Venom

Actors: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, Scott Haze, Reid Scott

Rating: 9 out of 10, I’m blissfully unaware of the Spiderman mythology surrounding this character which may or may not have helped. It started fairly slowly and initially the Eddie Brock character is really hard to root for. It’s a tribute to Tom Hardy that he eventually wins you over despite no discernible reason for doing so. For me the movie takes off once Brock is infected with the alien parasite that transforms him into Venom. The internal monologue between Brock and Venom is at times hilarious. This wasn’t up to Marvel’s usual standard but it was a lot of fun as Venom careens around San Francisco battling the inevitable evil corporation. Michelle Williams is a little underutilized but this movie belongs to Hardy and he redeems the focus. A very fun ride that never takes itself too seriously.

MVP: Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock / Venom