“Venom: Let There Be Carnage” came out last Friday in theaters after the original film from 2018 wowed in theaters.

Trailers have teased a wild story with more intense action and drama than the prior film.  We’re met with investigative journalist Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) and his lethal protector Venom. The movie centers around a nutty serial killer, Carnage, known as Cletus Kasady (Woody Harrelson), who wants to end Venom. 

This second installment in the Venom franchise is a good sequel in my opinion. For what it’s worth, the film does entertain. I had been pumped for this film for so long and it feels so good to have finally watched it. However, the plot of the film had a typical damsel-in-distress theme. I would have loved to get away from that.

Similar to the first Venom movie, its highlights were the captivating cinematography, with abstract filming and location settings. The CGI effects were greatly improved so that now it doesn’t exhibit a sloppy mess. Lastly, the script in this film was better than Venom even though the pace of the film could’ve been adjusted.

This film had some great acting from Hardy, Harrelson and the other actors.

The constant bickering between Eddie and Venom is hilarious. The emotion in these scenes are clearly present as well, with many scenes between the two. I like the relationship between Eddie and Venom. You can tell throughout the movie that it was odd but they’re figuring out how to be with each other. 

Carnage and Shriek, known as Frances Barrison (Naomie Harris), could’ve had stronger background stories. The Carnage and Shriek characters brought cruel and invasive qualities. Additionally, I wish the directors and producers could have captured the human sides of Cletus and Frances more because they seemed a little flat. Also they could have captured more qualities of both characters in the comics because this was their first movie being featured so I expected their introductions to be insanely good. 

Other than that, Cletus and Frances characters’ relationship was full of chaos and as Venom’s arch nemesis I think they nailed it.

You would expect a title like “Let There Be Carnage” to be untamed in terms of action but I know Marvel movies are intended for family watching. I wouldn’t recommend ages under 10 to watch unless parents grant permission only because of the mature language.

Some people are angry over how it handled some things from the comics. I’m glad it’s pretty different because these movies give a fresh, fun and lovable version of Venom. 

The first movie tried to be serious but inevitably became silly. This sequel happily embraced it. I heard and saw multiple reviews saying the humor is “forced” or “inappropriate” yet when I saw it in theaters, nearly everyone laughed, including me.

All the critics who are bashing the film are taking it way too seriously. The story is what you would expect this franchise to provide, and I can’t wait for the third installment.