Venom: The Last Dance (2024) – A Thrilling but Flawed Finale

Introduction

“Venom: The Last Dance” is the third and final installment in Sony’s Venom franchise, starring Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock, the journalist who shares his body with the alien symbiote, Venom. Directed by Kelly Marcel, the film follows the chaotic and often humorous relationship between Eddie and Venom as they face new enemies, both human and extraterrestrial. With the previous two movies receiving mixed reviews but enjoying commercial success, does Venom: The Last Dance deliver a satisfying conclusion?

This review will explore the film’s plot, performances, visual effects, action sequences, and overall impact while maintaining a balanced perspective on its strengths and weaknesses.

Plot Summary – A High-Stakes Escape

The movie picks up where Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021) left off. Eddie Brock and Venom are fugitives, wanted by both the government and mysterious alien forces. Their symbiotic bond is stronger than ever, but their constant bickering adds a layer of comedy to their perilous journey.

A new villain emerges, played by Chiwetel Ejiofor, whose character has a deep understanding of symbiotes and seeks to harness their power for his own nefarious purposes. Meanwhile, Juno Temple joins the cast as an unexpected ally, adding an element of unpredictability to the story.

The film balances Eddie and Venom’s internal conflict with external threats, culminating in a high-stakes battle that determines the fate of both their world and the symbiote species.

Tom Hardy’s Performance – Carrying the Franchise

One of the undeniable strengths of the Venom series is Tom Hardy’s performance. As both Eddie Brock and the voice of Venom, Hardy delivers a dynamic, energetic, and often hilarious portrayal of the dysfunctional duo. His ability to switch between Eddie’s frustration and Venom’s chaotic hunger for adventure makes their relationship the heart of the movie.

Unlike traditional superhero protagonists, Eddie Brock is not a noble, selfless hero. He is flawed, awkward, and often makes questionable decisions. Hardy embraces these characteristics, making Eddie an entertaining yet relatable lead. Venom’s humorous and brutal nature complements Eddie’s more reserved personality, creating a buddy-cop dynamic that carries much of the film’s appeal.

However, despite Hardy’s strong performance, the script doesn’t always do him justice. Some dialogue feels forced, and a few comedic moments seem out of place in an otherwise action-packed narrative.

The Villain – A Mixed Bag

Chiwetel Ejiofor, known for his brilliant performances in Doctor Strange and 12 Years a Slave, plays a menacing antagonist with deep knowledge of symbiotes. His character’s motivations are clear—he sees Venom as both a threat and an opportunity. However, his development feels rushed. Unlike Woody Harrelson’s Carnage in the previous film, Ejiofor’s villain lacks the personal connection to Eddie, which makes his conflict with Venom less emotionally engaging.

While his presence adds weight to the story, the lack of a strong backstory or deeper emotional stakes makes him feel somewhat generic. The film could have benefited from exploring his past or his obsession with symbiotes more thoroughly.

Action Sequences – Spectacle Over Substance?

The Venom franchise has always leaned into its chaotic action, and The Last Dance is no exception. The fight scenes are visually stunning, featuring CGI-heavy battles between symbiotes and humans. One particular sequence, set in a high-speed chase, stands out as one of the most thrilling moments in the film.

However, while the action is engaging, it occasionally prioritizes spectacle over coherence. Some fight sequences are overly reliant on fast-cut editing, making it difficult to fully appreciate the choreography. Additionally, the final battle, while grand in scale, feels somewhat predictable.

Compared to the raw brutality of Venom: Let There Be Carnage, The Last Dance feels a bit more polished but lacks the visceral impact of its predecessor’s fights.

Visual Effects – A Step Forward

One area where Venom: The Last Dance truly excels is its visual effects. The CGI rendering of Venom is more polished than ever, with detailed textures and fluid movements that make the symbiote feel both alien and lifelike.

The symbiote transformations are smoother, and the film introduces new symbiote abilities that add variety to the action sequences. The dark, neon-infused cinematography enhances the film’s gritty yet fantastical tone.

Despite these improvements, some CGI-heavy moments feel weightless, particularly when Venom is interacting with his environment. While the special effects are impressive, they occasionally lack the practical weight needed to fully immerse the audience.

Tone and Humor – An Unbalanced Mix

One of the biggest criticisms of Venom: Let There Be Carnage was its inconsistent tone—jumping between dark horror elements and goofy buddy-comedy antics. The Last Dance continues this trend, with moments of horror-inspired tension being immediately undercut by jokes.

While the humor between Eddie and Venom remains a highlight, some comedic scenes feel forced. A few sequences drag on longer than necessary, slowing down the pacing of the story.

If the film had fully committed to a darker, more intense tone, it could have delivered a more emotionally impactful conclusion. Instead, it tries to balance multiple genres, which sometimes results in tonal whiplash.

Pacing and Narrative Structure

The movie’s pacing is uneven. The first act does a solid job of setting up Eddie and Venom’s predicament, but the second act feels rushed. New characters are introduced quickly without much development, and some plot points are resolved too conveniently.

The final act delivers the expected climactic showdown, but it lacks the emotional weight needed to make it truly memorable. While the stakes are high, the resolution feels predictable, and some character arcs are left underdeveloped.

Compared to the first Venom film, which had a more focused and contained story, The Last Dance attempts to go bigger but at the cost of deeper storytelling.

Connections to the Marvel Universe – A Missed Opportunity?

Since Venom exists within Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, fans have long speculated about a potential crossover with the MCU’s Spider-Man. While Venom: Let There Be Carnage teased a connection with Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, The Last Dance does not fully explore this opportunity.

