Not only will Venom: The Last Dance have you laughing and cheering out loud, it will also have you fighting to stay engaged in a monotonous plot that seems never-ending when in fact, it is not even that long. The third and the last part of the alien symbiote Spider-Man franchise can simply be dubbed as a Halloween’s mixed bag of plastic cheap candy items. For every delicious scene that is a Snickers bar there is a hand full of candy corn scenes that are plodding in a similar fashion. How much leeway one is to give the film is a function of how much of a Venom fan one is.
Lastly, at the closing events of the film Venom: Let There Be Carnage, we find the familiar pairing of Eddie Brock (who is portrayed by Tom hardy) and Venom (who is also voiced by Hardy but with a modulator) in the same circumstances. While dimension hopping, they are still hiding out in Mexico. Eddie and Venom are talking to a perplexed bartender (Cristo Fernández) and expressing their frustrations. Venom also recounts the story behind symbiote’s original inception and how they end up on many alien spaces rather than just one. The odds finally align for Chance as he hits the quantum grand slam; they appear in the correct reality, only to discover they are too wanted criminals.
The two understand that going back to San Francisco is out of question. Where’s the best place to lay low and formulate a fresh strategy that would absolve them? This is where New York City comes into the picture as the strange choice. They put on cowboy boots for their travel to the east but cameras monitoring the area notify the military forces. General Rex Strickland (Chiwetel Ejiofor) gives orders to hunt Eddie and Venom and return them to a not-so-clandestine site where they were held.
At the same time back in Nevada at the limping Area 51, quite surprisingly Dr. Payne (Juno Temple) has learnt quite a lot regarding the appetites of the symbiotes. But between them and their haters , Strickland, who is quite compliant, and an assistant (Clark Backo) are bound by the delusions of their threat instead. Because of this, they are forced to test that theory when a xenophage, a seemingly indestructible huntsman of symbiotes, rather strangely manages to track down Venom. Chaos ensues when a group of naïve hippies in search of aliens get caught up in the turmoil too.
In Venom: The Last Dance, we get a fair dose of comedy from Eddie and Venom and their weird shenanigans. They have embraced their roles as best friends, though the transition from a panic-stricken human to a decapitating alien leaves lots to be desired. The best part is that Eddie now of all times, calls out to Venom, even though the two are in a single body. It goes against all rational thinking but watching Venom go crazy is a real laugh. To say he is bad at making margaritas would be an understatement.
There is a delightful performance of Hardy that can only be called a slapstick act as he plays two simultaneously. I’ve voiced.head and surrender my body to Ace Ventura style gyration while having a conversation within a single body. And when we’re performing such a level of physical comedy it requires an extreme effort to come across as being effortless. It should also be stressed that conversely, Eddie has to keep his cool, while his counterpart, Venom, has no hesitation unleashing madness in Eddie’s skull. Hardy and the visual effects team appear as true teammates in their respective domains when it comes to Eddie and Venom’s quick and easy banter. It is also the main advantage of the film and accordingly, its greatest advantage in terms of audience reception.
In her feature cinematic debut, ‘Venom: The Last Dance,’ Marcel brings back the dark themes from the earlier two films, and the dark storylines make sense as they are at least consistent with the character of Venom. Kelly Marcel’s screenplay disappoints since it tends to ‘reuse’ stories already played out in the Marvel universe. The introduction of another evil, this time devoid of depth or curvature resembling other dark forces of dormammus or thanos is just plain boring. In essence, the main villain trying to boss Venom around isn’t even scary or very special at all.
Nevertheless, Marcel does a better job with the comic relief provided by the space alien-obsessed hippie family. The comedic relief is ruined because Marcel is brave enough to extend the duration of these scenes unnecessarily. They become tiresome filler that serves no purpose but to elongate the storyline. It is unfortunate because ifans and alanna ubach play comedy roles as goofy parents, which is very funny in the beginning. Instead of the deadly banter that Eddie and Venom share, these parents offer a wide range of possibilities. What would happen if they weren’t “lethal protectors” but a somewhat regular family…Kind of like a sitcom with a symbiote. That intriguing plot was never explored, while the hippies…always the hippies. It wouldn’t be so bad if they weren’t in this so many times.
The action dictates the pace in Venom: The Last Dance, showcasing several monster set pieces. The CGI fight scenes are somewhat reminiscent of a videogame but here it rather works in their favor. The effects have a kind of fluid and cartoonish touch which enhances the comedy in the film. Snacking on Venom’s head or shredding the characters into confetti is not gory in a realistic description. And this technique maintains the PG-13 rating which is good for business – bigger audience.
Venom: The Last Dance relies on a pretty narrow and targeted demographic – fans of the franchise. It’s a popcorn cinema ride aimed at an already established audience who already have an idea of what to expect from the property. More entertaining than the previous two, and let’s not kid ourselves – that was a great step to take considering the two previous ones. And do not move until the credits are over.
Columbia Pictures, Marvel Entertainment, Arad Productions, and Pascal Pictures and others are behind the making of Venom: The Last Dance.
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