VENOM: THE LAST DANCE (2024) **

Tom Hardy returns for this third and presumably final go around as Eddie Brock, the host to everybody’s favorite symbiotic superhero, Venom.  This time, Eddie’s on his way to New York when he learns symbiote hunters (giant CGI cockroaches) are coming to Earth to kill him.  Also tracking him is a group of scientists who want to study Venom. It all leads to the final showdown at Area 51. 

The first Venom was better than it had any right to be.  The second one was fun, but the formula was already showing some signs of wear and tear.  With The Last Dance, it feels like the wheels are starting to really come off.  Hardy is game for anything, and remains as spry as ever, which helps somewhat.  It’s just that the movie he inhabits is tired and half baked.  There are some good individual scenes too, like when Venom busts up an illegal dogfighting ring or possesses a horse or cuts a rug to “Dancing Queen”.  It’s just a shame that they feel more like footnotes than highlights. 

Maybe the problem was with the director, Kelly Marcel, who was making her directing debut.  She wrote all three films in the series, so you would think the writing would at least be sharp, even if the direction was lackluster (which it is).  However, the script is just as uninspired as the direction.  As a result, this is by far the weakest entry in the franchise.  If this was indeed meant to be a trilogy capper, it sure seems like an odd way to go about it as the whole thing feels like everyone involved was just making it up as they went along. 

Michelle Williams’ absence is sorely felt this time around and the new supporting cast is mostly wasted.  Chiwetel Eiiofor is grumpy as the solider tracking Venom and Juno Temple is woefully underutilized as a scientist in Area 51.  The second movie’s director, Andy Serkis also appears as an alien baddie, but we don’t see a whole lot of him, so he winds up not making much of an impact.  As uneven as the last one was, at least it had a strong central villain in the form of Carnage.  Since Serkis spends all his time on his throne moping, all we really have are a bunch of generic monsters to tide us over.  They aren’t even well designed either as they just look like variations on the pit monsters from Attack of the Clones. 

Bottom Line:  Even people who enjoyed the first two Venom movies may want to sit The Last Dance out.