Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar®-winning Spider-Verse saga (2018, Best Animated Feature Film, Spider-Man™: Into the Spider-Verse), SPIDER-MAN™: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE. After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. But when the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other Spiders, and must redefine what it means to be a hero so he can save the people he loves most.
For in-depth thoughts on Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, please see my colleague Dom Fisher’s review from its original theatrical release here.
Video Quality
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse comes to 4K UHD Blu-Ray with a jaw-dropping 2160p HDR/Dolby Vision transfer that is sure to stun audiences. One of the most pleasing upgrades from the already spectacular included Blu-Ray comes in the form of the dazzling colors. With every single hue that appears on screen, you truly understand that this is what the format was made for as they radiate off with a mesmerizing intensity. Black levels are deep and very strong with no signs of compression artifacts or digital anomalies of any sort. Highlights are maintained to perfection which aids in avoiding blooming.
The technology in animation keeps improving to unimaginable heights, and this particular feature is one of the best examples of boundary-pushing that we have seen. The fully-realized character designs render with perfect fluid motions throughout no matter the scenario or world they find themselves in. The level of detail the animation team puts into each background will have you wanting to rewatch again and again to try to catch everything. The textures of the different character designs and environments are beyond impressive and give the film an unbelievable sense of depth. When it comes to the characters, all of the subtle facets that give them personality stand out in a forthright way. Sony has delivered the perfect home entertainment experience.
Audio Quality
This 4K UHD Blu-Ray provides a Dolby Atmos track that far outshines the strong DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track on the accompanying Blu-Ray. From the opening glitching production logos onward, the film dominates nearly all of the surround speakers consistently during both the handful of relatively subdued moments and the nearly nonstop kinetic set pieces. Atmospheric sound effects are rendered perfectly within the mix so that directionality is never an issue. The implementation of the height channels is pretty insane as it makes each tumble through a portal more three-dimensional and immersive.
Dialogue is crisp and clear without ever getting lost amongst the music or sound effects. The low end effects from the subwoofer give moments big and small an incredible boost with the walls shaking a bit. The film has music in its DNA which fills the room in an enveloping and satisfying manner. The score from Daniel Pemberton adds a lot of personality to the project that complements the soundtrack. You could not ask for better from Sony as this one comes in like a force of nature. There are English, English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles provided.
Special Features
- Audio Commentary: Co-directors Justin K. Thompson, Joaquim Dos Santos and Kemp Powers are joined by co- writers/producers Christopher Miller and Phil Lord to deliver a lively and informative commentary track in which they discuss the creation of the film, how they pulled off certain scenes, the structure of the story, references sprinkled in throughout, the planning that went into this feature and more.
- Creating The Ultimate Spider-Man Movie: A 15-minute featurette in which the cast and creative team delve into the development, writing and overall creation of the film as an expansion from the beloved first installment. There are many discussions about the challenges and pressure felt to make something bigger and better this time out.
- Obscure Spiders and Easter Eggs: A nearly six-minute exploration of the copious amount of easter eggs peppered throughout the film.
- “I’mma Do My Own Thing” Interdimensional Destiny: A nearly nine-minute look into the concepts of destiny and choice within this narrative, and how Miles fights against this.
- Across The Worlds – Designing New Dimensions: An eight-minute piece which takes a look at the different art styles, color palettes and more across these worlds.
- Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Cast: A 13-minute look at the new and returning voices to this world and the characteristics they bring to their roles.
- Designing Spiders and Spots: A nearly 13-minute piece which looks at the different styles and personalities brought to the new spiders and their worlds.
- Raising A Hero: A nine-minute featurette which explores the themes of family in this film and franchise as a whole.
- Scratches, Score and The Music of the Multiverse: A nearly six-minute look at the soundscape of this outing including the creation of the soundtrack and the score.
- Across The Comics-Verse: An eight-minute look at the joy of bringing some of the classic comic books to life including the utilization of some of the comic artists.
- Escape From Spider-Society: An eight-minute deep-dive into the insanity of creating the escape sequence and what the creative team wanted to achieve.
- Miguel Calling: A six-minute unused sequence is provided in animatic form.
- Lyrics Videos
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- “Annihilate” by Metro Boomin, Swae Lee, Lil Wayne and Offset (2:32)
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- “Calling” by Metro Boomin, Nav, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie and Swae Lee (2:04)
- Previews
Final Thoughts
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a stunning achievement in the medium of animation. The ways in which this creative team came together to blend so many different artistic styles and hordes of distinct characters is nearly unfathomable. Audiences want something that is going to wake them up and make them take notice, and this franchise keeps setting the bar in America. Not only does the style get an upgrade, the narrative is a bit more robust and satisfying in this outing, as well. Not only does Miles grow more as a character, but we get more time with his mother and Gwen, among a host of other new characters. Ending on such a cliffhanger is not quite ideal, but we are more primed than ever to see the conclusion of this story. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has released a 4K UHD Blu-Ray featuring a 5-star A/V presentation and a deep assortment of special features. We doubt anyone needs convincing, but this deserves a spot on any home entertainment shelf. Highly Recommended
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is currently available to purchase on 4K UHD Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray, DVD and Digital.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the 4K UHD Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.