Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Last weekend I was able to get a sneak preview at the first third of the new animated Spider-Man movie, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. First things first, the footage was spectacular. If the rest of the movie follows up on what I saw, it's going to be a damn good movie. Not only is the writing fresh and full of love for the source material, but the visuals are downright stunning. Here's a link to the trailer for an example of this. The CG animation employed here is unlike anything I've ever seen, and in the Q&A that came after the footage, producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller said that they quite literally had to trick Sony into letting them develop this visual style.
Also of note is that the footage I saw was not completely finished. Throughout the scenes, there were bits of animatic put in as placeholders for fully animated scenes that would be inserted at a later time. As Lord and Miller noted, there were parts of the footage that looked like an old video game. To me, this made the experience all the more unique, as I was able to get a behind-the-curtains look at a film still in the process of being made.
There's a level of plasticity in the footage that allows the filmmakers to explore the iconic qualities of a Spider-Man film like nothing before. For example, the comic book nature of Spider-Man is fully explored here, with the main character (Miles Morales)'s thoughts being captures in a snappy caption box that morphs on-screen as he moves through New York. The characters themselves are given wildly expressive models - the main antagonist, Kingpin, is given a bulky and domineering form, while Miles is given the pubescent wiry look of a normal young teen. Outside of the footage I saw, I know that later on in the film we get to see the Spider-Man equivalents of other universes, including Spider-Ham (A spider gifted with the appearance and powers of a pig as well as that of a spider), and the consistent art style of the film will make this much less jarring than a CGI Spider-Ham would be in a live-action narrative. Oh, and here's another trailer with added Spider-Ham.
All in all, I'm very much looking forward to seeing the finished film in theaters, and would highly recommend everyone do the same. I believe that this is destined to be one of the best works we've seen in the character's entire history, both in terms of visual presentation and story.
Also of note is that the footage I saw was not completely finished. Throughout the scenes, there were bits of animatic put in as placeholders for fully animated scenes that would be inserted at a later time. As Lord and Miller noted, there were parts of the footage that looked like an old video game. To me, this made the experience all the more unique, as I was able to get a behind-the-curtains look at a film still in the process of being made.
There's a level of plasticity in the footage that allows the filmmakers to explore the iconic qualities of a Spider-Man film like nothing before. For example, the comic book nature of Spider-Man is fully explored here, with the main character (Miles Morales)'s thoughts being captures in a snappy caption box that morphs on-screen as he moves through New York. The characters themselves are given wildly expressive models - the main antagonist, Kingpin, is given a bulky and domineering form, while Miles is given the pubescent wiry look of a normal young teen. Outside of the footage I saw, I know that later on in the film we get to see the Spider-Man equivalents of other universes, including Spider-Ham (A spider gifted with the appearance and powers of a pig as well as that of a spider), and the consistent art style of the film will make this much less jarring than a CGI Spider-Ham would be in a live-action narrative. Oh, and here's another trailer with added Spider-Ham.
All in all, I'm very much looking forward to seeing the finished film in theaters, and would highly recommend everyone do the same. I believe that this is destined to be one of the best works we've seen in the character's entire history, both in terms of visual presentation and story.
I love Lord and Miller's work! They really do know how to tell a good story, and their comedic timing is the thing that made me love The Lego Movie.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure that Phil Lord co-wrote the film, and it really shows. If you're a fan of their other work, then you're gonna adore this movie. It has their comedic sensibilities down to a tee. Plus having Nicolas Cage and John Mulaney playing different Spider-Men doesn't hurt either.
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