Better Never Than Late on "Venom: The Last Dance"

My wife and I watched "Venom: The Last Dance" over the weekend.

Oh boy.

A while back I wrote about how I enjoyed the first movie in the Tom Hardy "Venom" universe. That movie understood what it was supposed to be. It was silly. The relationship between Eddie Brock and Venom was one of the better love stories I've seen in a long time. The action sequences weren't great, but they were fun because everyone involved was in on the joke. I kept watching it and saying that I didn't know why, but I liked the movie. We watched the first movie again when we were in Mexico a few months ago, and it was then when it dawned on me that the first "Venom" movie is a perfect, lazy day on vacation movie. It lives in the background, you check it out for a minute or two and then you go back to relaxing. We did watch the second movie, but that one was too violent and too scary. They went for as much gore as a PG-13 movie could go for. The Eddie Brock and Venom duo wasn't as great, they wasted Woody Harrelson and the stuff with Michelle Williams just didn't hit. I was kind of bummed afterward because they went in a totally different direction. It had the opposite effect that the "Thor" movies had. Those movies shifted to more comedy where this movie shifted to violence.

But, with the third installment being called "The Last Dance", it piqued my interest. I was hoping that they'd go back to trying comedy and focusing a bit more on Brock and Venom. Well, this movie took a third tonal shift, and for me, it fell flat. This time they tried to go sentimental. This, for me, is not what this story should be. I wished they'd gone back to having fun and goofing around. I thought they would go for broke and make joke after joke after joke. They did not. I will say, they definitely spent more time on Brock and Venom's relationship. Those two were talking back and forth the entire time they were on screen. They worked on their relationship so much that they ended the movie with a montage from the previous movies. But, the way they spoke to one another was corny as hell. There was one scene where Venom turned into a horse, made Eddie ride him, and as they were going faster and faster, Venom said, "now that's what I call horsepower". That is some low level writing in my opinion. And this continued time and again. They got big name actors and barely used them. Juno Temple is onscreen for maybe five minutes. Chiwetel Ejiofor is there for a little longer, maybe ten minutes, and he is a cliched former army veteran. Rhys Ifans plays a hippy and it is not so great. They got all these great British actors to play Americans, and while they could've made jokes about that, they chose not to, which bummed me out. The action sequences were dull and boring. You get so many symbiotes in this movie, which should have been awesome, and they came and went far too fast. And the final scene between Venom and Eddie Brock, where they really tried to tug at the heartstrings, was not very good. You could see where it was going from the start, and to have one of them sacrifice themselves, I was not a fan.

I guess I'm happy that I get to watch the first one anytime I want. That movie will hold a special place for me. But I wish the people involved stuck with the goofiness. Three genre changes just simply didn't work. Maybe Tom Hardy had enough and was ready to be done with this role. I don't know, but "The Last Dance" was not as good as it could have been for me. Oh well. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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"Fargo" Created a Television Masterpiece

Last week's episode of "Fargo" was something incredible. I was in awe watching that hour of television.

"Fargo" is one of the better shows on tv. I loved the movie, and when a tv show was announced, I was skeptical. But then the show came out and it is even better than I could have imagined. I liked season four, and that one gets some hate online. I thought it was good. But this most recent season has been a return to form if you will. They went back to the basics, probably brought back some original writers, and they have made something special. And, as said before, last week's episode was a triumph.

The episode in question we got to see Dot's, Juno Temple, backstory. We have been given little hints here and there about why she is doing what she is doing, and how she may have gained some of her vast knowledge. But nothing was ever really definitive. We got that last week. The episode sees Dot going on a mission to find someone to help her. She needs to let the world know that her ex-husband is a bad, bad person. We see her driving a bunch and nearly falling asleep at the wheel multiple times. She eventually ends up at a diner where she can eat and rest. This is where the episode goes from good to great. When Dot is done eating she finds her way to a community of abused women working and living together. This is where she finds Linda, the woman she has been looking for for help. But, before Linda will leave with her, she wants Dot to tell her story. She wants Dot to connect with the other women in the shelter. When Dot first gets to the commune, she sees a show featuring puppets. The show is harrowing. It is tough to watch. It is also heartbreaking. Dot takes this in and passes out. It is probably from no sleep, but maybe the truth in the story also knocks her out. We then see her journey making her own doll. When she finally tells her story, it is more depressing and tough and uncomfortable than the initial story we saw. Dot tells of a time when she was 15 and ran away from home. She was on her own and this lady Linda takes her in. We find out Linda is married to the bad guy that Dot is after, played by Jon Hamm. We see Hamm's character abusing and taking advantage of Dot. He abuses her sexually and physically. He takes advantage of her. He forces marriage upon her. All the while Dot is using dolls to tell this harrowing and rough story. The way they used these dolls was amazing. I couldn't take my eyes off screen. We see these dolls, but eventually they become real to me. I spoke with my mom, who worked in a battered women and children shelter, and she let me know this is a real therapy that is used. That makes this episode even better. After the story, Dot gets Linda to go with her and they are on their way to get Hamm. But, it turns out this was all a dream while she was waiting for her food. It was a "Wizard of Oz" scenario.

The episode ends on a very bleak note, and I have not yet watched the newest episode yet. But this episode was incredible and one of the best written pieces of content that has come out in a long, long time. I highly recommend watching this show, and being amazed at the brevity and genius behind Dot's story. It is a wonderful and incredibly well done piece of television. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

Follow Ty on instagram.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.