Venom: Let There Be Carnage Review - 5 Ups & 5 Downs

3. It's Basically A Rom-Com (And That's A Good Thing)

If the original Venom was far more concerned with being a typical superhero movie dragged kicking and screaming from the early 2000s, the sequel shifts the balance to be far more of a buddy comedy and, most of all, a rom-com.

For starters, Eddie and Brock's dynamic is effectively a knowing parody of a Hollywood romantic comedy, as each is forced to accept the other's flaws and, after an inevitable mid-film breakup, concede that they're meant to be together. Self-love is important, after all.

This is also reflected in the film's other major characters: centering Carnage's motivations around romance may be disappointing, but it at least serves to contrast Brock's own quest throughout the film.

And then there's Anne (Williams), who is moving forward in her relationship with Dr. Dan (Reid Scott), something Venom hilariously protests without even the faintest scrap of subtlety.

The more conventional superhero movie plot is such a load of nonsense that focusing so much on these goofy romantic arcs is a major relief.