Venom

Tom Hardy plays an investigative reporter who becomes infected with Venom, a symbiotic alien being brought to Earth by a power-hungry scientist (Riz Ahmed). The solo debut of the popular Marvel character is a mixed affair, with director Ruben Fleischer's interesting take on the fearsome creature hampered by sloppy writing. Awkward shifts in tone rob the film of much of its tension, and while the action is stylish, it's hard to invest in characters forced to deliver such stilted dialogue. Hardy is likeable in the lead as Eddie Brock, forming an amusing bond with Venom that gives the second half of the film a twisted buddy-movie feel. Ahmed and Michelle Williams (as Hardy's ex-girlfriend), on the other hand, feel wasted in two-dimensional roles. A bland space-launch finale exemplifies a film that never quite knows where it's going, and in the end fails to live up to the expectations set by its source material.