The November box office has been thus fardominated by Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock— akaVenom— and hisLast Dance. Having earned over $400 million worldwide so far, the threequel is proving popular, at least in ticket sales, which hasturned many people’s attention back to others in the franchise.Specifically, viewers are flocking to the birth of this trilogy, despite being rated just 30% on review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, with thefirstVenomofficially in the Disney+ Top 5 during this week.Alas, this 30% critical rating isn’t a view seemingly shared by audiences, withRotten Tomatoes' popcornmeter awarding the movie an impressive 80%.
In the firstVenom, the opening entry in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, Hardy’s Eddie, a struggling journalist down on his luck, becomes the unlikely host for an alien symbiote known asVenom, with his species intending on invading the Earth. The two develop a strange relationship that quickly blossoms,one that would leave many who viewed the movie wondering if the partnership was queer coded, although the majority view seems to be that this is an averagehost and alien symbiote relationshipand nothing more.
The Latest ‘Venom’ Entry Is the Best in the Trilogy
It’s fair to say that the trilogy ofVenommovies have been less than well-received critically. Hardy’s turn as the alien symbiote can be enjoyable at times, and some of the effects are worth indulging in, but you need only look at the Rotten Tomatoes score for each of the three films to see what some critics truly believe, despite audience ratings being much better. However, despite still receiving a mixed reception from critics,Venom: The Last Danceis considered by many to be the bestof a bad bunch, although still certainly inconsistent in quality. InAidan Kelley’s review for Collider, he said:
“In a weird roundabout way,Venom: The Last Dancebeing the most inconsistent of theVenomtrilogy is the most consistent thing for theVenomfranchise. This is a saga that is filled with pros and cons and ups and downs, all to bring a fan-favorite comic book character to the big screen. A character that, over their long comic book history, has hopped back and forth between good and evil, goofy and sinister, and so on.
IsVenom: The Last Dancethe best film in the trilogy? I would say so, and I’d be lying if I saidI didn’t have quite a bit of fun while watching it. However, at the end of the day, the Venomfilm franchise is like that kid on the little league baseball team who gets the “Most Improved” trophy. You see and appreciate how they put the work in to try and be better,but deep down, you know they probably won’t be playing long enough to be remembered in the major leagues.”
Venomis a hit on streaming. You can catch the first in the trilogy right now on Disney+.
A failed reporter is bonded to an alien entity, one of many symbiotes who have invaded Earth. But the being takes a liking to Earth and decides to protect it.
Watch on Disney+
