When it leans hard into the inherent absurdity of its wacky, mismatched buddy antics, "Venom: The Last Dance" can be a total blast. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen nearly as often as it should.
Now starring in his third feature film as both journalist Eddie Brock and his symbiote alter ego, Tom Hardy clearly remains down for the broad playfulness the roles require. The fact that this is an actor who's notoriously committed to his craft and has devoted all that intensity to bringing a wisecracking, shape-shifting space creature to life, is part of the allure of the bit. Hardy's usually got some quirky voice up his sleeve, and playing Venom has given him the opportunity to take that instinct and run wild.
But far too frequently, "Venom: The Last Dance" makes the mistake of deviating from what worked in the previous two films, particularly the second movie in the franchise and the best of them all, 2021's "Venom: Let There Be Carnage." It grinds to a halt and stops being a "Venom" movie in favor of dull developments at an underground lab, far beneath the surface of Area 51. Even more egregiously, it squanders the significant talents of Juno Temple and Chiwetel Ejiofor down there in one-note roles.
Directing for the first time, returning screenwriter Kelly Marcel spends way too much time away from the kinds of scenes that really sing. All we need is Eddie and Venom, bickering and bantering and fighting their way out of sticky situations (sometimes literally) as they further solidify their unlikely bromance. The visual effects can be a murky here, especially in the massive action sequences where it looks like inscrutable blobs of multicolored goo flinging themselves at each other, but that Eddie/Venom relationship is always clear as they share one body in myriad inventive ways.
What ends up happening, though, is that just as some crazy set piece is really getting going, "Venom: The Last Dance" cuts away abruptly to what's happening back at the lab. A fight atop an airplane at 30,000 feet, a rollicking horseback ride across the desert, a goofy dance number in a Las Vegas penthouse – these are the moments we should have time to luxuriate in, and they always feel too short. The pacing is frustratingly erratic throughout, and the tonal swings are awkward.
"The Last Dance" begins on a rather dour note with some deadly serious exposition from none other than Knull (voiced by Andy Serkis), the Marvel villain who created the symbiotes in the first place. Rendered with the grainy, grimy look of a retro video game, Knull explains in dreary, menacing fashion that he needs his toothy, crustacean-like minions to seek out the key that will unlock him from the void. That key exists when Eddie and Venom are paired together – like a red beacon that allows Knull's beastly creatures to hunt the duo down. They are literally the McGuffin in their own movie.
They're on the run from everyone is every realm imaginable, and a bit in which Eddie keeps losing one or both of his shoes isn't all that funny the first time. There are small joys along their journey, though. Cristo Fernández – the always sunny Dani Rojas from "Ted Lasso" – reprises his role as the Mexican bartender at the end of "Spider-Man: No Way Home." Peggy Lu, the steadfast Mrs. Chen, shows up in a surprising setting and breathes giddy life into the picture – but her appearance is a prime example of "The Last Dance" cutting away too quickly from a good thing. And an impromptu road trip with a hippie family led by Rhys Ifans and Alanna Ubach leads to an amusing musical interlude.
But all roads lead to Area 51, where Temple's scientist and Ejiofor's military leader have conflicting ideas on how to handle the symbiotes in general and Venom in particular: She wants to study them, he wants to destroy them. And that's about all there is to those characters. Even actors of their caliber can't do much with what's missing on the page, and so when significant developments occur that are meant to evoke real emotions from us, they instead ring hollow.
Lest you think the film's explosive conclusion means this truly is "The Last Dance," stick around through the credits – and that means all the way through – for a peek at what's in store. Whatever it is, Hardy may want to hang up his dancing shoes for good next time.
