Review: ‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’
In “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” two head-chomping symbiotes aren’t better than one in a mind-numbingly tedious sequel filled with uninspired comedy and a CGI monster fight that seems to go on forever. Although this falls under the Sony umbrella, it represents Marvel’s most toothless venture since the company’s cinematic march began in 2008.
In this sequel to the 2018 film, Tom Hardy produced and shares storey credit in addition to starring, with Andy Serkis taking over as director, having previously helmed the effects-heavy “Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle.”
Serkis’ dexterity in motion-capture performances does not transfer to this endeavour, as the film essentially pummels the audience for 90-some-odd minutes.
The heart of the film becomes a strange cross between Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and a buddy comedy, with Hardy’s journalist Eddie Brock uncomfortably sharing his body with the perpetually hungry alien symbiote Venom, having worked out a system to control his ornery guest — who keeps making demands like “Let me eat him!” — by simply saying, “You live in my body, you live by my rules.”
Their strange and strained symbiotic relationship takes up a significant portion of the film (at one point, couples counselling is suggested), but it is not the story’s driving force. That belongs to Cletus Kasady (Woody Harrelson, setting a new standard for overacting), an imprisoned serial killer who bites Brock and inhales just enough not-quite-blood to create his own monster, the red-hued Carnage.
While Brock struggles to contain his inner demon – and continues to pine for his ex (Michelle Williams), Kasady gleefully unleashes his as he/Carnage embark on a killing and vengeance spree in search of his long-lost love (Naomie Harris), who possesses her own superpower that is incompatible with the whole symbiote thing.
Although Venom is the result of Sony’s screen stewardship of Spider-Man, the character’s horror underpinnings push into darker territory, and if the first barely landed on the reasonable side of a PG-13 rating, that label appears even more dubious this time around. Suffice it to say, any parents who believe the amusing big-toothed monster is appropriate fare for their younger children should be prepared to have them sleeping in their rooms.
Granted, there is room for more edgy comic-book fare (see “Deadpool”), but “Venom” confuses chaos with excitement. But, on the other hand, it could explain why the title characters are so brain-deprived, living in a film with so few of them.