Over the weekend, I finally had the opportunity to watch Marvel and Sony’s Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse. I’m a long-time Marvel fan, and Spiderman is by far one of my favorite superheroes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I’ve seen all the Spiderman movies, and I thought they were all amazing.
Image source: Raj Eiamworakul
I had heard good things about this new animated film too, but I had my doubts ─ why would they make it an animated film when they could have made it live action? Immediately after viewing the film though, my doubts vanished. I was absolutely blown away by the movie. I personally believe that it is the best Spiderman movie I have ever seen. In addition, it is easily one of Marvel’s most outstanding works.
The plot was fantastic, and the various elements involved in the film were great. The movie had the perfect ratio of comedy and drama, and it had beautiful themes about family, love, teamwork, and empowerment. But what makes the film so significant for today’s day and age?
The answer is simple: its representation for people of color.
It is obvious that Marvel holds significant influence in the media industry today, with fans of all ages and all backgrounds. However, until Black Panther, there has been a common, recurring pattern when it comes to the heroes portrayed in these movies: they often lack ethnic and racial diversity. Marvel fans often don’t have a “relatable” character to look up to ─ that is, they don’t have any superhero that necessarily looks like them and identifies with them culturally.
That’s why Miles Morales’s character is so important.
Image source: Judeus Samson
The protagonist of the film is of African and Puerto Rican descent. He is biracial, a person of color, and a superhero. Marvel fans who identify with Miles’ cultural background now have an idol who looks like them! Miles’s mother also notably uses several Spanish phrases while speaking in the movie. In addition, the film also pays homage to Asian culture with the addition of the character Peni Parker, who is Japanese and is illustrated to look like common Japanese anime characters.
Not only does the film do a great job at representing people of color, but the phenomenal soundtrack also features some of the most notable artists of our time, many of whom are people of color as well. Into the Spider-Verse’s original soundtrack features Jaden Smith, Amine, Juice WRLD, Lil Wayne, Ty Dolla $ign, and Vince Staples, just to name a few.
This is a huge milestone for Marvel and for Western media, as lack of representation for people of color has always been a prominent issue in the industry. It is extremely inspiring and empowering to see so much culture appreciation represented in Marvel films. It’s great to see Marvel using its platform so responsibly. I definitely hope to see this trend continue with the rest of the movies that are expected to come out in 2019.