Venom: Let There Be Carnage is the sequel to Venom (2018). One of my most prominent thoughts while watching it was how heavily queercoded it was – as intended by both the director, Andy Serkins, and the Marvel comics themselves.

Tom Hardy, the actor for both Eddie Brock and Venom, did a spectacular job portraying the characters and their relationship. Almost the entire plot was an impressive metaphor for a gay love story. The way I see it; Venom was angry with Eddie for being ashamed of him, they “broke up,” and Venom left to “find themselves,” if you will.

This made way for the club scene, my favorite scene in the entire movie, mainly because of the line “I’m out of the Eddie closet!” And, of course, they both eventually realize they’re better together than apart.

Take away the fast-paced action, fight scenes, and murderous symbiotes, and the movie could almost be mistaken for a rom-com.

This isn’t to say the action isn’t an enjoyable part of the movie, of course – in fact, I absolutely loved it.

The VFX, especially the design and appearance of Venom and Carnage, were incredible. And speaking of Carnage – what a stunning villain! I loved every scene they were in, as well as all the scenes with Woody Harrelson and Naomie Harris, who played the two main villains, and played them wonderfully.

The relationship between these characters was surprisingly very endearing, to me and to many of the people I’ve talked to about this movie (and believe me, I’ve talked about it a lot). The backstories of both villains are intriguing, and their camaraderie almost makes you root for them. All in all, excellent plot, excellent characters, excellent acting and VFX.

I would say that Let There Be Carnage is a highly recommended movie on my list.