That’s all it is, Miles… A leap of faith!

               Life is tricky, especially when we are kids. It gets tougher and we are not always equipped with solution to every problem. There is no recipe for life; no one put the ingredients, list of groceries and „how to” in a cook book. And how I wish someone did… Every once in a while though, we meet someone, who changes our perspective and gives us the best advice: „That’s all it is, Miles… A leap of faith!”

Out of many great life-lines in the cinematic history, this one right there is so powerful, it needs no explanation. After all, this is a lonely journey, life. But taking the step into darkness could be the best thing we can do.

Bonus life lesson from DC: Why do we fall?

This might contain spoilers to the plot – fair warning!

                Alright, let’s do this one last time. My name is Peter Parker. I was bitten by a radioactive spider. And for ten years, I’ve been the one and only Spider-Man.

And we all know the rest, right? But let’s go back to the start.

                I can’t recall when was the first time, I heard about Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. I guess in one of Marvel movies, there was a fragment of it as a post credit scene. Which movie was it? Shoot, never mind (VENOM, I remember now!). Anyway – I have to admit, I was skeptical. First, back then (I know how that sounds, but hey – my mummy says that only cows don’t change their minds, so…) I didn’t like this whole “spider thing”. Okay, Tom Holland is a perfectly adorable Spider-Man, he really fits this part, but overall, the story? Nah, not my jam.

I know, I knooooooow. I was lost, but I found a light at the end of the tunnel – INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE!!! So here
I am, ready to bow down to the best Spider-Man movie ever. And that means a lot coming from me.

                And this movie had me at second 1, honestly! This dope, sick, extraordinary animation at the beginning, combined with score Into the Spider-Verse, you know? The moment where Sony logo comes in, Columbia Pictures Corporation, IN ASSOCIATION WITH MARVEL? Close your eyes and try to recall that. That was the moment I realized, that this will be a whole new level of animation, a whole new level of cinematic experience. Never in my life, have I ever felt so positively anxious, so anxiously hyped. You feel me, right? And right after, Into the Spider-Verse is followed by Only one Spider-Man. BRILLIANT COMPOSITION. And I mean brilliant. You already are sitting on the edge of your chair, or couch, or you simply sit down on your bed – shit is about to get real.
Plus, YouTube comment section never lies: “This first minute of the movie alone was enough to sell me like jesus christ it was intense.” , “(Columbia Pictures statue transforms into a shooting cowgirl)”.

• 

• 

• 

With great power comes great responsibility.

                Speaking of brilliant – Sony raised the animation bar so high, I’m not sure anyone will ever beat them. Of course, anything can happen BUT JESUS ON THE BIKE, this movie is one big, fat, thick, tasty treat. I saw it three times on big screen, and about five or six time at home. And you know what? Each time I found something else that caught my eye – like how blurred second plan is, or how comic book-ish this movie is. And it’s not only about the text boxes, or “THWIP” sounds. The graphic itself is literally bringing comic books to life. It’s like walking IN the comics. It is so much different than live-action movies! Look, I am no expert so I will not dig into details of creating this movie from scratch, but as a fan I can tell you this – it was totally revolutionary! Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse had 177 animators working to make it happen. To compare, the original Toy Story had just 27 animators. And that should tell us something, right? If you want to dig into technicalities – go ahead and read this great article. And how amazingly they showed how spider-senses work!!! KUDOS, for real, that is such a treat.

                But animation and idea are not enough to make a great film. We also need a story, and there are plenty tiny stories in this movie, that combined all together, create well-balanced mix. We have few Spider-People, one Spider-Ham, we have a great antagonist, kick-ass side-auntie, there is a struggle, loss, regret, doubt.

Einstein said time was relative, right? Maybe I’m not late. Maybe you guys are early.

               I love how they use a comic cover for each Spider-Hero that’s introduced – it’s quite a pile in the end! So, we have Peter Parker (hero) we know, then we have Peter B. Parker (struggler), Gwen Stacy (loner), Peter Parker (Noir), Penny Parker (anime!) and Peter Porker (cartoon, kudos for that). Each thinks that they are the one and only.
They all lost someone – uncle Ben, uncle Benjamin, best friend, father. It’s a schematic story for every  Spidey, right? But each story brings something else into our universe.

