Sony Pictures’ “Venom,” directed by Ruben Fleischer, is an exciting addition to the anti-hero genre of comic based films. “Venom” begins with successful journalist Eddie Brock, played by Tom Hardy, and his investigation into the Life Foundation, a large corporation that does medical research and space exploration ran by Riz Ahmed’s Carlton Drake.
Brock then steals information from his former fiancé Anne Weying, portrayed by Michelle Williams about a case against the Life Foundation’s spaceship crash that killed some employees. Brock interviews Drake and gets himself and Weying fired while trying to confront the successful philanthropist’s coverup of the crimes. Brock breaks into the Life Foundation with a disgruntled employee, at which point he finally comes in contact with Symbiote, an alien lifeform that the Life Foundation captured from a comet. One of these parasitic lifeforms, named Venom, infests Brock and the two begin their journey together to stop Drake and his own Symbiote named Riot.
“Venom” is just under two hours, but it feels much longer. The first hour of the film is slow backstory to Hardy’s anti-hero before you finally see Venom in action. Then, in the second hour of the movie, the pace finally picks up. Despite the abrupt shift into the second half of the film, the CGI in this film was very pleasing to look at. Venom’s appearance is fearsome, menacing and intimidating just like a muscular parasitic alien should be. Although Venom oozes sheer villainy, some of his personality and physical features display a lighter, more cartoonish side to the character. This provides good elements of comedy and playfulness in what could have been a more serious, vicious character. Although there are some stunning shots of the oversized aliens, it was ultimately hard to see some of the fight scenes between Venom and Riot due to the dull and dark lighting throughout.
Overall, “Venom” is fun and not as bad as many critics are making it out to be. If you are looking for a funny and exciting superhero movie to go see, “Venom” could be the film for you. Though the movie lacks strong dramatic elements that we have become so accustomed to with films such as “Black Panther” or “Logan,” “Venom” is still an exciting and entertaining watch. Tom Hardy’s portrayal of the anti-hero makes up for the lack of drama with laughs and superb acting.
