Venom (2018)

This one was one of those films that fell victim to one of the most heinous crimes in recent history. You know what I mean.

Toxic fanboys.

Yuck.

Oh, how could they possibly do a Venom-film without Spider-Man? Well, this way, apparently. And I honestly don't even miss Spider-Man in this one. So there.

Is it one of the best Marvel adaptations out there? No. Is it a fun action/adventure romp with a little creepiness factor thrown in? Sure.

Tom Hardy is Eddie Brock, a gung-ho investigative journalist who unfortunately for him takes it one step too far. He uses classified information meant for his attorney girlfriend to roast Carlton Drake, a young multi-billionaire scientist/space nut. He gets fired, loses his girlfriend and basically hits the bottom. But he is still trying to make a living. Meanwhile, Drake has brought back some bizarre gooey creatures from outer space that he wants to bond with humans, but alas: mostly it goes wrong. Brock goes to investigate and gets bonded to one specific alien called Venom. And from then on, shenanigans ensue, as they should.

Venom walks the thin line between a little horror and comedy and usually pulls it off. This is in a large part thanks to Tom Hardy, who is really fun to see as a sort of schizophrenic character. When he is talking to Venom, it comes across as if he's having discussions with himself and it is often sidesplitting to watch. The action is flashy but not jumbled except for a few parts during a chase scene and the final showdown and the story is rather by the numbers, but I wasn't bored at all.

What this film has going for it as well is a rather clear way of describing the working of the symbiotes. They don't try and find new explanations or hamfisted rules, it still stays fairly close to the comics. They even find a way to incorporate the symbiotes' problem with high pitched sounds, which was neat. The look of Venom also fits. He's big, hulking, they got the face and the tongue right, the only thing missing (for obvious reasons) is the Spider-Man logo, but that makes a lot of sense here.

I guess whether you like this one or not is in what way you like Tom Hardy, because this is his film, make no mistake about it. It might not be the best thing since sliced bread, but it is fun. So don't get bamboozled by toxic reviews or reactions to this one. Check it out for yourself. It's a lot better than it gets credit for.