And there is Miles Morales. The one and only, bright student at Vision Academy. A boy with great dreams that lives up to (no) expectations. Huh, aren’t we all, Miles? He is the one that we could relate the most. I mean look at him! We all sing Sunflower like that. We all pack our bags like that (okay, my mum for shizzle does not pack like that, but hey… It’s my mum <3). He’s this bright, smug, charming, caring guy, that will instantly become your friend, and will always keep his word. He wasn’t afraid to try and fail, he was scared like all of us would – discovering that you got all that power (puberty alright) and no one who could help him? It’s scary, he’s still a kid. But with time, and under Peter’s (B. Parker) wings he finally gets a grip on how stuff work in the Spidey world. His powers are unique – I mean he can literally disappear (invisibility, y’all!) and electrocute.

You’re the best of all of us, Miles. You’re on your way. Just keep going…

               There are few defying moments for him in the movie – realizing that his beloved uncle Aron is the Prowler, Spider-Team leaving him behind because he is not ready, his dad saying I see this spark in you. It’s amazing. Whatever you choose to do with it, you’ll be great, and finally… LEAP OF FAITH.

Now, this scene deserves a whole new paragraph. Hold on, put this song on – it’s “What’s up danger” but movie version and it’s great. Song itself is really dope but combined with pictures, and put into that particular context is AWARD WORTHY. Just this scene, if you’d cut it out of the movie and show it to someone, and I mean anyone – goosebumps guaranteed. And I know that you’re “whooowing” with Miles, I know that you do that!!!! The way that Miles evolves into its own, expectation-less Spider-Man, in black suit, facing all his fears on that skyscraper is absolutely ducking brilliant.

• 

• 

• 

• 

                On the dark side we have King Pin, a guy that I actually know from Daredevil series. I love how they pictured him in this movie – he is huge, and I mean HUGE! His story is sad, really got me there for a moment. They say that the hero is as good as the bad guy, and I have to admit – King Pin’s drive to get his family back from different dimension, with no regards to what happens to millions other families was interesting to watch. Beneath his ruthlessness was a soft heart. Soft, but poisoned.

Doc-Ock was actually pissing me off, but I guess that was her ultimate goal, I think even King Pin was annoyed with her stuck-up attitude.

Above all, no matter how many times you get hit, can you get back up?

                Final fight was amazing, full of colors at full brightness, sick details and this “get up, Spider-Man” moment that brought tears to my eyes. Pemberton’s piece Shoulder touch is so powerful! I am not a big fan of those cliché “final fights BS” but this one really got me on the edge. Miles bid farewell to the Spider-Gang, but it was not a sad moment – until that moment, they thought, that there is no one else, that they are alone. When I feel alone, like no one understands what I’m going through, I remember my friends who get it.

                Post credit scene number one: Stan Lee. His cameo broke my heart and first post-credit scene crushed it. And yet, in the same time I never felt closer to him, closer to his heart, closer to his Spider-Man.

• 

• 

Post credit scene number two: my heart skipped a beat when I heard Oscar Isaac, and holly crap, Spider-Man 2099, going BACK TO EARTH-67? YOU ARE KILLING ME, SONY. EXPLAIN.

 Anyone can wear the mask. You could wear the mask. If you didn’t know that before, I hope you do now. Because I’m Spider-Man. And I’m not the only one. Not by a long shot.

                Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse is so far, the best super hero movie I have ever watched – it’s something else, something words can’t describe well enough. It is a complete picture, with beautiful and detailed animation, breathtaking music, great story line and perfect casting. Nicolas Cage as Spider-Man Noir? I DARE YOU TO CHOSE SOMEONE ELSE TO FILL THOSE SHOES. Can’t wait for sequel, that’s set for October 2022.
It will be a damn long wait but let’s be honest – it will be worth it!

P.S.

Let’s talk about MORALES THEORY. More specifically, about Donald Glover being UNCLE ARON, A.K.A. ARON DAIVS, A.K.A. THE PROWLER.

Yo gurl you crazy, you just love Donald Glover.

               You’re damn right I do. But let’s face the facts. In Spider-Man: Homecoming Glover plays Aaron Davis, a petty criminal who tries to sell alien weapons or something. And Peter Parker confronts him on a parking lot. Davis says, that he doesn’t want this weapons in the neighborhood, as his nephew lives there. BOOM, there! Evidence number one.

Evidence number two? Well, take a look at this: Is that animated version of The Community season 2 episode 1, where Glover’s character wakes up in Spider-Man PJ? THERE YOU GO.

I am super curious where this goes. I hope for the best, because… Well, my love for Glover as deep as an ocean, but that’s a story for another time.

P.S. 2

Daniel Pemberton soundtrack is one thing, but there is another set of songs composed for that movie and each is pure gold. Sunflower, What’s up danger, Way up, Familia and many more – they fit perfectly into the puzzle. Check it out, it’s good for every occasion. And I mean it!

All pics are from Sony’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.