JP Nunez
I’m not going to sit here and tell you that the Venom movies are great. They’re not. They have all sorts of storytelling problems, but despite that, I still think they’re a ton of fun. I’ll always be a fan of this franchise, so when I heard Sony was making a third Venom film, I got pretty excited. Venom: The Last Dance instantly became one of my most anticipated films of 2024, and when tickets finally went on sale, I booked a seat for opening night as soon as I could.
Venom: The Last Dance was written and directed by Kelly Marcel, and it stars Tom Hardy, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, Stephen Graham, Peggy Lu, and Alanna Ubach. The film is set immediately after Venom: Let There Be Carnage, but it doesn’t start with the titular anti-hero. Instead, it begins by telling us the story of Knull, the creator of the symbiotes. One day, his rebellious children turned on him and found a way to imprison their maker, but now, this ancient entity wants out.
He sends his other creations, hideous monsters called xenophages, to track down the key that will set him free, and as luck would have it, that key lies with Venom and Eddie Brock. At the same time, a secret branch of the government is rounding up the symbiotes on earth and studying them, and when these people set their sights on Venom, they and the xenophages comprise a perfect storm that just might spell the end of the lethal protector.
If you’ve seen the previous two Venom movies, you should have a pretty good idea of what to expect in Venom: The Last Dance. The story isn’t great, and some of the dialogue is pretty cringy, but the action and the dynamic between Venom and Eddie are more than worth the price of admission.
Let’s start with the negatives. This narrative often feels incredibly contrived, and there are also a number of plot holes big enough to drive a Mack Truck through. For instance, Knull is presented as a nearly omnipotent being who’s older than the universe itself, so it’s not clear how his symbiote children (or anybody, really) could’ve possibly created a prison that can hold him.
Along similar lines, the xenophages are drawn to Venom like homing missiles, but conveniently, they can only recognize him when he completely takes over Eddie’s body. As long as the guy is still recognizably human, the symbiote can do all sorts of cool things, but the second he turns into the hulking black monster we all know and love, he tips his pursuers off to his true identity. It doesn’t make much sense, but once again, Venom: The Last Dance doesn’t bother to explain this total head-scratcher.
Those are just a couple of examples, but I think you get the point. The story isn’t this film’s strong point, so if you’re looking for a rock-solid plot that will engage your intellect as well as your emotions, you won’t find it here. However, if you just want to turn your brain off and have a boatload of fun for almost two hours, Venom: The Last Dance is the movie for you.
Eddie and Venom are as hilarious as ever, but they’re more than just a comedy duo. Especially in the final act, they have some genuinely emotional moments as well, so if you’ve been with these characters since their first cinematic adventure, your dedication to them is going to pay off in a big way.
But hands down, the best thing about Venom: The Last Dance is the action. This franchise has always been pretty violent, especially for PG-13 comic book flicks, but the latest entry takes it even one step further. The camera doesn’t shy away when Venom bites people’s heads off, and throughout the film, we see more blood than I remember in the previous two Venom movies.
On top of that, the final act is some of the most fun action I’ve seen all year. In fact, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. See, I knew this film was going to involve a lot of symbiotes, and that made me a bit nervous. The first two Venom flicks pitted Venom against other members of his species, so I was afraid that formula would lose its magic the third time around. But thankfully, I was wrong.
It’s not Venom versus his fellow symbiotes. Rather, Venom and the other symbiotes fight against the xenophages, and this all-out war is an absolute blast. It’s like the action from the previous Venom movies on steroids, and Knull’s monstrous minions add a fresh touch that keeps the battle from becoming stale. It’s pretty much everything I wanted it to be, so when the credits began to roll, I was a happy man.
And if you’ve enjoyed this franchise so far, I think you’ll have a good time with Venom: The Last Dance too. Granted, it has a lot of the same storytelling problems as the first two Venom films, so it’s not going to convert any non-believers. But let’s be honest, nobody is looking for a Venom movie that Martin Scorsese would call cinema. Fans just want fun symbiote action and an entertaining Eddie/Venom dynamic, and in that regard, this film delivers in spades.
Venom: The Last Dance is playing in theaters right now.
