Sony’s track record with the Spider-Man universe has been uneven at best, with recent misfires like Morbius and Kraven the Hunter landing with a thud. But the studio struck gold with Into the Spider-Verse, which introduced audiences to Nicolas Cage’s scene-stealing Spider-Noir—a fedora-wearing, black-and-white throwback to pulp-era detectives. Now, nearly a decade later, Spider-Noir swings into live action for eight episodes on Prime Video, with Cage stepping back into the role that fans never quite forgot.
The Story: The series follows Cage’s Ben Reilly, a soldier-turned-superhero-turned-private eye who hung up the mantle of “The Spider” after his girlfriend Ruby was killed in the crossfire of his violent clashes with the city’s criminal kingpin Silvermane (a cooly meancing Brendan Gleeson). Ben is pulled back into New York’s supernatural underbelly when the beautiful, mysterious lounge singer Cat Hardy (Li Jun Li) appears in his office asking for help, sending him face-first into a conspiracy that conjures demons from his own past.
Comic Book Noir: Blending narrative tropes and filmmaking techniques from classic film noir (dutch angles, venetian blinds, dramatic lighting queues and hazy, vignetted cross-fades abound) with the quick wit, screwball humor and supernatural rogue’s gallery of a comic book, Spider-Noir spins an intoxicating mystery tailored to the singular talents of Cage.
Cage Meets Cagney: With scripts co-written by showrunners Oren Uziel and Steve Lightfoot, Spider-Noir is remarkably slick, full of fast-paced exchanges, witty quips and one-liners that give Cage ample opportunit to ham things up and show off his Bogart impression.
No Man Is An Island: Still, despite the capacity for camp (and make no mistake, Spider-Noir is chock full of it) the deftness of both the show’s writing and direction means the emotional impact of the show’s darker storylines are never dampened. Instead, the small but sturdy ensemble cast of Spider-Noir (including Karen Rodriguez as Ben’s loyal secretary Janet, Lamorne Morris as reporter Robbie Robertson and Cary Christopher as a plucky young street urchin) create an unlikely found family to anchor the insanity of Ben’s arachnid exploits.
The Bottom Line: Though a black-and-white mystery starring Nicholas Cage as a depressed, alcoholic Spider-Man seems like an unlikely recipe for success, Spider-Noir is an endlessly entertaining, often bizarre outing whose genre-bending ambitions create an utterly singular superhero story.
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