Every week I’m going to see a newly released movie or TV series as well as an older movie or tv series and give you a basic review! These reviews will be 100% honest. If I liked a film, you’ll know it. I won’t tear it down just to be insulting like many “critics”. But I won’t prop it up if it’s terrible either. I’ll do my best not to spoil anything that you can’t figure out from the trailers, and if something must be spoiled I promise to alert you to that fact in the boldest manner possible.
Something like this…
SPOILERS!!!
Look out for the obvious warnings in the future.
This week we’re going to begin with Venom and Venom: Let There Be Carnage. The movies are both produced by Sony and star Tom Hardy as the titular character Venom as well as his alter ego, Eddie Brock. Michelle Williams, Reid Scott, and Peggy Lu are also featured in both films.
Venom PG-13
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In Sony’s 2018 film Venom, the protagonist Eddie Brock (Hardy) begins the story with his life going pretty smoothly. He’s living with his fiancé Anne (Williams) in San Francisco, he has a successful career as a hard-hitting, investigative journalist. Life is going so great that Brock’s boss asks him to interview Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed) who’s spaceship has just crashed in Malaysia and needs some positive press.
(Think of Jeff Bezos combined with a slightly less evil Bill Gates)
Because Brock is cursed with the same terrible traits and flaws (arrogant, selfish, manipulative) as every other investigative journalist both in movies and in real life, Brock winds up losing everything. Even Anne loses her job thanks to Brock’s stealing attorney-client information from her computer and ambushing Drake with it. She obviously doesn’t take it lying down and tosses him and his engagement ring out of the apartment.
Enter Venom!
What ensues from the moment the Symbiote joins with Brock is one of the most hilarious adventures that has come out of the superhero genre in years! The only complaint I had through out the entire film was the slow beginning and introduction to Venom. To be fair, it made the reveal that much more entertaining and it was definitely worth the wait.
Tom Hardy’s acting both physically and vocally shows a range that most actors struggle with. He handles the action like he’s been doing action flicks his whole life (kinda) and he handles the humor even better. He brings both the Symbiote and Eddie to life despite looking like he’s dying through about 60% of the movie!
“You look like shit, Eddie,” is uttered at least two or three times in various ways. One such utterance comes from Peggy Lu, who plays a convenience store owner named Mrs. Chen. Despite being in the movie for less than 10 minutes, she holds her own with her subtle humor, quiet wisdom, and genuine concern for Eddie.
Venom is definitely not for young kids because it earns that PG-13 rating with its violence, foul language, and for Venom’s scary look as he… you know… eats people.
(Don’t forget about the end credit scene, it’s pretty important to the sequel)
Grade: B+