With Venom: The Last Dance, the trilogy dedicated to the Symbiote and Eddie Brock played by Tom Hardy ends. Sony's plans for the character's future are not yet official or clear, so while waiting to discover any new developments, the public is left with this third chapter directed by Kelly Marcel, director and screenwriter of the film, as well as the name that takes the responsibility of introducing Knull, the creator of all the Symbiotes, to the big screen.
Venom: The Last Dance Movie Synopsis:
The government is hunting Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy), accused of the death of detective Patrick Mulligan (Stephen Graham). But something darker is hidden in space: Knull (Andy Serkis) has awakened and his fate seems to be intertwined with that of Venom, who on Earth will suddenly be in danger. As the circle tightens around them, the two protagonists are forced to make a shocking decision that will bring down the curtain on their "last dance".
Venom The Last Dance Movie Review:
And it is precisely with Knull that Venom: The Last Dance initially presents itself to the audience in the theater. The character - much loved in the comics by Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman - is the element that kicks off the entire narrative of the film but also of the entire trilogy: in fact, it explains why the Symbiotes arrive on Earth and, above all, the importance of Venom compared to all the other alien characters in the franchise.
Unfortunately (or fortunately), despite an incipit that somehow tries to convey a desire for epicness on the part of the film, Venom: The Last Dance is a title completely similar to its two predecessors: closer to the first than the second in style and rhythm, but we are still talking about a film that remains a victim of its own gags and its own writing. For some reason, in 2018, it was decided that this version of Venom on the big screen would be heavily focused on comedy and from that moment on, the character of Eddie Brock - played by Tom Hardy who really believes in it, to the point of once again signing the subject of the film - has become a real caricature.
This also applies to this third title, even if it is possible to draw a line within The Last Dance: the first part is - one might say - the classic Venom seen in the previous films, full of gags of dubious functioning and scenes that have no real utility in the course of the narrative; the second, decidedly more action and fun, manages to involve the viewer more, giving - especially in the finale - vibes à la Transformers, because other Symbiotes are also involved and they are nothing more than toys with different but very stereotyped characteristics, just like seen in the film saga started by Michael Bay.
If the action scenes work almost all the way, with good use of CGI, the real problem of Venom: The Last Dance is the script. Definitely more focused on narration than the first two, a plot completely similar in concept to that of Stranger Things is not enough to save a film that often ends up forgetting concepts explained by its characters a few scenes before.
And a similar argument can also be made for the subplots present: the one linked to the character of Juno Temple is certainly interesting, but in the end full of details that do not seem to be truly necessary; the usefulness of the narrative thread that follows Rhys Ifans' Martin, on the other hand, has not arrived, if not that of being a sort of deus ex machina with a gag at a certain point in the film.
All things considered, even in this way more similar to the first than the second title of the trilogy, Venom: The Last Dance is a somewhat enjoyable film that manages to do its job, that is, entertain and amuse for its entire – not excessive – duration, accompanying the viewer in what the film tells us is the last dance of the Brock-Venom duo.
A note of demerit, however, for the two scenes after the credits. If the second – deliberately cryptic but which leaves little room for interpretation – is the classic post-credit scene that opens up to future plans, the first risks being a real problem. Without falling into spoilers, in the mid-credit scene, something is stated that is in complete contradiction with the rest of the film and it makes you wonder how they will handle – if they will handle – the thing in the future. In closing: this film modifies the post-credit scenes of Venom: The Fury of Carnage and Spider-Man: No Way Home. We won't go into further details in this review, but the script chose to change and invert those facts, for the needs of the plot of this chapter.
Venom: The Last Dance is the final chapter of the trilogy dedicated to Eddie Brock and the Symbiote of the Marvel house: the film remains on the wavelength and stylistic figure of its predecessors, resulting in being closer to the action movie that was the first title than to the over the top detective story of Carnage. Tom Hardy once again shows that he cares a lot about this character and tries to give his usual contribution, this time also contributing to the subject of the screenplay, taking with both hands from one of the most beloved stories by readers of the character's comics.
Unfortunately, the film tends to fall into the same defects already seen in the past, thus classifying itself as the third film of three of the trilogy that manages to entertain only if the audience manages to ignore the plot holes and contradictions that will crowd the big screen. Venom: The Last Dance is a title that entertains in the action parts, but nothing more. Unfortunately or fortunately.