We Are Venom!!!

I watched the movie Venom released last year, with no high expectations. Turns out, some times it's actually good to lower your expectations because I was pleasantly surprised by the movie. In fact, the movie was really well done.

Venom: Eye, lungs, pancreas... So many snacks, so little time.

A character created as a villain in the famous comics book series "The Amazing Spider-Man" in the 1980s, Venom was a really successful character in the comics. Venom was previously featured in Spider-Man 3 as well, but the character was not successful because the movie was overloaded with villains. Fans of Venom felt that the character was not properly explained, fleshed out etc. Spider-Man 3 had better ratings in the theater but Venom had lower ratings Now I'm not sure why critics are biased against good movies, but I still think that Venom is way better than most of the superhero movies.

The movie is a mix of superhero, action thriller, drama, horror, science fiction, and romance. I can't say that it's the same as any other superhero movie. I found this to be a hybrid of the Alien series, Spider-Man and Her. Each segment adds something in its own way. Which is why I like them for all that it brings in to the table.

Since the character Venom was not properly explained in Spider-Man 3, let's explain that now. Who is Venom? The alien, or "symbiote" as the antagonist calls it, has to leech on other humans making them brain-dead. It's like the anti-life equation in The Fourth World. The "symbiote" is "rescued" by Eddie Brock ("Tom Hardy") and bonds with him. The alien series is one of my most favorites, but it has been replicated so many times that I can second guess it any time is used. With some exceptions, the Alien series is the only true faithful adaptation of a true horror series for the same. If not for the other parts of the story, I would have rated the movie low.

The fact that the design replicates the alien movies is one of its drawbacks. Let's take a look at the superhero part now. Of course, they had to use the art design from their comics instead of changing it. It was pretty good, Nothing special or out-of-the-ordinary, but it looked like a dark hybrid of Spider-Man and the villain from Terminator 2. It's in the end that everything comes to design, because your implementation is not honoring them properly. There are issues with CGI, added by the fact that that the villain looks exactly like the hero. Probably budget constraints, since most of it probably went to hiring Tom Hardy.

The story is science fiction, and it's all about a mad scientist that I am naming Victor Frankenstein (Riz Ahmed), running test trials on his lab patients with an alien creature. Victor Frankenstein later becomes the villain Riot by "luckily" bonding with it. The story is adapted from the 5 issue mini series "Planet of the Symbiotes". It talks about a human invasion of the Symbiotes, just like the movie. The invasion doesn't happen though, but can applauded for its effort.

Eddie Brock: What the hell are you?
Venom: I am Venom, and you are mine.

One of the best parts of the movie are the dialogues between Eddie Brock and Venom and the dramatic effect it induces. Eddie turns Venom from a leech or a villain into an anti-hero, and Venom shares common personalities with Eddie that both of them eventually bond. The conversations between Eddie Brock and Venom are very interesting. Anyone who has seen the movie "Her" would understand the emotional nature between Eddie and Venom. "Her" is one of my favorite movies, and everyone has to see it. The movie "Venom" is not as interesting as "Her", but having someone inside you  talk, advice, order, take control and do things is still interesting and keeps the movie going. Along with Eddie, the voice of Venom was also given by Tom Hardy, but with a different accent and voice modulation, giving a sinister sound to Venom.

The other best part of the movie is the acting performance by Tom Hardy. Tom Hardy plays a convincing role as Eddie Brock, making him an all new character separate from Spider-Man. Eddie is thrusting for his long lost love who had just dumped him. The romance could've been extended with more scenes though. But in the end, it's just Eddie and Venom.

Eddie & Venom: "We are Venom"

1. Venom 2 is happening, especially because of high box office sales for a movie with low critic ratings and lower budgets comparative to modern superhero movies. It was more like a hit-or-miss movie.
2. Venom is not a spinoff. Sony is not going to integrate it with MCU. Not unless Disney buys out Columbia Pictures, or makes a huge deal like they did with Spider-Man. Besides, universes like MCU and DCEU are overloaded.
3. A Solo Venom movie has been in production since 1997.
4. In Spider-Man 3, Eddie Brock AKA Venom appears as the antagonist. I kept thinking that the organism (symbiote) turns you into Venom, but that's not the case. Eddie was the only true host for the symbiote.