“Venom: The Last Dance” review

Rebecca’s Take

Sony’s “Venom” films carved out their unique space in the vast landscape of comic book movies. The odd-couple dynamic between Tom Hardy’s harried journalist Eddie Brock and Venom, the goofy alien symbiote sharing his body, was introduced in 2018’s surprise hit “Venom” and delightfully dialed up in 2021’s even more successful sequel “Venom: Let There Be Carnage.” Much like the merging of Eddie and Venom, the rom com, body horror and buddy comedy elements blend together to create hugely entertaining outings.

Now, “Venom: The Last Dance” perfects its engaging routine to present the best film in the franchise. The third installment — and allegedly the last — focusing on the Marvel Comics characters leans all the way into its trademark campy comedy while adding an emotional heart. By embracing the franchise’s best elements, “Venom: The Last Dance” gives the series a rousing sendoff — at least for now.

The film catches up with Eddie and Venom on the run after the events of the last movie. After being implicated in a murder, the dynamo duo is determined to make their way from Mexico to New York to clear Eddie’s name. But the pair are hunted by a terrifying alien creature, the Xenophage. They have something the symbiotes’ imprisoned creator, Knull (Andy Serkis), wants that could release him back into the universe — and put the fate of every living creature in danger. As Eddie and Venom try to evade federal agents and alien monsters, their quest to save the world could come at the cost of their own lives.

“Venom: The Last Dance” takes its lead characters and audience on a zany road trip, full of quirky hijinks. The best part of these films is the humorous banter between Hardy and, well, himself. The third outing makes the most of this, placing Eddie and Venom in various situations from which to mine jokes. When the pair is hanging off the side of an airplane, Eddie complains, “My mouth is dry!” The duo also sings David Bowie’s “Space Oddity,” a song Venom professes to love, and uncontrollably play the slots at a casino. There’s even a literal last dance set to ABBA’s hit “Dancing Queen,” pushing the joke as far as it can go.

In his third film as Eddie and the CGI-generated Venom, the versatile Hardy mastered personifying both characters. Hardy zeroes in on the physicality needed when Venom takes control of Eddie’s body, showing the actor’s comedic flair and timing. Eddie’s anguished straight man works perfectly against Venom’s over-the-top demeanor. The alien symbiote looks scary, but his big toothy grin is so goofy that you just have to laugh. Venom earns lots of those as he tosses out zingers and funny asides. But Hardy also knows the Eddie-Venom bond is a heartfelt one, too. The characters are linked in an unusual way, and they can only trust each other. Hardy taps into this as Venom encourages Eddie’s desires for a different kind of life.

After penning the scripts of the first two “Venom” movies, Kelly Marcel makes her impressive directing debut with “Venom: The Last Dance.” It’s clear she and writing partner Hardy, who gets his second straight story credit here and is also a producer, are invested in making these films as good as they can be. Under Marcel and Hardy’s watch, “The Last Dance” balances its madcap comedy with genuine emotion. For as much as I laughed, I also cried.

It’s also a credit to Marcel that “Venom: The Last Dance” showcases the franchise’s best action. In the previous two movies, the action was murky, often set at night. This time, more of the action is set during the day, allowing for more creative set pieces. There’s a great sequence where Venom bonds with a horse, taking Eddie on a wild ride that calls back to the pair’s memorable motorcycle ride in the first film. And that’s not the last of Venom bonding with animals. An imaginative underwater set piece sees the symbiote merge with a frog and other aquatic life. The fantastic finale pulls out all the stops, taking the franchise in a new direction.

The threequel introduces compelling and fun characters. Lively “Ted Lasso” alum Juno Temple joins the franchise as Dr. Teddy Payne, a scientist who works for the government by studying symbiotes. The film crafts a sympathetic backstory and journey for the likable Teddy, making her a character to root for. But Temple doesn’t get to act with Hardy very much, as the scientists are largely kept separate from Eddie and Venom for most of the movie. “Venom: The Last Dance” misses an opportunity for the two talented actors to act alongside each other more.

The enjoyable Rhys Ifans appears as the hippie Martin, the laid-back head of a family who’s been traveling across the country to see aliens. Martin got the biggest laugh in my theater (but I won’t tell you for what). Martin and his family play an important role in allowing Eddie and Venom to see how their actions can help the greater good. As the hardened Rex Strickland, Chiwetel Ejiofor takes what could have been a stock military commander role and adds depth, evolving throughout the movie. I really liked Clark Backo as Sadie, a Christmas-loving scientist who’s brave with a sense of wonder. Another “Ted Lasso” cast member, Cristo Fernández, stands out in a small role as a perplexed bartender.

For fans who were hoping “Venom: The Last Dance” would pay off its predecessor’s post-credit scene tying into the bigger Marvel Cinematic Universe, they may be let down. “The Last Dance” is first and foremost concerned with its own universe. This may be a calculated attempt for the franchise to distance itself from the once all-mighty MCU, which has been having a rough go the last few years. When Venom says he’s tired of the multiverse, he may be speaking for comic book movie fans in general. Unfortunately, that attitude may be hurting the film itself. “Venom: The Last Dance” earned $51 million at the domestic box office this weekend, the lowest opening of the three “Venom” films and a steep drop from when “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” opened with a stellar $90 million in 2021 amid the pandemic.

