Hey! It's your friendly neighborhood spider-man! Again! Animated! Again! But now with more Spider…folk! Spider-Man into The Spiderverse was directed by Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman. Written by the guy who wrote The Lego Movie (1 and 2), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (1 and 2), Phil Lord.

The new Spidey flick stars the voice telents of Shameik Moore as Spider-Man, Jake Johnson as Spider-Man, Hailee Steinfeld (Bumblebee) as Spider-Gwen/Spider-Woman, John Mulaney as Spider…Ham, Kimiko Glenn as… Peni Parker. I'm not sure what her spider personae is called. Liev Schreiber as Wilson Fisk, Nicolas Cage as Spider-Man, and Chris Pine… as Spider-Man.

A New Web-Slinger

You may not be familiar with the Miles Morales Spider-Man, and I fall into that category, but he has a far more "normal" life than most of the other spider… beings. Which is nice. Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse is extremely self aware. They go over the origin story, but they know you know the original origin… they make you know you know. You know so much, and they know you know so much, this movie yells about knowing the origin with you!

There is plenty for everyone in this Marvel movie. The is only one stretch of the film that ties it into the MCU at all, otherwise, the live action universe has no string to this movie. It is most definitely a family film. No cursing. Obviously violence, but nothing too bloody, except for a bloody nose, and "comic" violence. It does play with your emotions quite a bit, but mostly only grownups will get the scenes, and they tend to linger just enough.

The theater I wen to was maybe at half capacity. The Stan Lee cameo hushed the crowd. Not even crickets dared make a sound. You can feel that every single audience member breathe wistfully. As did the quote displayed just before the credits rolled. There is an after credit scene that is well worth the wait! And it helps cleanse the emotional pallet, so you'll definitely want to see.

Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse is out right now in 3D IMAX, 2D IMAX, and standard formats at your local theater!

Transition song - Spidey Loves You by Daniel Pemberton performing Spider-Man Loves You. Motion Picture Artwork (C) 2018 CTMG. All Rights Reserved. MARVEL and all related character names: (C) & TM 2018 MARVEL.

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Review: Advanced Screening of The Bumblebee Movie

Bumblebee is a spin-off from the Michael Bay Transformer's movie franchise. Directed by directed by Travis Knight (I don't remember what name I gave the director in the car) (Coraline, ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls, and Kubo and the Two Strings) and stars Hailee Steinfeld (Charlie), Justin Theroux, Dylan O'Brien, John Cena, Angela Basset, Jorge Lendeborg Jr., and Pamela Adlon. It was written by Christina Hodson (Unforgettable, and also writing for Birds of Prey - and the very long subtitle and Batgirl movie).

We find ourselves witnessing the prequel of the series, on Cybertron. An origin story of sorts will give an older audience members butterflies, or at least it did for me. This movie is chock full of nostalgia for any 80's kids. The direction was to help parents introduce their childhood to their kids (even grandkids) in a way that is more visually stunning than the charm of the 80's cartoons. Yes, there is plenty of "Oooo" "Aaah" moments that seemed to be there purely for the sake of spectacle, but as I mention in the podcast, there is enough to keep the O.G., after school cartoon watching, 80's child involved. It had several genuine heartfelt moments, but there was also a few that seemed forced.

Overall, the Bumblebee movie was fun, entertaining, and worth at least one viewing. I can't comment on 3D since the version I saw was an advanced screening in standard format, but if the 2D is any judge, I doubt you'll miss much from passing on that version. However, I am curious how much better it could look in an IMAX format. You tell me!

Bumblebee is scheduled for release on December 20th at most theaters. Available in 3D, IMAX, and standard formats. Go ahead, relive part of the 80's... don't be scared.