Ruben Fleischer’s “Venom” was one of the worst-reviewed Marvel movies, yet this didn’t prevent spectators from coming out to see a bug-eyed Tom Hardy on the big screen in 2018, raking in more than $850 million in global box office revenue. The same apparently goes for the iconic antihero's Marvel sequel, this time directed by Andy Serkis.
“Venom: Let There Be Carnage” had previously seen multiple delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic yet broke multiple box office records after its release, confirming that cinemas are rebounding again this fall. However, this success actually shows the supremacy of Marvel superheroes for both spectators and the box office.
In this much darker “Venom” sequel, Tom Hardy returns as investigative journalist Eddie Brock, who is also the host of Venom – an alien Symbiote that shares his host’s body by creating a symbiotic bond and gives this host superhuman abilities – once again. Losing his job while trying to take down Carlton Drake, founder of Life Foundation – which sponsored space missions to find new habitats and encountered four alien Symbiotes, one of which is Venom – and becoming accidentally bonded to Venom in the original movie, Brock tries to get his life back on track. While he adjusts to life as host of this Symbiote, he seizes upon an opportunity to revive his career by interviewing serial killer Cletus Kasady.
In the original comics, Kasady ends up sharing a cell with Brock, and while Venom busts his host out of the jail, he leaves behind an offspring that will become bonded with Kasady, transforming him into Carnage. Due to the Symbiote biology, this offspring of Venom appears much powerful than his father, which can even be seen from its blood-colored skin (Venom’s skin has a darker color that seems much more innocent) as well as multiple arm-like limbs coming out of his back.
With a twist in the story, the combination of Kasady with Carnage is linked to a bite after his interview with Brock, unexpectedly leading to his death penalty in the movie. This didn’t really make sense for me and left me confused for a second in the theater. It is natural to have some changes while adapting any story to the screen, but I absolutely prefer superhero productions that stick to the original story.
Although the appearance of Carnage leaves a bad taste for cinephiles in the middle, it is good to see that this sequel features less detailed explanations than the film’s predecessor and rather focuses on the goofy and humorous relationship between Venom and Brock. I'll even confess that the production is better when it only focuses on this relationship, because Brock and his parasite portray a fun odd couple for us, especially when they fight over Venom always wanting to eat human brains to stave off his hunger while Eddie insists on his eating chicken brains or chocolate instead.
So, you can guess what I am going to say when it comes to the cinematography of the production. The action scenes have the most of the movie but they are still lackluster, long and leaden. I wish the sequel was not only comprised of clashing CGI characters so that I could give some credit to the director. But what’s worse is that all these messy fighting scenes, even the climax between Venom and Carnage, are all visually dismal, which is hard to believe that they are arranged by three-time Academy Award winner Robert Richardson, who regularly collaborates with Martin Scorsese and Quentin Tarantino.
In short, “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” is a B-movie with a big budget. It fulfills all commercial aims as a blockbuster, but will surely disappoint viewers in some aspects. You may still see the production due to its sense of humor and Hardy’s sufficient portrayal, like most viewers have done to date, but I hope the third installment will give Venom and Brock what they deserve.
