Venom: The Last Dance review – A funny but forgettable sendoff

Venom: The Last Dance arrives in a quiet year for superheroes. Marvel and DC have chosen to take a breather in 2024 amidst dwindling box office returns. It was looking like this year would be Sony’s as the Big Two’s absence has left an open niche in the superhero movie market.

For whatever reason, that hasn’t been the case. Following the release of Madame Web earlier this year, Sony delayed its subsequent releases for the year, opting to skip the lucrative but competitive summer blockbuster lineup. Then we got this film.

Bromance under attack

Venom: The Last Dance closes the chapter on Eddie Brock and Venom’s bromance. In the first movie they’re forced together, in the second film they go on a break, and now they finally peacefully coexist. Full symbiosis has been reached. Tom Hardy has spent significant time performing the Eddie and Venom dynamic, and his improv makes the two’s banter funnier than ever.

Unfortunately, paradise is upended when a creature that wants to kill Venom appears for whatever reason. The events of the last film saw Venom’s existence revealed to the whole world, including one Knull in the depths of the cosmos. Knull sends something called a Xenophage to Earth to kill Eddie Brock’s alter ego and retrieve a “Codex”, something that supposedly forms inside a symbiote when it revives its host. This Codex is supposed to help free Knull from his domain where he’s been imprisoned by the very symbiotes he created. Somehow.

Forgive the overuse of ‘some’ but that’s kind of the point. Venom: The Last Dance is just an excuse to send Eddie on the run so he and Venom can have their last road trip. The plot is just a formality. It’s clear director Kelly Marcel and Tom Hardy want this to be a bombastic sendoff, and by Venom‘s standard, it is. The plethora of symbiotes from the first film get to show off in plenty of hosts.

The CGI is decent enough. Still, if you can deliver a good-looking showdown, mediocre CGI at points is forgivable in our books. The action sequences are, for the most part, more consistent than the other two. A low bar which amounts to… just fine. None stands out beyond the final sequence. Venom also gets a Paul Walker-esque five-minute tribute at the end. The fact that we found this funny says a lot about how well this movie sells the stakes of the pair’s separation.

In the absence of a plot what keeps you watching Venom: The Last Dance are the performances. Chiwetel Ejiofor (whose face we’ve missed on the big screen) plays General Rex Chapman with a paranoia for the safety of his men that makes the performances feel like more than a Hollywood caricature. Juno Temple gives a decent performance as Dr. Teddy Paine, whose dark fascination with the symbiotes feels like a Carlton Drake retread.

Venom: The Last Dance verdict

For fans of the franchise, Venom: The Last Dance delivers on the important parts. The acting and CGI are solid. Tom Hardy’s as comfortable with the character as he’s ever been, making for some funny dialogue. Just don’t expect this one to stay with you for longer than an hour after you leave the cinema.