“Sunflower”: How a Song Can Prove that Anyone Can Be Spider-Man

The soundtrack in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (Persichetti, Ramsey, and Rothman, 2018) is a crucial element in shaping the viewers’ experience and perception of the characters. Specifically, the re-occurring song “Sunflower” by Post Malone and Swae Lee functions to ground Miles’ character and make him seem relatable, enhancing the film’s sympathy structures and fortifying the narrative that anyone can be a hero. This effect is achieved through Miles’ imperfect interactions with the song, sound quality/texture that makes the viewer feel like they are experiencing the film through Miles’ point of view, and the choice of moments in which the song occurs. The three shots in this analysis demonstrate the function of this motif.

The first instance of “Sunflower” occurs very close to the beginning of the film just after we are introduced to Peter Parker, the original Spiderman in Miles’ universe (2:36-3:05). The lyrics begin when we see Miles for the first time. He is in his room, sitting at his desk in an indigo desk chair. At the beginning of the shot, he is framed in a medium shot with his back to the camera. He is coloring in his notebook with headphones on, bobbing his head and body to the beat. While his back is to the camera, the lyrics “Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh” are playing. This sound is diegetic and motivated by Miles’ headphones and Miles himself as he is singing along. His voice dominates the music coming from his headphones. We almost immediately begin tracking in and arcing around Miles to the right for seven seconds until we see him in profile. He clears his throat, and the camera continues arcing to the right until we see him framed frontally. While the camera arcs from Miles in profile to Miles framed frontally, Miles continues singing along to the song, albeit imperfectly as he skips over some of the words which is apparent because his mouth is closed while we can still hear words being sung and some words are much more discernable than others. He becomes increasingly moved by the song, beginning to gesture with his arms and move in his chair in sync with the lyrics: he shakes his pointed finger while singing, “nevertheless” and then points in the opposite direction singing, “Baby, I’m a wreck.” When the song goes “Ooh-ooh-ooh,” Miles can be seen tapping a marker against his throat with one hand and moving his other hand upwards in a slightly wavy path with his thumb and index finger extended as if these motions are helping him hit the notes of the song. He also closes his eyes while singing, “Some things you can’t refuse.” These gestures are similar to those one might expect a singer to do at a live performance or concert. With five seconds left in the shot, a somewhat muted, but loud “Miles!” captures Miles’ attention and he pulls his headphones down onto his neck, responding “Yeah! Yeah?” We can then hear his dad ask, “Are you finished packing for school?” Miles then looks over at his completely empty suitcase sheepishly responding “Yeah…” once again. Throughout this whole interaction, the song continues playing at a decreased volume. The decreased volume comes across as high fidelity and seemingly reflects that the headphones are no longer on Miles’ ears.

In this shot, Miles’ personal-concert-like performance of the song and the fidelity of the sound, make Miles a relatable character, thus increasing the viewers’ sympathy and positive perception of him. Additionally, elements of “Sunflower” itself may also cause the viewer to create positive associations with Miles. There are a variety of elements of Miles’ rendition of the song that comes across as relatable. Notably, his singing of the notes doesn’t perfectly match the notes of the song and he doesn’t know all of the words. Additionally, becoming so wrapped up in a song that he begins gesturing and moving as if he is performing it for a live audience is likely relatable for many viewers. All of these touches demonstrate to the viewer that Miles is relatable, imperfect, and somewhat average, presumably enhancing their sympathy and positive feelings towards him. Furthermore, the sound quality, particularly the decrease in volume when Miles removes the headphones from his head, makes the viewer feel like they are literally experiencing the film from Miles’ perspective, heightening one’s sympathy and positive impression of him even further. Lastly, this applies to all instances of the motif; however, it is certainly worth noting that “Sunflower” is a song written in D-major (Hooktheory) as songs written in D-major and major keys, in general, are often perceived as being positive or upbeat. The happy, heartfelt vocals and catchy rhythm also contribute to a positive feeling while listening to the song. The song also features two popular pop artists, making it even more relatable to kids listening. Therefore, choosing to pair this song, in particular, with Miles further increases the viewers’ positive perceptions of him.

The second instance of “Sunflower” occurs about halfway into the film (48:38-48:53) when Miles and Peter B. Parker are breaking into Alchemax. This is technically three shots, but the song lyrics span all three. At the beginning of the shots, Miles is positioned perpendicular to the camera with his frontside facing the top of the frame. Most of his body is visible due to the unique perspective of the shot which lets us see from the top of his head to his toes. Miles’ fingers and toes are stuck to a ceiling light and Peter asks him, “What do you do to relax?” to help him unstick. Miles then responds “Relax? Ok, ok, ok,” and then begins singing “Sunflower” starting with the lyrics “Needless to say, I…” He fumbles the lyrics in a similar manner to how he recites them in the first instance in which we hear him sing them. By the time he reaches the lyrics, “Calling it quits now, baby I’m a wreck,” the only other lyrics he seems to actually know, he is able to remove the pinky and ring finger of his left hand from the light and as he keeps singing, he removes each of his fingers one by one before he falls to the ground. He performs a similar concert-like hand movement when he reaches the “ooh-ooh-ooh” part of the song. All of this sound is diegetic and motivated by Miles himself.

