Venom: The Last Dance is a decent sci-fi action Halloween flick that families with tweens can enjoy together without leaving the cinema traumatised.
Based on Marvel Comics, Eddie Brock, played by Tom Hardy, is bonded with an alien symbiote—much like a virus—yet both have entirely different personalities.
Together, they possess superhuman abilities, but without each other, the alien can’t survive, and Eddie is left as a flawed human.
In this third and final instalment of the franchise, Eddie and Venom find themselves pursued by a ferocious alien from another world, unleashed by Knull, who hunts symbiotes and seemingly appears indestructible.
While also being hunted by a secret Area 51 project, we are introduced to other symbiotes who team up with Eddie and Venom in an attempt to take down an alien threat that only grows in strength.
Having penned the previous Venom films, The Last Dance also marks Kelly Marcel’s directorial debut, showcasing her transition from screenwriter to director.
Marcel is most known for writing films like Saving Mr. Banks (2013) and the adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey (2015); however, Venom: The Last Dance is as far from an erotic romantic drama as you can get, although there’s certainly a bromance between Eddie Brock and his symbiotic buddy.
The movie’s opening scene starts in a bar in Mexico, where we last saw Eddie in the post-credit scene of Marvel’s Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021); however, any idea of an MCU and Sony-verse crossover for now is quickly put to rest as he is sucked back into his own timeline.
Thankfully, this means you don’t need to watch all 40-odd MCU and Sony-verse Marvel movies to understand what’s going on.
Although the film is unlikely to win any Oscars or major awards, it is packed with action, thrills, and impressive stunts, showcasing decent CGI work and has plenty of frights.
The film is quite humorous, with Eddie and his alien friend bickering throughout. Rhys Ifans, playing Martin Moon, along with his hippy family, is sure to be an audience favourite.
In the final scene of the movie, you are left wondering whether you’re supposed to be laughing or crying, creating an emotional ambiguity that lingers, much like the relationship between Eddie and Venom.
At the end of the day, it is just another superhero movie, but that doesn’t
mean it isn’t enjoyable.
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Rated M – Science fiction themes, violence and coarse language.
Distributed by Sony Pictures
In cinemas now
