Popcorn Perspectives with Danny Minton
Week of September 27, 2021
Venom: Let There Be Carnage
Rated PG-13 for disturbing material, action, intense sequences of violence, some strong language and suggestive references
In Theaters
The first Venom film was deeply disappointing, and frankly not worthy of a sequel. But Sony was invested and even teased a next chapter with Woody Harrelson as the promised villain at the end of the movie. So here we are with the next in the series and Harrelson plays a murderous psychopath named Cletus Kasady who is destined for lethal injection. But first he wants the good alien Venom’s owner, Eddie Brock (again played by Tom Hardy) to tell his story in the newspaper. But when an altercation takes place with Eddie in prison, Cletus gains Venom’s powers and becomes Carnage, a giant red alien parasite. Breaking out of prison and wreaking havoc around the city, Eddie and Venom must find a way to stop the new baddie Carnage before things get more out of hand. Here’s the good news, the movie isn’t nearly as crappy as the original and actually manages to provide some decent entertainment. My synopsis above sounds like some serious sci-fi horror, but, in actuality, the film almost makes for a better comedy than it does any other genre. Sony made some smart changes for this film with a giant infusion of humor as well as a cast which looks like its having fun with the ridiculous material. I’m guessing part of the fun is having Andy Serkis as director. As you’ll recall, Serkis played Gollum in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies and is a master of CG multiple personalities, which I can only assume helped this project make more sense. Also he does a great job keeping the storytelling fast-paced and thrilling, not allowing you to think too much on the problems, which are many. But even though the script is weak and the project is frivolous, it manages to be surprisingly fun at times. Not to give away any spoilers, but the one thing that people will be talking about the most with this film takes place after the initial post credits. So stick around for a few minutes after they start rolling. B