'Venom: The Last Dance' review: Bizarre franchise ends on a sour note

Courtesy of Sony

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Tom Hardy likely doesn’t receive enough credit for carrying the “Venom” franchise and elevating it beyond its potential. Without his commitment, it’s improbable this series would have achieved such commercial success. In “Venom: The Last Dance,” purportedly the ‘final’ chapter of this unconventional franchise, Hardy’s dedication is pushed to its limits.

“The Last Dance” doesn’t belong to the illustrious Marvel Cinematic Universe alongside Iron Man, Captain America, and the Hulk; instead, it stands next to Sony’s C-list universe that includes Morbius, Madame Web, and the upcoming Kraven the Hunter, sharing a similar level of quality, poor effects, and overstimulation. Yet, the cultural memes surrounding the franchise should be celebrated. 

Indeed, “The Last Dance” retains the same wacky, goofy energy that fans relished in the first two films, wrapping up a trilogy that has lacked a cohesive filmmaking vision or narrative stability. Much like Ryan Reynolds embodies Deadpool, Hardy is the heart and soul of Venom, having championed this head-chomping symbiote from the beginning. While this is commendable, “The Last Dance” ultimately proves to be another obnoxious entry in a series that has always felt mediocre and unappealing to casual viewers. For a movie claiming to be the “final” installment, it also concludes with a whimper, failing to raise the stakes enough to make you care about the fate of the main character and those around him.

Kelly Marcel, who contributed to the previous films, steps into the director’s chair after Ruben Fleischer and Andy Serkis, both of whom attempted to infuse their unique styles into the franchise but ultimately left little lasting impact. This threequel picks up immediately after “Let There Be Carnage,” with Eddie Brock and Venom now residing in Mexico, humorously dismissing their past involvement with “multiverse shit” (Venom and Eddie briefly flirted with the Marvel Cinematic Universe at the end of the last “Spider-Man” film).

They are not only wanted fugitives for the murder of a Bay Area detective (Stephen Graham) but are being pursued by a sniveling antagonist named Knull (Serkis), the father of the symbiotes, who is trapped on another planet. Venom and Eddie hold the key to Knull’s freedom—an absurd, nonsensical MacGuffin resulting from Eddie’s death and Venom’s subsequent life-saving actions (please, don’t ask questions). Naturally, the villain has sent an army of monsters, resembling cheap “A Quiet Place” knockoffs, to capture them. 

In their frantic attempts to escape, Eddie and Venom embark on one chaotic journey where they encounter a random family (led by Rhys Ifans, who you may remember as the Lizard from Sony’s “The Amazing Spider-Man,” although he’s not playing that character here), eventually winding up in Las Vegas and Area 51. Here, we encounter an underdeveloped subplot involving a barking general (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and a scientist (Juno Temple) who are studying various forms of symbiotes and require Eddie and Venom’s DNA to advance their research.

The film features plenty of static, visually overwhelming CGI battles with colorful, fan-favorite symbiotes, but it detracts from the core element that makes these movies somewhat bearable: the playful banter between Venom and Eddie. The film’s standout moment occurs when Eddie and Venom visit a casino that culminates in a dance to Abba’s “Dancing Queen,” suggesting that this character could thrive under the right creative leadership. Imagine if this series had the freedom of “Deadpool.”

Instead, we’re left with a rushed and lackluster conclusion that attempts to invoke sentimentality in a way that feels unearned. While “The Last Dance” provides a semblance of finality, considering how easily Robert Downey Jr. was lured back into the MCU, nothing in the realm of intellectual property is ever truly gone. They might as well have titled this movie “Venom: The Last Dance…For Now.”

Grade: C- 

VENOM: THE LAST DANCE is now playing in theaters.