Venom: Lacking Originality and Spine

-



Director: Ruben Fleischer
Stars: Tom Hardy, Riz Ahmed, Michelle Williams, Jenny Slate
Genre: Sci-fi / Thriller
Rating: 2.75/5
Synopsis— The founder of the founder of the Life Foundation, Carlton Drake(Riz Ahmed) brings in the organisms and begins testing them on human subjects. Meanwhile, Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) is trying to take down Drake and his company. During the investigation, Brock, who breaks into Drake’s lab, merges with an alien symbiote, the namesake Venom and the movie unfolds
Sony’s Venom starring Tom Hardy… yes… TOM HARDY! is a bit of a let-down. Going into the theatre, I didn’t have my expectations sky high as I was well aware of the overall buzz it had created. In addition to that, I wasn’t entirely impressed with any of the teasers they had released. Yet, despite such low expectations, the movie left me wanting.
I did have fun watching the movie but I was never entirely engrossed into it. There was always something that put me out. The action sequences and animation doesn’t help much either. They are just not up to par with today’s standards. One particular action sequence, the high speed chase, was unnecessarily long to the point I was wishing for it to end and get in with the plot. The VFX in this sequence and throughout the movie feels cheap and dated.
In addition, Sony trying to copy the “Marvel formula” really shows. The jokes and witty dialogues give good laughs, however, adds nothing overall. The decision to stay PG-13 in the hopes of possibly building the Spider-verse with Tom Holland’s Spider-man has held back Venom from achieving its true potential. The character (Venom- Brock) is too PG-13 and doesn’t manage to show the darker anti-hero side. Apart from a few throwaway lines, inconsequential threats and using people to bash people, there is nothing that shows the darker side of Venom. And, as Hulk has already show heroes bash people too. Venom could have done with a bit more drama and struggle between Venom and Brock. The “anti” part of this anti-hero is lost in the midst of many jokes and puns.
In terms of plot, Venom superficially moves from one plot point to another akin to plotting lines on dots. It cares more about fulfilling the criteria than it does about building up the character and what’s to come. Everything that happens feels nothing more than a series of events. Even the finale, the saving of the day is just another incident as it lacks the punch and the weight. The lack of real sense of danger ultimately brings the movie down.
To finally conclude the review, Venom, although fun lacks a lot as a movie in terms of VFX, action sequences as well as the drama and intensity. With its uninventive action sequences, a tone that overlooks the character’s original identity and lack of what-happens-next, Venom to put it bluntly is a wasted opportunity. I would watch this one but from my handy dandy laptop screen.
 Find me in Instagram @crazyyoungwriter
Find me in Facebook @crazyyoungwriter


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Room of One's Own

-
Image
I enter Parijat’s Room (a Room of One's Own, Feminist Memory Project, Photo Kathmandu 2018) for the second time in three hours. I scan the room, leaving not even an inch unfolded. During the first visit when I remained in the room for just a while, I saw this amazing installation that reminded me of Van Gogh’s “The Bedroom”.  As I enter this homage to an almost mythic figure, I take all the time in the world as I leisurely go through everything at display. I feel, to some extent, the aura of the woman who had spent her days in the room. What Parijat had achieved from within this room was unprecedented. Or, at least that was what we were lead to believe as secondary school students. Nonetheless, Parijat was a legend. She had won the Madan Puraskar, the epitome of Nepali Literature for Sirish Ko Phool which was also translated to English. The translation- The Blue Mimosa was even included in the curriculum of University of Maryland, USA. This captured my imagination more ...
Read more

The Disruption

-
As I woke up I saw that everything was different. How could it be? Nothing was ever different. Everything was absolute. Everything was constant. But not today. Today was...well, simply not possible. **** Every morning I woke up at six and stayed still for five minutes while everything else remained as it was the day before. The bed was always there. Beside the bed was a stand. On it was a bottle of water and a novel. A study table stood at the corner accompanied by a brown wooden chair. Adjacent to the table was a dresser leaning against the angry red wall. Opposite the bed were the windows. The drapes on it hid me from the outside world while the sun struggled to find its way in. Then, I would reach the windows and kindly let the sun in. The room lit. It happened over and over again. As far as I could remember the same routine followed, day in and day out. It was the same forever. Almost forever! **** Until today, everything was the same. But, today was different. Different...
Read more

Narayanhiti

-
Image
Witnessing the lavishness and  the riches of the Narayanhiti I feel this hate surging within me I feel the blood boiling in my veins... When the country lived in hunger The children and the old died of cold They lived inside the high walls Feasting on the exotic dishes In their fancy glistening dishes of fine china and glass and gold and what not When people died of hot in Dhanusha And of cold in Jumla For the lack of hospitals and roads in Rukum and as Koshi flooded down south They rested in their imported cushions Controlling the temperature with the remote controls As they showed off the namesake halls And their trophy animals on the walls. Mahendra shoved down our mouth the khasa bhasa As he sent his sons and daughters further west If English was the language you so desired, If Nepali was not elite enough for you, If you always desired your sons and daughters to go to the Oxfords and the Cambridges Why the shenanigan ? Why Nepali? While people slept by the road in t...
Read more