Venom Review

Certificate: 15

Running time: 112 minutes 

Directed by: Ruben Fleischer.

What’s it about: Whilst investigating experiments performed by the Life Foundation and its founder Carlton Drake,  journalist Eddie Brock gets more than he bargained for when he finds himself merged with alien symbiote Venom. 

The verdict: There was a press embargo on any reviews being published for Venom until the day before its release but rumours had already started to seep through that Venom did not meet expectations. And when the embargo was lifted, critics had throughly slated Venom - with some even going so far as to call it “the worst film of the year.” But is Venom as bad as the critics have made out? The answer is both yes and no. 

Let’s address the negatives first. For me, Venom’s biggest flaw was its tonal problems. It almost feels like Fleischer had so many films that he wanted to make that he decided he’d just make them all. At times Venom is a comedy, other times a sci-fi and then at points an outright horror. Venom wants to be dark but it also wants to be a Marvel film, it wants to be The Dark Knight but it also wants to be Deadpool. The result is a film that changes tone frequently and feels like it had several different directors. 

My other main issue was the complete lack of character development in every other character bar Tom Hardy’s Brock. Especially the absolutely magnificent Michelle Williams, who is so underused and miscast in this. If you took her role out then I don’t think it would make much difference, and her and Hardy have zero chemistry which is a shame given how charming both actors are. But saying that, the actors make the best of the material that they’v been given - Venom’s plot is pretty generic and the dialogue cringey at times. The big finale is a bit anticlimactic and rushed as well.

However, with all that being said - I can honestly say that I actually really enjoyed Venom. Firstly I think that I went in with incredibly low expectations, which meant that I could just sit back and let it unfold. Regardless of that though, I found it a very easy watch and I thought it was very entertaining. Yes it is a mishmash of tones, but in amongst the tonal mess were some really good moments. For example, some of the horror-esque moments were genuinely scary. And although not all the jokes landed, most of them did and I did laugh aloud several times. The soundtrack was pretty good too, and I would be interested in seeing a sequel. It is also interesting to note that the film was very well received in the cinema - there were lots of laughs and a good atmosphere.

So although Venom did miss the mark somewhat and certainly could’ve been done better, I don’t agree with the incredibly negative reviews. There is enough here to entertain and enjoy, even if it’s not going to blow your mind. Best film of the year? Nowhere close. But worst? Definitely not. And don’t forget to stay for two post credits scenes!

Should you watch this film? Yes. Give Venom a chance, as it’ll look best on the big screen. But if you have to wait for the dvd then you shouldn’t feel too hard done by.