performances to date as Snowden's girlfriend Lindsay Mills and exemplified great chemistry opposite Levitt. Snowden also features name talent in supporting roles of varying sizes including Rhys Ifans, Nicolas Cage, Tom Wilkinson, Scott Eastwood, and Zachary Quinto who are all great in the capacity used.

In conclusion, Snowden is an insightful and informative look at government surveillance that's both well directed and well performed, but it's one-sided stance cripples the effectiveness of it's message.

Film Assessment: C+