‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’ is summer popcorn fun in the fall

Posted on October 8, 2021

By MARK VIOLA

Back in the early days of the current millennium, there was a seismic shift in how Hollywood produced comic book adaptations. The mid-1990s were strewn with campy films like “Batman and Robin,” but 1998 gave us a taste of what was to come in the form of “Blade.”

Then, in 2000, we got “X-Men,” followed two years later by Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man.” In 2003 and 2004, we got their respective sequels, proving that superhero films could take themselves seriously enough to tell solid stories with complex characters while also delivering plenty of comic book action on the big screen.

Then, in 2005, we had “Fantastic Four,” which felt like a throwback to those earlier days when comic book movies were just here to have fun with no need for anything resembling seriousness or complex storytelling.

Flash forward 16 years, and “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” as well as its 2018 predecessor, “Venom,” are the “Fantastic Four” of this generation — and no, I don’t mean the horrendous abomination that was the 2015 “F4” reboot.

“Venom: Let There Be Carnage” isn’t a great movie. It doesn’t have three-dimensional characters traveling along life-altering arcs. It goes right past the sometimes goofiness of the Marvel Cinematic Universe straight into the realm of silliness at times.

But, despite all of that — or exactly because of it — the movie is quite a bit of fun.

Subscribe to our e-Edition and read the rest of the story. Already a subscriber? Click here to sign in.