Review: ‘Venom: The Last Dance’ Blu-ray Emphasizes The Fun To Be Found In Sony’s Spider-Man Universe Trilogy
by David Lewis
Venom: The Last Dance, which closes out the hit super-anti-hero trilogy, is now available on 4K UHD, Blu-ray, and digital, with special features that are actually worth watching more than once. They give fans a cozy look behind the scenes of a film that revels in gross-out gags and PG-13 decapitations.
The final film in the trilogy about the titular Spider-Man villain (minus Spider-Man, of course, because this is part of Sony’s awkward Spider-verse) starts with Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) and his snarky symbiote Venom (also Hardy) in a different universe, although the whole MCU multiverse thing is dropped as quickly as it was brought up in the second film. Once back in their own universe, the duo find themselves on the run from a different type of creature from Venom’s home world — a giant, spiny crab-like monstrosity known as a “xenophage.” It’s hunting Eddie/Venom in order to destroy the “codex” they carry inside their shared body. Meanwhile, the human contingent of the storyline is primarily represented by a group of military folks and scientists (led by Chiwetel Ejiofor and Juno Temple), who are studying the symbiote phenomenon at Area 51. Read our more in-depth review of the film here.
With series writer Kelly Marcel taking on director duties on the film, there’s a solidly consistent through-line to the trilogy, which is rare in these big franchises — although the third film leans even more on humor than the previous two installments, for better or for worse. There’s an extended road trip, with Eddie cramming into an old VW bus with a hippie family lead by Rhys Ifans, and there are visual gags where Venom turns into a frog, a fish, and a horse. It’s hard to resist the film’s eagerness to get silly, and Hardy is clearly having the time of his life.
The special features are actually pretty exceptional for a big studio release these days, and they emphasize what a great time everyone seems to have had making the trilogy, and also reveal just how many cast members are from the UK, even though they all play American in the film. There’s a warm featurette focusing on Marcel’s transformation from writer to writer-director, and a look at the film’s formidable physical effects and stunts that gives a nice spotlight to second unit director Brian Smrz and stunt coordinator James Churchman. The film’s massive Area 51 set and the mind-bogglingly complex white water rapids tank constructed for the film are truly impressive. It’s also clear that Hardy did quite a few stunts himself, and got to showcase his motorcycles skills, also put to use in last year’s The Bikeriders. There’s also a cute in-universe tribute to Eddie’s friend Mrs. Chen (Peggy Lu).
A set of deleted and extended scenes not only flesh out some story beats, but also give viewers a look at the visual effects process. There’s an extended scene of Eddie and Mrs. Chen in the Vegas penthouse that includes unfinished animation of Venom, including some shots where Venom’s stand-in can be seen. There’s also an extended scene of Venom fighting some scary looking dudes who have been keeping dogs in cages, forcing them to fight. In the final film, they meet their fate at the hands (or teeth, really) of Venom, but in the extended scene they’re first attacked by the dogs they’ve been torturing, so there’s a nice catharsis that would’ve been good to include in the film.
Venom: The Last Dance is now available in multiple 4K UHD and Blu-ray versions, including some special limited editions.
