The stand-alone Spider-Man movie of the iconic anti-hero with a colorful past, Venom, does a fair amount of justice to our favorite symbiote.
The movie begins with a bang, without explanation. The pacing slows and time-skips to introduce the characters and background. Some scenes seem cheesier than others, but this is made up for by the middle of the film.
Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) is an investigative journalist, who’s behavior is bold, funny, challenging, and has recognizably problematic undertones among his peers. He stands up to the powerful and fights for the little guy. After standing up to Drake, he loses everything, from his career to his fiancé (Michelle Williams). Brock is reduced to being unemployed, living in a squatter, and hangs around the streets at night. Left with nothing, he tries to regain what he lost through following the case that took it all.
Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed) comes off as awkward, cheesy and over-enthusiastic at times, but the point of the character can be seen clearly. He’s an accomplished scientist, founder of the Life Foundation, limitless in his amount of money and resources. He abuses the facade of his “good nature” to manipulate others into fulfilling his plans. The nature of his character beautifully contrasts that of Brock’s.
Romance doesn’t play as much as a significant, blatant role as stopping Drake, which is refreshing. “Venom” gains respect for not playing into the romantic cliché, repeating what we’ve seen in most movies of this genre. The dynamic between Eddie and Venom is hilarious as their relationship progresses from an unknown, scary parasite to a partner-in-crime that Eddie can be fond of. Venom and Eddie bond, not only physically, but through being the underdogs of their societies. The symbiote develops from an alien in a container, to protecting Eddie and the people he cares about. The humanity from Eddie rubs off on Venom, and Venom instills the confidence Eddie lost back in him. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship.
Overall, the positives of the movie outweigh the negatives. In a sense, Venom returns the tones of Tobey Maguire in the first “Spider-Man” or the first installment of “X-Men.” Venom is a mixture of that 2000s superhero movie feeling, but in today’s updated environment.
P.S. Staying for the mid-credits scene is highly recommended.