‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’ brings comedy and action to the cinema while lacking a clear purpose. The sequel to ‘Venom’, released on Oct. 1, and it has generated little buzz compared to other superhero films. 

The film follows Eddie Brock, a journalist, who has a connection with an alien that developed through the first movie. Brock and Venom go through their own struggles throughout the movie while trying to stop famous serial killer Cletus Kasady from ravaging California with new powers he developed. Kasady gained these powers after he bit Brock during the last meeting that took place before Kasady’s execution date. The film spends time breaking down Venom and Brock’s relationship through comedy while continuing to push the fight scenes between them and the villain of the film. The film ended with a post credit scene that seems to confirm Venom will join the Marvel Cinematic Universe in the future, but leaves further questions as to when this will take place. 

While there were some sporadic funny moments within the film, a lot of it seemed forced. This made the movie seem like it needed a lot of filler moments that overall were not up to the quality they should have been. For the entire film to finish in under an hour and a half, there should have been more of a focus on aspects of the plot instead of making jokes. 

The original movie has little connection to the sequel, but is still needed if the viewer wants to understand the relationship between Venom and Brock. This becomes frustrating for those who have seen the first movie and those who have not. One would hope the second would be a continuation of the first that gives just enough information to be a standalone film as well. This is not the case, and a large number of viewers are left confused because of it. 

One good aspect of the movie was the cast. Woody Harrelson plays Kasady and brings the serial killer alive. He creates a creepy and uneasy feeling in the audience whenever he is on screen, and it helps form a strong villain to push the movie forward. The other actors in the movie play their roles well, but the writing fails to develop a solid film.

The post credit scene finally brings Venom into the MCU while still leaving a lot of space for change in the future. The whole movie seems to have been creating the narrative that Venom was a hero or at the very least a misunderstood villain, but the scene forces Venom back into his role as a reckless villain. It completely takes away all of the detail and character development he has undergone which defeats the purpose of having a movie dedicated to the character.

Overall, ‘Venom: Let there Be Carnage’ misses its opportunity to improve and build on to Venom’s entrance to the MCU and future solo movies. The movie had the opportunity to develop Venom as an antihero similar to Loki, but ultimately wasted money and time constructing a mediocre movie. 

Rating: C-