Culture Crash: Our Love For “Spider-Man”

In a time where so-called “superhero fatigue” is setting in, the Spider-Verse films are still breaking through. The last few years have been notable for the relative under-performance of huge tentpole superhero movies from Marvel and DC.

Movies like Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania and Eternals have suffered low scores from critics and audiences alike, and they have suggested that audiences may be getting tired of the very saturated superhero adaptation marketplace.

But maybe it’s not that people are sick of all superhero movies equally. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is the follow-up to the 2018 hit Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and it made $120 million in its opening weekend, making it the second-best opening of 2023 so far.

The secret to its success is likely that it doesn’t look and sound like anything else in theaters. With stunning, comic book-inspired visuals with deeply saturated colors, Across the Spider-Verse is by far the most visually dazzling movie I’ve seen in years. It replaces the drab, dull, purplish-red muck that dominated the pallet of so many MCU movies with bright, fun graphics.

Coupled with a jazz-infused, propulsive score all in service of a touching but still hilarious screenplay about Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, and a whole host of other spider-people, Across the Spider-Verse sets itself apart from the pack in the best way.