In Hollywood, sequels never seem to measure up to the originals. However, “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” a sequel to the 2018 film, Venom, was an outstanding movie that strayed outside the norm with its computer-generated imagery and creative storyline.
The comedy-action film’s storyline follows the dynamic duo of Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) and his symbiotic partner, Venom (also Hardy). As a journalist, Brock interviews a psychopathic serial killer on death row named Cletus Kasady (Woody Harrelson).
Kasady finds himself to be the host of another symbiote, Carnage (also Harrelson), and breaks out of prison with a thirst for blood.
It’s up to Brock and Venom to stop Carnage before he tears apart San Francisco.
Brock and Venom’s interactions with each other are priceless as they struggle to accept each other in their shared life. For example, Brock won’t let Venom eat people’s brains, so he buys chickens for Venom to feed. However, Venom grows attached to the birds and refuses to eat them.
It’s also interesting how many similarities the movie has with the 1994 show, “Natural Born Killers.” Both screenplays star Woody Harrelson and focus on anti-heroes as the main characters. Harrelson still has his deceivingly sweet tone from “Natural Born Killers,” one that masks a devious and murderous intent.
While watching the action-packed movie, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of deeper meaning behind its storyline. Like the super-soldier serum, symbiotes seem to mirror the most prominent features of the hosts they inhabit, and Carnage becomes an enhanced version of the murderous Kasady.
One could compare the symbiotes attached to Brock and Kasady to the inner monsters in all of us, and how we must keep them at bay lest they consume us entirely. Brock had to prevent Venom from murdering innocents and causing havoc, trying his best to keep his “monster” in check at all times.
On the other hand, Kasady lets Carnage kill as he pleased, ending up with him losing all control of the symbiote and letting his “monster” take the wheel.
The CGI in the movie perfectly portrays the symbiotes, and the sound design creates life-like action scenes. Every detail, down to each vein on Venom’s body, is intricately detailed, and every harsh, bloodcurdling roar from Carnage sends chills down your bones. However, it is sometimes hard to keep track of what’s happening during the final fight scenes.
I really enjoyed watching this well-rounded movie. It has fantastic sound effects, an innovative storyline and solid CGI. I strongly recommend watching this movie in a theater with high-end surround sound and low ambient light because of the astounding sound effects and because most of the film is dark, requiring a higher contrast.
— By William Holz