This lack of a meaningful crossover feels like a missed chance, especially since Venom is one of Spider-Man’s most iconic foes. While there are references to the larger Marvel universe, they remain surface-level, leaving fans wanting more.

Box Office Performance and Critical Reception

Despite mixed reviews, Venom: The Last Dance performed well at the box office, continuing the franchise’s trend of commercial success.

Critics were divided on the film’s tone, pacing, and script, with some praising its entertainment value while others criticized its lack of narrative depth. Audience reactions were generally more positive, with many enjoying the action and humor despite the film’s flaws.

Final Verdict – A Fun but Imperfect Conclusion

Pros:

✔️ Tom Hardy’s charismatic performance remains the franchise’s biggest strength.
✔️ Visually stunning symbiote effects and action sequences.
✔️ The Eddie-Venom dynamic delivers comedic and heartfelt moments.

Cons:

❌ The villain lacks depth and emotional weight.
❌ Uneven pacing, with rushed character development.
❌ The tone shifts between horror and comedy too abruptly.
❌ Missed opportunity for a stronger connection to the larger Marvel Universe.

Overall, Venom: The Last Dance is a fun and action-packed ride that will satisfy fans of the franchise, but it falls short of delivering a truly memorable conclusion. While it improves upon certain technical aspects, its narrative inconsistencies and missed opportunities prevent it from reaching its full potential.

For casual viewers looking for an entertaining superhero film, Venom: The Last Dance delivers on spectacle. However, for those expecting a deep and emotionally resonant finale, it might leave some wanting more.

A Farmer’s Misplaced Hammer Led to the Largest Roman Treasure in Britain

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November 16, 1992 was the day which changed Suffolk-resident Eric Lawes’ life in a huge way. What he thought would have been an innocent search for a hammer he had misplaced on his farm in Hoxne Village, Suffolk, England ended up bringing him much more than he had bargained for — namely, uncovering the hiding spot of a long-hidden treasure. Based on the Guardian’s coverage of the story, Eric Lawes had been previously gifted a metal detector upon his retirement as a parting token. He decided to put his retirement gift to good use in order to locate the hammer which he had had some trouble finding. According to a 2018 Smithsonian Magazine article, when the device started recording that there was a strong signal coming from the earth, he knew that he was about to discover something big. As he started digging, it soon became clear to him that he had unearthed a treasure trove.

The Guardian reports that, when Lawes saw that his preliminary digging had yielded a few gold coins and silver spoons, he immediately contacted both the local archaeological society and the police department. Archaeologists came to the property the following day and had the area of earth holding the treasure carefully sectioned-off and removed. Their hope was that at a later stage, in their laboratory, they could examined the items in order to identify both their age and how they were stored.

When all was said and done, close to 60 pounds of items made from silver and gold were found on the site. These included more than 15,000 Roman coins, 200 gold objects, and several silver spoons. For archaeologists, this find — which later became labeled as the Hoxne Hoard — was an incredible discovery. AP News reported that archaeologist Judith Plouviez was over-the-moon about the discovery, saying that it was “an incredibly exciting and amazing find.” What’s more, another archaeologist, Rachel Wilkinson, told Smithsonian Magazine that this discovery was “the largest and latest ever found in Britain.”

Ordinarily, archaeologists would use radiocarbon dating as a means of identifying the age of ancient relics. However, they couldn’t locate any suitable material from the haul. Consequently, they determined the age by examining writing on the coins, as well as the ruler carved into them, estimating that the treasure was probably buried in either 408 or 409 AD.

Roman-era archaeologist Peter Guest told Smithsonian Magazine that “if you look at them a little more carefully, then they should be dated to the period after the separation of Britain from the Roman Empire.” He offers as part of his evidence the fact that almost all of the coins found in the Hoxne Hoard were clipped – in other words, small chunks of their edges had been taken off. These clippings would have been used to create coins which were similar to the Roman coins of that era.

Guest has a logical reason for this, arguing that “The Roman Empire wasn’t supplying Britain with new gold and silver coins, and in light of that, the population tried to get over this sudden cutoff in the supply of their precious metals by making the existing supplies go further.”

Archaeologists also believe that the treasure belonged to a Romano-British family. During that time, considering that there was so much societal discord and upheaval, it was common for Romans who had settled in Britain to bury their most prized possessions.

That said, one archaeologist is of the belief that the hoard had a lot of sentimental value for the Romano-British family to whom it is believed to have belonged. In her book The Hoxne Late Roman Treasure: Gold Jewellery and Silver Plate, Catherine Johns claims that the manner in which the treasure was kept supported this claim. Some of the items which were recovered had been packaged in small, wooden boxes which were lined with leather. What’s more, pieces of wood, locks, and nails, among other things, surrounded the gold and silver pieces. This leads Catherine to assert that the package was carefully buried and not simply chucked away in a rush.

Interestingly enough, the items unearthed might shed some light on the identity of the family who owned them. They cite a gold bracelet bearing the inscription “UTERE FELIX DOMINA IULIANE,” which roughly translates to “use this happily Lady Juliane”. A second name “Aurelius Ursicinus” has also been discovered. This has consequently led some to believe that Juliane and Aurelius were the couple and the original owners of the treasure. That said, that has yet to be confirmed.

All in all, the discovery was a real treasure for archaeologists, and by extension, for Lawes. According to Smithsonian Magazine, in recognition of his discovery and willingness to contact authorities, the British government rewarded him with over £1.7 million, an amount which he shared with the farmer whose land was dug out in order to get the treasure. Funnily enough, apart from the treasure, Lawes also found his lost hammer — which now resides in the British Museum.