Venom: Let There Be Carnage Movie Review

Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021)

Rent Venom: Let There Be Carnage on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: Kelly Marcel (screenplay by), Tom Hardy & Kelly Marcel (story by)
Directed by: Andy Serkis
Starring: Tom Hardy, Woody Harrelson, Michelle Williams, Naomie Harris
Rated: PG-13
Watch the trailer

Plot
Eddie Brock attempts to reignite his career by interviewing serial killer Cletus Kasady, who becomes the host of the symbiote Carnage and escapes prison after a failed execution.

Verdict
At its core this is a weird buddy super hero movie where the two occupy the same body. It's this dynamic that contributes to the comedy and any interest this movie genereates. Venom is an anti-hero teamed with the underachieving Eddie Brock. This sequel adds to the fun with a second symbiote. The potential of an alien fight sets up the penultimate scenes.
It depends.

Review
The first Venom was better than I expected, though my expectations were quite low. It was less a super hero tale and more of a sci-fi story of an alien bonded to a human with a lot of dark comedy. Tom Hardy acted against himself for much of the movie, and those were the best parts.

Tom Hardy and Woody Harrelson play Eddie Brock and Cletus Kasady

Venom possesses the power and ability while Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) tries to prevent Venom from killing people. Venom pushes Eddie to be better and Eddie keeps them out of jail. That's the dynamic, and they're often at odds which leads to humor. In this one Eddie and Venom meet their match in Cletus (Woody Harrelson) and Carnage.

Eddie and Venom are in a relationship. It's two people in one body which creates a lot of frustration. To create some drama Venom leaves Eddie. I thought their entire deal was that Venom needed Eddie's body, but apparently not. They reconcile because the plot demands it so they can defeat the bad guys.

Cletus and Carnage are the other side of that. Cletus is all too happy to create destruction and kill. I don't quite understand Carnage's dynamic. Based on this movie, Venom could create infinite alien symbiotes. While Carnage could just live a life of mayhem easily through Cletus, Carnage instead wants to kill Venom. It seems just so the movie can get a big finale.

Carnage and Venom

The humor definitely helps prevent this from being lifeless. Two big monsters fighting only goes so far. One of the best scenes is Eddie begging Venom to rejoin as Venom inhabits Eddie's ex-girlfriend Anne (Michelle Williams). It's the scene that best addresses  Eddie and Venom's relationship. They are all but a couple with the tension magnified as it's difficult to escape each other.

This includes giant monsters fighting and some humor. It's a Marvel movie that doesn't seem like it because this feels quite a bit lower budget. The biggest draw is the eventual fight. I wondered how it would end, and it's a bit underwhelming though not terrible.