Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021)

Venom: Let There Be Carnage

By Emily Hubbard and Calum Whitfield

Tom Hardy returns for a fun sequel that's more rom-com than superhero 

• 3.5/5 Cameras 🎥🎥🎥.5
• Directed by: Andy Serkis 
• Starring: Tom Hardy, Woody Harrelson, Michelle Williams, and Naomie Harris 
• Where to find it: In Cinemas Now 

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2018’s Venom divided critics and fans alike, with critics generally panning the anti-hero origin story, and fans having more of a positive reaction. It’s safe to say that the 2021 sequel, Venom: Let There Be Carnage is likely to receive a similar, if not more polarising, response.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage once again follows Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) and the alien symbiote that inhabits his body, Venom (also Tom Hardy). In an attempt to reignite his journalism career, Eddie interviews notorious serial killer Cletus Kasady (Woody Harrelson). Things take a turn, however, when Venom’s impulsivity leads to the creation of Carnage, who latches itself to Cletus, forcing Eddie and Venom to work through their relationship troubles to try and stop him.

Similarly to Venom, its sequel suffers from a rather uninspired plot, and perhaps could have benefitted from a longer runtime (at 1 hour 37 minutes, it’s one of the shortest superhero films to date). However, also similarly to the first film, Venom: Let There Be Carnage does an excellent job of putting the unconventional relationship between Tom Hardy’s Eddie and Venom, and the hilarity that brings, in the spotlight. This time around, however, the relationship between the pair is really amped up, with their couple-like dynamics turning this film into a surprise romantic comedy and a damn good one at that. In fact, it could be argued that this film is more appealing when it leans into the clear love between Eddie and Venom, you’ll believe me when I say that Venom is a gay icon, than it is during its action sequences, although said action scenes are admittedly better than those in the 2018 film.

Continuing to capitalise on the comedic side of the film’s main characters that fans have come to know and love was a very smart decision by director Andy Serkis. Each interaction between Eddie and Venom is hilarious, and at times genuinely touching in ways that almost completely make up for many of the film’s flaws.

One of Venom: Let There Be Carnage’s flaws, and probably its biggest, is the poor way it treats its supporting characters. Naomi Harris’ Frances Barrison, a.k.a Shriek, is underused in her role as a secondary villain to the point that it makes her character merely a means to an end, a widely disappointing move considering Harris’ acting capabilities. Michelle Williams returns as Eddie’s ex-fiancé Anne and has an even smaller role than she does in 2018s Venom, with her best scene being an interaction with shopkeeper Mrs. Chen (Peggy Lu). Even the widely talented Stephen Graham isn’t left with much to play with as the Eddie-hating Detective Mulligan. Despite this, the film does go some of the way in doing justice to its villain. Woody Harrelson’s Cletus Kasady serves well as a menacing, and deranged, threat, both in his own form and as Carnage, in a way that honours his comic book counterpart and will have fans sighing in relief.

As easy as it would be to sit and pick apart every issue with this movie, it would be a lie to say that it isn’t a thoroughly entertaining film. Is it the best film you’ll ever see? Not by a long shot. However, the sheer might of Tom Hardy’s commitment to this role, he not only plays Eddie and Venom, but also has a writing credit forces Venom: Let There Be Carnage to be a film worth watching.