Venom (2018)

 Sci-fi September

#Something Blue

Venom (2018) 112 minutes

    Venom's Blue Ribbons:

    Chinese American Film Festival (C.A.F.F.) 2019

    Winner * Golden Angel Award

    Most Popular U.S. Film in China

    Faro Island Film Festival 2019

    Winner * Golden Carp Film Award -International

    Favorite Actor - Tom Hardy

    Taurus World Stunt Awards 2019

    Winner * Taurus Stunt Award

    Best Work with a Vehicle

    Jack Gill (stunt coordinator-2nd unit)

    Henry Kingi (stunt driver)

    Jalil Jay Lynch (stunt driver-motorcycle and car)

    Denney Pierce (stunt driver)

    Jimmy N. Roberts (stunt double-Tom Hardy motorcycle)

    

    Houston Film Critics Society Awards 2019

    Nominee * HFCS Award

    Worst Picture

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Writers: Jeff Pinkner (screenplay by), Scott Rosenberg (screenplay by)

Stars: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed

Streaming on: Starz

Keywords: anti hero, marvel comics, superhero

The plot: A failed reporter accidentally hosts a violent alien symbiote. 

Random Observations: 

• I love Tom Hardy but also he's one of those actors that I'll see in a movie, watch the credits and go, "Oh, THAT's Tom Hardy." His characterizations are so varied that it's hard to believe that they could all be expressed by the same actor. Watch the 2008 film Bronson if you don't believe me. Also, watch it even if you do believe me.
• Jenny Slate is adorkable and I wish she had more screentime. 
• I really wanted the symbiote to pop out at an inappropriate time and sing "Hello, my baby, hello my honey, hello my ragtime gaaaaaaaaaaaaaal"
• Seriously the car and motorcycle stunts are tits.
• Got some Altered States/Take on Me flickering going on.

This Something Blue is a first watch for me. Honestly, I was putting off a bit because I felt a little Marvel/Superhero'd out. The symbiote Venom has appeared on screen before but his hosts weren't the most exciting to me. 

Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock is a much more relatable character from the onset. In the original story, Eddie's downfall is a lot more dramatic as he publicly exposes someone he believes to be a serial killer only to have Spider-Man prove him wrong. 

Spider-Man doesn't seem to be around for this venture, but that's more than okay, as it seems to be difficult for filmmakers to focus on Venom with your friendly neighborhood web-slinger hogging all of the screen time. Maybe it's because we're in an entirely new neighborhood altogether: San Francisco.

I would have been okay with seeing more of Eddie Brock figuring out life prior to us seeing Venom. The fish-out-of-water stuff is absolutely adorable and endearing and I wasn't ready to say goodbye to it. Also, once Venom shows up the film gets a little more "Marvel"y with CGI galore and more explosions than you can shake a stick at.

While the writing for the character of Venom is crisp and clever, it feels like the writing for Anne Weying (played by Michelle Williams) is rather bland and lazy. 

.7/1 Directing

.6/1 Cinematography

.7/1 Visual design

.9/1 Editing

.6/1 Plot 

.8/1 Dialogue

.7/1 Acting

.7/1 Soundtrack/Score/Sound

.8/1 Originality

.7/1 Rewatchability

Total 6.5/10 Binge Bones

Verdict: If you're sick of superhero movies, this might make you feel a little better. If you're not sick of superhero movies, you probably have already seen it. Tom Hardy's vocal characterizations for both Eddie Brock and Venom are so varied and consistent. It's surprising he hasn't been getting more kudos for that -- so here's some: kudos, Tom Hardy. Now you can breathe easy because someone noticed how awesome you are for once in your life.