Reposting from the MCU Phase 4 thread... Saw Venom: Let There Be Carnage Random thoughts (no spoilers)... - Fun and fast-paced, but probably forgettable. It's not quite as good as the first, maybe because it isn't as fresh. You won't be bored, but you won't be challenged by the plot, either. - Woody Harrelson's Cletus Kasady isn't as much fun as I was hoping and the filmmakers (weirdly) try to give his character a sympathetic angle that (1) doesn't work and (2) is undercut in the finale - Naomie Harris' character (Shriek!) is gleefully evil one moment and then morally objecting to the evilness the next - I actually enjoy the interludes with Anne (Michelle Williams) and her boyfriend Dan, as they tend to keep the mood from getting too dark - We get more Mrs. Chen in this one and I didn't know I needed that! - Some characters in the film are dicks only to make us not feel bad about their being killed. - Uh, more about Ravencroft, please. Is that going to be part of a bigger thing going forward? - Not sure what was going on with Mulligan in the end, I think I missed something. - The finale is fairly thrilling, but it is largely a CGI fest. - This one feels almost like a TV episode in that it jumps right in without giving the viewer much of a recap. If you didn't see Venom, you'll be wondering what the hell is happening for the first quarter of the film. - There is one mid-credits scene (no post-credits scene) and it's a doozy: If you liked the first Venom, I can't imagine you'll be unhappy with this one. It doesn't push out the frontiers of comic book films, but it's a good enough way to spend 90 minutes. 6.5/10.
