Spider-Man has been an iconic character in the world of superheroes and pop culture, from his first appearance in 1962 in Marvel Comics to his first movie in 2002. The versions and adaptations of Spider-Man have been numerous throughout the years, yet the new Spider-Man movie is different.

The current iteration, Miles Morales, your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, swings into action in the Sony blockbuster film “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.” The movie, which came out on June 2, 2023, is the sequel to the hit movie “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.”

In the first movie, we meet Miles a black teenager from Brooklyn. He gets bit by a radioactive spider, teams up with other Spider-People loses his uncle Aaron Davis and defeats the big baddie Kingpin from destroying the universe.

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” takes place one year later. The premise is that Miles has to deal with the ramifications of his fight with Kingpin. Miles and the Spider-Society, a team of Spider-People protecting the multiverse, fight to fix the aftermath of the events with Kingpin. However, some characters, such as Miles and Gwen Stacy’s Spider-Woman, attempt to resolve some more personal conflicts such as their relationship with their parents.

The movie features a star-studded cast who portray the characters perfectly. Some names include Shameik Moore as Miles Morales, Hailee Steinfeld as Gwen Stacy, Oscar Isaac as Miguel O’Hara, Daniel Kaluya as Hobart Brown and Andy Samberg as Ben Reilly.

“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” also has an amazing 13-song soundtrack led by Metro Boomin as the executive producer. Metro Boomin is among the artists featured in the soundtrack. Other notable artists include 21 Savage, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Wayne and 2 Chainz. Each song builds another element to the settings and events during the movie.

Another great part of the movie was the animation. Every scene was detailed and complex. They were even able to bring live-action people and moments into the animated world. It was incredibly impressive to see the movie push the boundaries of animated films.

The cast, soundtrack and animation all came together beautifully to make a large-scale movie feel so close and personal to its character’s stories. For the characters, a big theme was free will. Can they carve their own path, or will they end up like everyone else? The other big theme that may seem cheesy was friendship. We witness characters that are universes away but still try to fill the need to feel closer to friends despite being so far away.

Another appreciable aspect of the movie was the subtle and not-so-subtle easter eggs and references. Whether it was through cameos or not, it made the movie all the more exciting to watch for diehard Spider-Man fans. Some of the easter eggs made hints toward the Marvel Cinematic Universe despite not actually being a movie within it, and others were just funny jokes.

I highly recommend the movie to anyone. It is without a doubt one of the best movies I have ever seen. It brings phenomenal animation, music and cast to build the perfect heartwarming story. Even if you don’t like superheroes, you would love this movie just because it is a beautiful performance that takes a big-scale plot and turns it into a personal heartwarming story.