The social embargo for Venom has lifted, which means those that have seen the film are now free to give their short-form Twitter thoughts on the long-in-the-works Marvel Comics adaptation. This movie was a long time coming, with various attempts having been made over the years to bring the alien character to the big screen. Sony Pictures ultimately succeeded with Tom Hardy in the role of Eddie Brock/Venom and Zombieland and Gangster Squad filmmaker Ruben Fleischerat the helm. Working from a script by Scott Rosenberg, Jeff Pinkner, and Kelly Marcel, they crafted a Jekyll & Hyde origin story that finds the titular symbiote attaching itself to reporter Eddie Brock, wreaking havoc in San Francisco. All the while, Dr. Carter Drake (Riz Ahmed) is conducting experiments that make the symbiote all the more dangerous.
So what’s the word? Does the Venom movie live up to decades of fan expectations? Well the volume of tweets from professional critics is admittedly a bit low so we don’t have a huge sample size, but those that did choose to air their thoughts about them film are decidedly mixed. More than a few people mentioned that they found Venomunintentionally funny at moments, but that led to a genuinely “enjoyable” experience at times. The highlight for most appears to be the relationship between Eddie and Venom (Hardy provides the voice for Venom), and pretty much no one had anything to say about the supporting cast or villain. Overall, this is a curious first sampling of reactions, but it’ll be interesting to see what critics at large have to say about the film when the full review embargo lifts later tonight.
Check out the reactions below. The film also stars Michelle Williams and Jenny Slate and opens in theaters on October 5th.
