Courtesy of Sony Pictures
Venom: The Last Dance is the third movie in the Venom franchise and shows Eddie Brock and Venom being hunted down by both of their worlds. Knull, the creator of Symbiotes, is looking for a Codex forged within Venom and Eddie that can free Knull, and Eddie is still wanted for the events of the previous movie. This movie was directed by Kelly Marcel and stars Tom Hardy, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, and Andy Serkis. Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, also called the SSU, has not been good, especially after the recent bombs in Morbius and Madame Web. How does Venom: The Last Dance hold up?
Venom: The Last Dance follows the formula of the previous two Venom movies. Tom Hardy once again gives a great performance as Eddie Brock/Venom, and the banter between Eddie and Venom is the strongest element of the movie. The movie does have decent humor that lands sometimes. If a joke doesn’t land, it doesn’t come across as cringe. The film has solid and entertaining action. The rest of the performances, while not amazing, are better than the performances in the last two SSU movies. Andy Serkis looks great as Knull, and the potential for Knull to be a big event villain is there for this series.
The issue with Venom: The Last Dance is it wants to be a big movie but feels as if it’s holding itself back. The runtime is less than two hours, with a good chunk dedicated to the credits. While the action is good, it feels like there isn’t enough. Venom seems to have less screen time in this movie in comparison to the previous two movies. One scene with Venom feels wasted at the end of the second act.
The plot isn’t terrible, but has way too many convenient plot points. Venom: The Last Dance tries to be a combination of The Lord of the Rings and Michael Bay’s Transformers movies. The Knull and Symbiote elements try to invoke The Lord of the Rings, and the military team led by Chiwetel Ejiofor’s character hunting Eddie down feels similar to the military teams hunting the Transformers down in Bay’s last two Transformers movies. There is still no mention of Spider-Man or any buildup of what fans would want to see in a Venom movie, which is Spider-Man vs Venom.
Overall, Venom: The Last Dance is a mixed bag of a comic book movie. Entertaining action, great acting from Tom Hardy, some solid humor, and a good third act help the film. A short runtime, convenient plot points, pointless characters, and wasted potential held the movie back. The ending is satisfying if this is it for this version of Eddie Brock. There is potential for Knull that is unlikely to be realized due to the poor reception and box office of the other SSU movies. Maybe Knull could be saved for a future Spider-Man film.
My final grade for Venom: The Last Dance is a C+. It’s better than the first Venom movie, Morbius, and Madame Web, but not the film that will change the SSU for the better. If you are a fan of the other two Venom movies, I recommend you check it out. What are your thoughts on Venom: The Last Dance? Let us know in the comments below.
Comments