The film’s villain, Knull, is relegated to the background while the Xenophage does its master’s dirty work. This seems like an odd choice, considering Serkis, who directed “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” is a high-profile actor and master of disguise. However, this is reminiscent of how Thanos lurked in the background during Phase 1 of the MCU. This could be another calculated move: It’s possible Knull is being set up to be the next big bad.

That’s just one aspect that makes me question whether “Venom: The Last Dance” is really the end of the franchise. While “Venom: The Last Dance” feels like a finale in some ways, there are also enough seeds planted for the story to continue. Moviegoers may be confused leaving the theater as to whether this is really the end for Hardy and Venom.

“Venom: The Last Dance” puts its best foot forward for the franchise’s final bow. (If this is its final bow). The hilarious threequal goes all in on the jokes, banter and physical comedy between Eddie and Venom, allowing Hardy’s one-man show to excel on screen. It also has an emotional core, with moments that will tug on moviegoers’ heartstrings.

In finding a unique place for itself among comic book films, we lose something different if this is indeed the last “Venom” film. The “Venom” flicks have been the most successful in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (sans Spider-Man). “Kraven the Hunter” could pick up the mantle in December. But if this is the last dance after all for “Venom,” the franchise can rest assured knowing it went out on a high note.

4 out of 5 stars

This image released by Sony Pictures shows Juno Temple, left, and Chiwetel Ejiofor in Columbia Pictures’ “Venom: The Last Dance.” (Laura Radford/Columbia-Sony Pictures via AP)

Joe’s Take

If you’ve read my reviews for the previous “Venom” films, you know I don’t like this franchise. I’ll never understand how 2018’s “Vemon” made so much money. It’s just a bad movie. Maybe fans clamored so much for a Venom film that they took whatever they could get. On Rotten Tomatoes, “Venom” has a 30% critic score and an 80% audience score; “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” has a 57% critic score and an 84% audience score; and “Venom: The Last Dance” has a 37% critic score and an 84% audience score.

While the second film improved on the first film, the third film takes a step back, bringing a forced conclusion to an underwhelming franchise.

The best part of these films is far and away Tom Hardy (Eddie Brock/Venom). The interplay between Eddie Brock and Venom is what works with this franchise. Hardy and the filmmakers did an incredible job building a chemistry that resonates with the audience and provides plenty of laughs. That’s what this movie banks on — the strength of the core relationship. It’s spelled out on the movie poster what will happen at the end of the film. “’Til death do them part” is the tagline. That’s really the whole movie, which is part of the reason this fell short. This entire film is simply about wrapping up a franchise that has very little substance. And it shows.

“Venom: The Last Dance” tries to account for its lack of substance with notable actors, figuring maybe if they put them in the film it will hide the fact that it has a thrown-together plot. Chiwetel Ejiofor (Strickland) plays a basic character we’ve all seen before — the military character who doesn’t see the good in symbiotes until the end. Juno Temple (Dr. Teddy Paine) of “Ted Lasso” fame plays the scientist who has an internal struggle between her work and doing what is right. Rhys Ifans (Martin) plays the alien conspiracy theorist, who’s obviously proven right. Not that we haven’t seen this before, but it’s also a little confusing to see Ejiofor and Ifans in this movie, considering they played other Marvel characters. They’re just there to fill roles in a film that has a run-of-the-mill plot.

Also, this film’s tone is all over the place. It has its funny moments between Eddie Brock and Venom, but a lot of the film proves kind of dour. Good or bad, it’s never what this franchise was. The dumb fun is what it had going for it.

Honestly, I really don’t know what this movie is. There’s one scene where there’s shaded figures in a room who are keeping tabs on Eddie Brock, and I’m pretty sure one of them was Dan from the previous films, but it’s never revealed who the shaded figures were. What was the point of that scene? There’s this powerful being that is trying to free himself from eternal imprisonment and these creatures need to recover a codex for him to do so. I’m pretty sure that’s the combined plot of “Man of Steel” and “Aquaman and The Lost Kingdom.” Also, we do not see this being’s face until an end credits scene. The credits actually have two scenes, so is this franchise over? I guess we’ll see how good the film’s legs are at the box office. I thought at least the film would make some sort of reference to the Michael Jordan and Chicago Bulls documentary, “The Last Dance.” That didn’t have to be the reasoning behind the title, but it would have been a tongue in cheek thing that would have given the film a little more life and a little more fun. I really just don’t know what this movie was.

Surprisingly, it had the best special effects of the franchise and best action sequences, which is to say you can actually see what’s happening during those scenes. The creatures sent to retrieve the codex had this horrifying dynamic when they shredded people with their teeth. The visual and sound design were pretty effective and well-executed. Those were the only upgrades.

Obviously, you’re aware by this point, this franchise is just not for me. Hardy is an awesome actor, and it’s clear he cares deeply about the character. If this really is the last film, I’ll be thrilled that he’ll have more time for other things. I’m sure the fans will enjoy this film, too. And I hope they do. I just always thought they should have wanted more.

1.5 out of 5 stars