
He has so much fun cutting loose that he energizes the whole movie.

That’s what’s so enthralling, embarrassing and ultimately endearing about Hardy’s performance in Venom. After all, movies are a collaborative endeavor - many, many people have to be rowing in the same direction for them to work - and a lot of genuine, good-faith effort can be put into them, only for the film to be atrocious. We as moviegoers are meant to be impressed with their bravery - they risk looking ridiculous for our entertainment - and, of course, it’s snide to mock actors when a film doesn’t work out. “Genius” is a word that gets thrown around a lot when talking about actors’ quirky, often unreasonable creative choices.
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You guys gotta figure out how to do that, but I’m gonna end this scene in that tank.” … o we had to get, overnight, ship a ton of fake lobsters for when he got in the tank. And Tom, as soon as he saw it, he said, “I’m going in that tank. And the production designer had put a lobster tank in there just as a detail of a fancy restaurant. We went to the set to rehearse before shooting, just so he could get a lay of the land because it’s a really physical scene. The film’s director, Ruben Fleischer, mentioned that the scene in which Eddie/Venom dives into the lobster tank was 100 percent the actor’s idea: Venom’s behind-the-scenes stories have only highlighted Hardy’s dedication - as well as the sheer folly of the enterprise. But if you’re in a bad comic-book film, well, maybe not. If it’s for a searing drama like The Revenant, that effort is understandable. Not only does he put everything into every performance, he wants you to know he’s doing it.
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He’s played a slew of demented, repulsive heels - Bronson, The Dark Knight Rises, Legend, The Revenant - and even when Hardy is the ostensible hero of a movie (like in Locke), he’s obsessed with transforming himself for the role.Īs good an actor as Hardy is, there’s always been something strenuously earnest about his dedication. He’s an actor who’s always seemed consumed with a desire to give gutsy, gonzo performances. In a different film - in a better film - Hardy’s daring would be thrilling. Remember Vincent D’Onofrio’s wacky performance in Men in Black as an evil alien awkwardly wearing a human’s skin? Hardy sees it and raises D’Onofrio a quantum of crazy. Hardy plays the character as if he’s constantly experiencing a severe allergic reaction, convulsing and sweating like a madman. And Eddie doesn’t passively enjoy a live lobster - he dives into a restaurant tank, biting right into the nearest crustacean as frightened patrons run screaming. I don’t mean that Eddie has a few tater tots - he rips open a bag and pours the whole thing down his throat. Venom is always starving, so Eddie gorges on frozen tater tots and woofs down live lobsters. Once the parasite takes over, Eddie starts flipping out. He doesn’t succeed, but that only makes it more fascinating.

But those are fair analogies for what Hardy tries to pull off in this pseudo-dark comedy. (Well, roles, actually - he also does the voice of Venom.) Not many people going to Venom will care that it’s inspired comparisons to All of Me (the 1984 comedy in which Lily Tomlin’s spirit takes over Steve Martin’s body) and some of Jim Carrey’s more whirling-dervish turns in Liar Liar and The Mask.

What is interesting is the unhinged dedication Hardy brings to the role. Venom, for those who aren’t enthralled with comic books, is a Spider-Man villain, and so Venom is a sort of origin story for how he came into being. Suddenly, Eddie has superpowers, although it means being forced to live very closely to a ravenous, psychotic creature. But life is not all scoops and deadlines for Eddie: Through some bizarre circumstances, his body is invaded by a malicious alien parasite, which starts to go to war with him and dictate his actions. For instance, did you know that San Francisco has a homeless problem? Well, Eddie Brock is on it. There is no reason to see Venom - although a ton of people did this weekend - but if you’re bound and determined to waste your time and money, you will be treated to the sight of Tom Hardy bringing it in the role of Eddie Brock, a dogged investigative reporter who will stop at nothing to break big stories in San Francisco. All around him, people are phoning it in, but not him. He believes so passionately in the project that he gives his whole soul to it. But every once in a while, one comes along that’s notable because of the sincere effort put forth by one individual in the cast.
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Plus some other random thoughts about the new Tom Hardy superhero filmīad movies come out all the time, and most of them are totally forgettable.
