Venom (2018) Film Review: Clunky, Non-Toxic Fun!

With Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe reigning champion over the box office during the decade, rival studios have been attempting to cash in on the superhero genre. While Warner Bros has DC Comics, Sony has the Spider-Man license to play around with. Even though the character is currently in the MCU, Sony plans to create a universe devoted to the web-slinger, kicking off with the hero's most popular rival, Venom. In this non-Spidey origin story, Eddie Brock is a down on his luck journalist who failed to take down the Life Foundation, a corporation with shady practices, led by Carlton Drake. Drake has been studying on goo-like alien lifeforms, one of which attaches itself onto Brock. As Brock becomes the host of a brain-eating alien, calling themselves Venom, he becomes the target of Drake as well as a rival symbiote known as Riot. Due to the lack of Spider-Man, the story needed to change without his involvement. Personally, I can deal with the changes, though many felt that if it needed to be changed, the film should have been much darker with a R-rating, to which I disagree, since gory scenes wouldn't truly made the film any better or worse structure-wise. The tone of the film is pretty goofy, though in a fun way. It doesn't take itself seriously, much like how some Venom comics were during the 90's. At times, it wants to feel a bit horror-esque, a bit romantic-comedy, a bit buddy-comedy, and occasionally being an action spectacle. This can be a problem to the fans that wanted a more serious take on the character like in recent comics, but for me and many others, there's something engaging with the tonal feel of the film. Whether it's the goofiness or the odd story beats, I can't help but feel enjoyment by it.

Tom Hardy steals the show as Eddie Brock. Not only does he have a nice voice as Venom, but Hardy is just so fun to watch due to his over-the-top personality. He reminds me of Frank West, the protagonist of "Dead Rising", who is essentially a typical guy who makes a wisecrack on occasion and can have a hot-headed attitude. Hardy, for most of the film, acts as the normal guy being taken over by an alien very convincingly, but it's played more for laughs due to his exaggerated speech, dialogue, and rugged appearance. While Brock is much more serious in some comics, he did loosen up and has fun once he becomes the anti-hero. A different take for sure, but Hardy plays Brock with such a wild and extreme performance that makes it hard not to smile on, which manages to fit well with the tone the film is going for. If the film was trying to be serious or MCU-like tone, this character wouldn't exactly work as he just wouldn't fit. Because the tone was meant to be a goofy-type of fun though, it complements Hardy's performance, which itself adds to the film's enjoyment. Venom as a character is also a highlight as being the voice inside Brock's head who either mocks or encourages him over the current situation. The dynamic is the best part of the film, which leads to some good lines and moments. Michelle Williams as Anne is decent as the concerned ex who cares for Eddie after he has been behaving strangely. Reid Scott as Dan, Anne's boyfriend, is also a nice character who is not portrayed to be a jerk or douchebag that Brock needs to deal with. The villain is sadly the worst character of the film, which is Riz Ahmed's Carlton Drake. I understand the type of vibe Ahmed was going for in the character, which is like a maniacal Elon Musk or Steve Jobs, but he just comes across as boring, generic, and very uninteresting. Same issue applies to Riot, who is just a brutish alpha male villain archetype. Despite pretty uninspired villains, Hardy manages to steal the spotlight playing the extreme yet enjoyable dynamic of Brock and Venom.

Ruben Fleischer is a director who can either feel misguided or competent in his films. He has a pretty good vision for these films, though it might not be what audiences have in mind or wanted. That same vision is applied here as it was his decision to make the film not be a serious, but rather lighthearted, goofy romp that is similar to the Marvel films. Regardless of whether you can appreciate or despise this creative decision, you can't argue that Fleischer knows how to direct. The film doesn't have the usual cleaned-up, artificial blockbuster aesthetic, but more like a small-budget rom-com. The film doesn't make our characters look like glossy icons, but rather a sense of normality in order to try to imprint the idea that this is like our reality where not much fantasy usually happens. Yet when the action begins and Venom is onscreen, it does become more artificial. It doesn't help that the fight scenes are mainly in night, since Venom wouldn't look great in the sunlight. The cinematography is rather decent for the most part and the main theme by Ludwig Goransson is actually pretty good compared to most of the recent superhero films that come out in recent years. While the majority of the soundtrack can come off as generic, it's how the main theme is used whenever Eddie or Venom is present, with Brock having a more somber, softer tone, while Venom is more loud and orchestrated. The soundtrack also tends to be more memorable thanks to Eminem's single. The CGI is good in regards to the design and movement of Venom, though he doesn't look entirely convincing, which is an issue that some might not let down.  The lighting is mainly cold, dark, and a bit grey, which is a clever reflection to Eddie's mood, compared to the rather warm and bright lighting in the beginning where Eddie was living happily with Anne. Then, you have the action sequences. While all of them are pretty fun to watch, some are much better-made than others. The apartment brawl that leads right into a motorcycle chase is not only an engaging sequence, but it's pretty impressive since it requires some physical elements such as stunts and choreography. The action sequences with Venom though are rather messy. There are cool elements in them for sure, but the editing and lighting are very unprofessional in order to make a lot of coherence and making the visuals more appealing. Overall, Fleischer repeats his signature directing style of having a overall good vision that needs more attention in some rather important elements.

"Venom" can be one of the most divisive films in the superhero genre as both parties can make solid debates over the film's quality. Sure, on the one hand, the tone can prove to be unappealing for some, the acting can be seen as very over-the-top, the film isn't the most visually-engaging, Carlton Drake being a pretty generic antagonist, and some of the action scenes can pull the viewer out of the film due to the awkward editing and dark lighting. However, the film is also just very fun to watch with Hardy's performance being so energizing, Venom himself being very engaging visually, a fun sense of humour with the characters playing off each other,  pretty decent cinematography, a rather memorable theme and tie-in song, fun action sequences, and Fleischcer's directing that makes the film feel much different from the overly-produced artificiality that is the MCU. This is nowhere near the best of the genre, but far from being the worst of it either. It's simply a film that wants to fun and entertaining for you. I think anyone can watch it once and get some kicks out of it, whether it's due to them thinking the film is great or awful. Here's hoping that the sequel can be much better for the general audience.

Verdict: 6.5/10. Might have plenty of issues, but it's pretty hard to not say that I always get my entertainment value out of it. Only elitist fans and filmgoers can truly hate it, everyone else can have a good time of varying quality.