The sequel to the lackluster first “Venom” dropped Oct. 1. With a promising cast of three-time Academy Award nominee Woody Harrelson as the bloody and ruthless symbiote Carnage and the return Tom Hardy in the titular role of Venom, Andy Serkis continued his young directing career.
After Eddie Brock received the Venom symbiote and saw himself confronting the symbiote Riot in the first film, Eddie and Venom must continue to adapt, struggle and be one with each other as a human-symbiote duo.
Eddie interacts with Cletus Kasady, a dangerous serial killer, who asked Eddie to deliver a final message to the world before being sentenced to the death penalty. After a confrontation with Eddie where Kasady ends up hurt, Kasady was sent to be executed. The poison did not kill Kasady, and after Venom’s blood had contact with Kasady’s blood, Kasady ended up being the host to the symbiote Carnage, who is more powerful and more ruthless than Venom.
This movie is a love story at its core, delving into the relationship of Eddie Brock and his human relationship with his ex-wife and Eddie Brock’s relationship with Venom. The relationship between Venom and Eddie becomes, in its own way, a romantic relationship between an alien and a human, and Serkis delves into that with the relationship dynamic.
We also see the other side of the coin as Cletus Kasady and Carnage, both evil-minded and merciless, seemed to bond together well, as if they were meant for each other. As Eddie and Venom were becoming more distant, Cletus and Carnage were bonding more. The film depicts this comparison beautifully and details the struggle of a chaotic bond between Venom and Eddie, putting their differences aside to combat the evil Kasady-Carnage duo.
This movie’s runtime of 97 minutes did not give proper time for these characters to develop, yet is an improvement from the first installment. If you are a Marvel fan, I believe you will be satisfied. Catch it in theaters before it’s too late. Final Rating: 7/10.
