Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is absolutely deserving of Best Animated Film

Spider-Man into the Spider-Verse is one of the most thrilling and heartwarming animated movies out there. It’s fresh, it’s fun, and an all around dope adventure.

What can one even begin to say after seeing a movie that absolutely blew you away? First, a word of encouragement to any doubters of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. This isn’t just a kid’s movie; this isn’t just some silly superhero movie. The trailers barely scratch the surface of how fantastic the movie actually is.

Now that you’ve dropped any doubt you had about the movie, let’s get into what makes it blow the competition out of the water. And when I say blow the competition out of the water, I mean to say that this movie absolutely deserves to take home the Academy Award for Best Animated Film.

The movie centers around Miles Morales, your average Brooklyn teen whose world gets turned upside down after being bitten by a radioactive spider. Yeah, yeah, you might know that part already. It’s typical of pretty much every Spider-Man origin story and yet, this one feels different. Better, even, compared to the old spider bite, Uncle Ben dies, rinse, wash, and repeat kind of story.

Ultimately, it’s Miles Morales’ spirit, heritage and energy that brings so much more to the table. Imagine a Spider-Man who loves to graffiti murals while bumping “The Choice is Yours” in the underground of a subway station. Imagine a Spider-Man who puts on his (Sony brand) headphones and smoothly sings along to “Sunflower” by Post Malone and Swae Lee while doodling. And imagine, if you will, a Spider-Man who greets his friends in both English and Spanish as he walks to school along Brooklyn’s urban streets.

Miles Morales is so incredibly dope. It’s amazing.

Miles Morales in Sony Pictures Animation’s SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE. Photo Credit: Sony Pictures Animation

It’s a fitting characteristic, too, seeing as Miles is voiced by Shameik Moore from Dope and Netflix’s The Get Down. But Moore (or Miles) isn’t alone in this all-star voice cast. Things get interesting when an alternate dimension Peter Parker (Jake Johnson) enters his universe after a freak incident set off by the Kingpin himself, Wilson Fisk.

While there are other Spider-people who you later see enter this universe, most of the screen time is rightfully shared between Miles and Peter, who form a mentor-apprentice bond together. And believe me, with so many Spider-Man variations (Spider-Gwen, Peni Parker, Spider-Ham and Spider-Man Noir), the story works well mainly focusing on Peter’s mentorship to Miles.

But why does this movie deserve a Best Animated Film nomination and win? For so long, Oscars history has favored safe and sound family-oriented animated movies, mainly put out by Disney. And, honestly, it felt like the Oscars would once again have to give it to Disney with Incredibles 2 until this movie rolled around.

In the first 10 minutes alone, the fresh music combined with the comedy combined with the outstanding art style all makes it feel like something you’ve never seen before. Miles, the awkward teen, is extremely relatable and charming. And at the end of the day, we can all relate to the universal message he learns about loving your family, believing in yourself and being a hero.

Miles Morales in Sony Pictures Animation’s SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE. Photo Credit: Sony Pictures Animation

More importantly, the movie feels like the ultimate creative, immersive experience. Tracking shots while Miles or other Spider-people thwip down the street makes it feel as if you’re right there alongside them. There are a few shots that make this feel like a cinematic masterpiece even though it’s an animated film. Plus, there are colors galore, adding to the comic book-style animation that truly makes everything pop. It’s hard to say if I’ve seen animation this utterly unique before, and it definitely blew me away.

With all that said, this doesn’t discount frontrunner movies like Incredibles 2 or Ralph Breaks the Internet as not being entertaining or good. However, those other animated movies are so formulaic and (albeit) stale that they make Into the Spider-Verse feel like the explosion rock and roll had on music in the ’50s.

It’s the R train. It’s the not-so-subtle Chance the Rapper reference. It’s the curl pattern in Miles’ hair. It’s his mother speaking to him in Spanglish. It’s his black father telling him he loves him… so many subtilities wrapped into one movie that take animated films to the next level.

As most great movies go, you’ll laugh and you’ll cry. And if you’re a hardcore Spider-Man fan, you will absolutely fall head over heels for this love letter to Stan Lee’s and Steve Ditko’s creation. As we all know, with great power, there must also come great responsibility. And it’s clear the entire team behind Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse took that responsibility to heart.