I feel like we have plenty of superhero universes as it is, but darn it if Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse—which revolves around a portal that has opened in time and space, allowing six variations on the titular hero from parallel dimensions to come together—didn’t delight me from beginning to end. The main hero is Miles Morales (voiced by Shameik Moore), a high-schooler with more of a talent for graffiti than science. (Another clue that this isn’t your father’s Spider-Man: his costume incorporates a hoodie.) The visual design is a trip, combining a comic-book aesthetic (not just the use of panels and dialogue balloons, but also digital tricks that mimic the hand drawing and paper printing of an actual comic) with the dynamism of state-of-the-art animation. The narrative is clever as well, employing Spidey’s core character trait—genial enthusiasm—to exhilaratingly remind us that the appeal of superheroism is (multi) universal. Directed by Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman, with the notably cheeky guidance of producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller (The Lego Movie). In addition to Miles, we meet Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld), Spider-Noir (Nicolas Cage), Spider-Ham (John Mulaney), Peni Parker (Kamiko Glenn), and a middle-aged, down-on-his-luck Peter Parker (Jake Johnson).
