The show stars Nicolas Cage as an alternative Spider-Man, called Ben Reilly, in 1930s New York City (that’s too early for a Sony Xperia cameo this time around!).
He used to work as a superhero called The Spider until he gave up the identity in favor of being a private investigator, until a case comes along that forces him to use his powers once more.
As the setting may suggest, the show incorporates lots of traits of hard-boiled fiction, and that extends to the way the story is told. Hence, the monochrome release.
When I heard that Spider-Noir would be available in black and white, it piqued my interest. But I wasn’t sure if it’d actually be any good.
A few recent color movies have been released in black and white, like Parasite and Godzilla Minus One. But traditional noir movies used the heightened contrast between light and dark for artistic or dramatic purposes, and simply slapping a monochrome filter over the top doesn’t look the same.
So I was curious if Spider-Noir would look good in monochrome, or if I should stick to color. And after watching the first episode in both, there’s one I’m definitely going to finish the show with.
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A colorful story
But it’s not Spider-Color
There’s no denying that Spider-Noir looks really great in color. It’s one of the best-looking TV shows I’ve seen in ages.
Clearly, a lot of thought has gone into the show’s color. It has a lovely look, using complementary green and red colors throughout in the costumes, architecture, and props.
This look has a legacy in crime drama, with Vertigo using a similar color scheme, and modern directors replicate it frequently.
Despite not being a black-and-white copy, the lighting is also lovely and dramatic. We often see dark scenes set at night, lit by the backdrop of a brightly lit city.
I wasn’t kidding when I said it looks great, and I was enjoying watching it this way. But when I flicked over to monochrome, I was sold.
Monochrome is the way to watch Spider-Noir
No classic red suits here
The more I jumped between the two versions of Spider-Noir, the more I became convinced that it was shot to be shown in black and white.
Loads of shots and scenes play up the contrast between dark and light, like classic noir movies do.
In the first episode alone, we see Ben Reilly walking out of a street covered in hanging white linen, and his dark figure silhouetted against the white fabric looks wonderful.
The intent is reflected in the set design: Reilly’s office has windows right by his desk and where his visitors sit. So when we’re seeing him interview clients, we get a dramatic contrast during the conversation.
Another detail I noticed is that a hazy effect is applied to shots, which is picked up much more clearly in the black-and-white version.
Beyond the texture of the scenes, it feels like lots of Spider-Noir looks a lot like a classic hard-boiled crime drama. Lots of the mise-en-scene (where actors, props, and action are shown in the frame) and angles look ripped straight from a Humphrey Bogart movie.
Double duty as a comic book movie
A callback to 90s superheroes
While I enjoyed the noir trappings of Spider-Noir, it also sold itself well as a comic book movie, and I think that’s why I preferred it.
The look of the show reminded me of early black-and-white comic books, as well as the dark 90s-era superhero movies, especially the Batman series. In the first episode, there’s a rooftop fight that shows this more than anything else.
But perhaps the biggest selling point for me was during an early scene with a special effect that covers a character (no spoilers, in case you want to watch it).
I first watched this in monochrome and switched to color to see how it looked. It appeared much more convincing in black-and-white, as that stripped much of the detail from this otherwise obviously CGI shot.
Darkness is often used to mask visual effects in movies and TV shows, and it works well here. Some of the effects looked unconvincing in the color version of Spider-Noir, and I’d rather avoid that.
That wasn’t always true, though. A firefight shown in a montage at the beginning of the first episode was quite hard to watch in the black-and-white version. In color, it looked a lot better.
For the rest of the series, I’m definitely going to watch in black and white. I love the look of it, and it does a far better job at utilizing a noir style. But instead of suggesting you watch it one way or another, I’d suggest you play around yourself.
Prime Video has made it so easy to switch between the two versions that I’d recommend you check out the show in both, to see which you prefer.
