REVIEW: ‘Across the Spider-Verse’ offers a visual banquet of characters

In “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” three directors expand on the first film in ways you probably didn’t imagine.

Using visuals that suggest Warhol, Banksy and Basquiat, they create their own piece of art that’s fascinating to watch. While parts of it rush by too quickly (don’t even try to read the captions), it does embrace a universal message – one that plays across multiple worlds.

Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), the teen who emerged as Spider-Man in the last animated venture, has a problem squaring his school and home lives with his new identity as Spider-Man. When his parents suspect he’s up to something much more nefarious, they impose new rules and those just muck up his game plan. Worse, his friend Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld) has become party of a multiverse group called the Spider Society. They have their own troubles and now, with Miles, could be in for more headaches.

While it sounds complex (and it is), “Across the Spider-Verse” has such a dizzying array of drawing styles you could just glaze over and watch the splashes of color whip by. You could also marvel at the way directors Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson have mashed up visual styles into one glorious whole.

When they want to reference past films, they do so with a graphic artist’s sensibility. If you know something about this world (and those who populate it) you’ll be enthralled. If you don’t you have a lot of cramming to do.

Moore does a great job pulling you into his conundrum. When he’s dealing with those other ‘verses, he’s as shocked as we are. Gwen is his touchstone, but even she has another agenda. Look quickly and you’ll see faces of those who were merely suggested for roles in an iteration of “Spider-Man.” Gwen gets into legal trouble and looks like she could be something other than an ally.

When the directors ground their “Verse” in real teen-age problems, it becomes a stronger iteration than even the live-action ones. Some of the stray Spider-peeps are interesting (particularly if those comic books exist) and could be a jumping-off point for future versions.

Part of a trilogy, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” lacks closure but certainly points toward an phenomenal third installment.

Then, it’s just a matter of taking this wherever it wants to go.

Considering so many characters in the Marvel universe are so confined, it’s nice to find one who has real options.