Venom: Let There Be Carnage is a 2021 superhero film featuring the Marvel Comics character Venom, produced by Columbia Pictures in association with Marvel. It is intended to be the second film in the Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters, and the direct sequel to Venom (2018).
Directed by Andy Serkis from a screenplay by Kelly Marcel, based on a story she wrote with Tom Hardy who stars as Eddie Brock / Venom alongside Michelle Williams, Naomie Harris, Reid Scott, Stephen Graham, and Woody Harrelson. In the film, Brock tries to reignite his career in journalism by interviewing serial killer Cletus Kasady (Harrelson), who becomes the host of an alien symbiote similar to Venom named Carnage.
Venom was intended to be the start of a new shared universe, and plans for a sequel began during production on the first film. Harrelson was cast to make a brief appearance as Kasady at the end of Venom, with the intention of him becoming the villain Carnage in the sequel.
Venom: Let There Be Carnage was delayed from an initial October 2020 date due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and finally made its debut in theaters October 1st.
THE GOOD
My expectations going in to see Venom: Let There Be Carnage were fairly high all things considered, because well for starters you have Tom Hardy, Woody Harrelson, and Michelle Williams rounding out the cast, an accomplished actor turned director in Andy Serkis, and the Marvel name attached to the movie. What more could you ask for? So needless to say I was expecting a memorable experience, and while it didn’t necessarily live up to my lofty expectations, it was still very good.
I really enjoyed the original film, 2018’s Venom, also starring Hardy and Williams, but this may have been a little better for a few reasons. The first movie felt a bit slower for the reason that we had to get acclimated to Eddie Brock’s character and get a feel for his overall backstory. With Venom: Let There Be Carnage we are able to dive right into the good stuff which made the experience fun from start to finish. The Eddie Brock/Venom character has a unique comedic element to it which was perfectly brought to life here, further reinforcing the decision to give Tom Hardy this role.
Venom: Let There Be Carnage was never boring, offering up a ton of great action sequences all of which I thought were fantastic. The dialogue is top notch with tons of great one-liners and pop culture references. I really enjoyed the bad roommate type relationship between Brock and Venom as well which is always good for lots of laughs. I won’t give anything away of course, but one of my favorite scenes is towards the end of the film involving Michelle Williams character and Mrs. Chen, played by Peggy Lu. This scene perfectly epitomizes the beauty that is the goofy nature of these films.
I touched on it a bit already, but the bread and butter of Venom: Let There Be Carnage is without a doubt the cast. Tom Hardy is easily one of my favorite actors, whether he is taking on the role of Bane, playing an absolute badass in Warrior, or starring as one of the Bondurant brothers in Lawless. He is a more versatile actor than he gets credit for who doesn’t seem to get enough of the quirky or funny roles which I think he plays well. I’m not going to sit here and act like I can’t get enough of his bruising type characters, but he should be allowed to do more. His portrayal of journalist Eddie Brock/Venom is fantastic yet again, and I had no issue buying into his character.
The next guy is a legend and needs no introduction, and that would be the great Woody Harrelson. Bringing him in as Carnage was a HUGE move for this movie, and made all of the difference. I mean you can go all the way back to the 1994 cult classic Natural Born Killers, and Harrelson has always had a knack for playing the sadistic and unhinged roles. He is without question one of the most talented actors working today, and he is great as expected in Venom: Let There Be Carnage.
I really like Michelle Williams especially when she lit the world on fire in Manchester by the Sea, but similar to the original film, she is just average as far as her presence on screen. Her character sort of exists to progress the storyline, but I don’t think she necessarily adds all that much to the film. I guess I just have higher expectations for an actress of her caliber. I did enjoy veteran English actor Stephen Graham in his role as Detective Mulligan. Mulligan’s portrayal of Al Capone in HBO’s Boardwalk Empire was epic, and I enjoyed all of his screen time in Venom: Let There Be Carnage as well. This guy is an extremely talented and very underrated actor. I did enjoy Naomie Harris in her role as Frances Barrison/Shriek, and thought she had great chemistry with Harrelson.
On the technical side of things, Venom: Let There Be Carnage was firing on all cylinders. I thought the CGI was incredible and so much fun to experience, adding a very immersive element to the film. I also thought the cinematography was surprisingly impressive and much better than I even expected it to be. The soundtrack and score was also a big positive for the film, helping to keep things light and upbeat similar to the original. Keep an ear out for the latest Eminem track once the credits start. I also thought the pacing was great, delivering up a smooth 90-minute runtime which is always nice.
THE BAD
Okay so I think I made it clear Venom: Let There Be Carnage wasn’t perfect, and now its time to talk about why. I just felt like it was lacking that “it factor” somehow, that element needed to make it great. Now at the risk of stating the obvious, it would have been much better with an R-rating. Now I’m not saying this movie needs to try and be Deadpool or anything like that, I just feel like it lacked a certain level of grit or intensity that an R-rating would have given it. It just felt like it was missing something, most notably during the scenes when Venom or Carnage would chow down on one of their victims. Because of the limitations of a PG-13 rating, most of the actual mauling is done out of the shot, so you aren’t going to see much as far as blood or gore. I mean its not a deal breaker and maybe its just the horror movie lover in me, I just think it could have made a difference.
THE VERDICT
With an abundance of eye-popping CGI and a post-credit scene sure to leave fans of the MCU downright giddy, Venom: Let There Be Carnage is a worthy sequel and yet another reason to visit the theater. Although I do think an R-rating and a bit more from Michelle Williams character would have made a difference, it was still a very fun movie and a more than welcome addition to the impressive Marvel film library. So grab a few friends and some popcorn, and check this one out in theaters.
TED TAKES RATING - 7.3/10
Venom: Let There Be Carnage is now playing only in theaters. Check out the latest trailer below.