Venom (2018)

Directed by: Ruben Fleischer | 112 minutes | action, horror | Actors: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Marcella Bragio, Woody Herelson, Jenny Slate, Riz Ahmed, Mac Brandt, Ron Cephas Jones, Michelle Lee, Melora Walters, Sope Aluko, Reid Scott, Sam Medina, Donald K. Overstreet, Scott Haze, William W. Barbour Christian Convery

A mysterious alien symbiote is taken to Earth for research and bonds with humans. The being that arises develops eternal hunger accompanied by a preference for human flesh. This basic plot will not come as much of a surprise to many horror and thriller fans. Yet ‘Venom’ manages to amaze the viewer. The reason? This isn’t a horror movie or thriller, it’s a buddy comedy.

Admittedly, this tone is not seen throughout the film. The atmosphere changes several times throughout the film. Before the symbiote we come to know as Venom bonds with journalist Eddie Brock, we see Brock’s life completely collapse in a short time. In two scenes, totaling about two minutes, he loses his job and his fiancée due to stubborn stupidity. Typical of the emotional standard in this film is that there is no room for Brock to handle this blow. After a response of a few seconds, the following six months are skipped. The emotional impact of that period becomes visible in subsequent scenes about Eddie’s life, but it still feels rushed.

Despite the rushed pace, the film holds its own in the beginning. Only one person is responsible for that; Tom Hardy. He manages to keep the balance between Eddie’s righteous character and the drama that unfolds around him. Then, once Venom (whose voice Hardy himself recorded) has bonded to him, he masterfully responds to his own game. As an infected human, he brings a hilarity that makes the film considerably lighter, although many comic book fans may appreciate this less.

‘Venom’ has many problems, which may be explained by the lengthy production process. The first scripts for a Sony Pictures movie about Venom are from 2007, and it shows. Characters like Anne (Eddie’s fiancé) and Carton Drake (the bad guy) feel like they’re from a completely different movie than Eddie’s character. The producers were visibly unable to draw a clear line in the direction Venom should go in, making the result quite cluttered.

So ‘Venom’ is a mess. The production has not been able to draw a clear line, where the storyline and several characters have fallen victim. Nevertheless, it all works. Tom Hardy knows how to completely captivate the audience and the chemistry between Eddie and Venom (so in fact between Tom Hardy and Tom Hardy) splashes off the screen. Without his performance, the film falls like a house of cards.

With a new captivating antihero, Sony in Venom may have a new chance at its own superhero universe, but for the future the production team will have to make clear choices.