In these shots, Miles’ imperfect rendition of the song and choice to sing it at this moment grounds his character and once again enhances the viewers’ perception of his character as likable and relatable. Just like in the first shot, the imperfect singing, not knowing the lyrics, and personal-concert-like performance of the song give the impression of Miles as an average and likable kid. In fact, insisting on doing the concert-like gesture in a high-stress situation may even be more relatable and sympathy-inducing to a viewer as many viewers can likely relate to getting so into a song that they forget where they are. Furthermore, the fact that Miles chooses to sing this song in response to Peter’s question about what he does to relax reveals to the viewer that Miles uses music to relax. This makes Miles feel grounded as a character with problems and stress that uses music as a coping mechanism, which is also likely relatable to the audience.

The third and final instance of “Sunflower” occurs in the last scene of the film (1:45:03 – 1:45:22) after Miles has introduced himself as the “one and only Spider-Man” and says “I never thought I could do any of this stuff. But I can. Anyone can wear the mask. You could wear the mask.” At the beginning of the shot, Miles is lying down in his bed with both of his hands cradling the back of his head. He is framed in a medium close-up from a high – almost directly top-down – angle. There is a bed lamp in the top left corner of the frame and Miles reaches over to turn it off. The lighting becomes much dimmer than before. His headphones are hanging on the neck of the lamp, so he simultaneously grabs them and places them on his head. “Sunflower” starts playing again beginning with the lyrics, “Needless to say, I keep her in check.” All of this sound is diegetic, but in this instance, it is completely motivated by his headphones as Miles is not singing along. He re-adjusts his head on his pillow and then closes his eyes, seemingly content. He bobs his head ever-so-slightly to the music before a circular teal puddle of light appears in the middle of the screen. The teal puddle of light then expands and turns pink, causing him to open his eyes. Pink, teal, and purple circles begin to appear around the edge of the frame. They rotate clockwise and move closer to the center of the screen as we hear someone say, “Miles! Miles! Got a minute?” and Miles smiles, showing his teeth.

The inclusion of the song in the final shot of the film invites the viewer to think back to the other instances of the song in the film and create connections between Miles of the past and Miles of the present, fortifying the narrative that “Anyone can wear the mask.” As mentioned earlier in this analysis, “Sunflower” occurs at two other moments in the film: at the very beginning, when Miles should be getting ready for school but is drawing instead, and in the middle, when he is breaking in the Alchemax with Peter B. Parker. Thus, more broadly, this song plays when we are introduced to Miles as a normal kid, when Miles is struggling to learn to become a hero, and when he has finally overcome those obstacles. Including the song in these critical moments reminds the viewer of how far Miles has come while simultaneously serving to demonstrate that Miles is still largely the same kid he was in the beginning, choosing to listen to the exact same song as a way to relax. This emphasizes the narrative that “Anyone can wear the mask” because it reminds the viewer Spider-Man was just a kid running late for school not so long ago. This is a particularly impactful effect as this last scene with “Sunflower” playing occurs just after Miles’ monologue about how “Anyone can wear the mask.” While Miles is largely the same kid as at the beginning of the film, it would be mistaken to say that he is exactly the same, having gone through so much, and this is reflected in the fact that he doesn’t choose to sing along in this final scene. In the second instance of the motif, Miles heavily implies that singing “Sunflower” helps him to relax, therefore, not singing in this final scene suggests that he is already relaxed, having become a calmer and more confident version of his past self and ready to embark on his next adventure.

By imperfectly but relatably performing “Sunflower,” a notably upbeat and happy song, Miles becomes a likable and relatable character to root for. Additionally, getting lost in a song and using music as a way to relax is likely a relatable experience for many. Furthermore, the sound quality of the song in the first instance in which it plays enhances the viewer’s sympathy for Miles by putting them in his shoes, or more accurately, ears. Lastly, by bookending the plot, the song reminds the viewer that Miles is largely same character as in the beginning of the film, fortifying the narrative that “Anyone can wear the mask.” Therefore, in sum, “Sunflower” serves an important narrative function in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse, increasing viewers’ positive impression of Miles and understanding of the lesson that anyone can be a hero.