Sony has had a turbulent ride filled with up and downs as it pertains to its superhero movies in recent years. Since the original Spider-Man films, success has not been guaranteed. Sony is finding out that making a superhero hit is not easy as Marvel makes it look.
While Sony may have rights to some Marvel properties, keeping those rights has continued to prove to be a struggle. At this moment most Spider-Man fans have found a fondness in their comic book hearts for Andrew Garfield’, Amazing Spider-Man. Regretfully it was no the critical success it needed to be keep the franchise going and threat of handing the property over to Marvel seemed inevitable.
Sony Pictures Universe
We all know Sony eventually worked out a deal for Spiderman but that did not stop Sony from doing what they could keep their rights to the property. They decided they would use they could a Spiderverse of their own, even if Spiderman would not be involved. At this point, we have gotten 2 Venom movies, which have some fan fair but are terrible movies, and Morbius
Sony Pictures Needs a Hero
Morbius, like venom, is a Spider-Man villain but Sony needs a Superhero. The task is, to create storyline that has the protagonist toe the line of good and bad so audience can call the hero edgy. The goal seems to be create heroes that are not distinctly good as the Marvel characters to create their own lane in the genre.
The radical success of the first Venom movie allows Sony to believe that this formula works, at least enough to bring in some box office money. Will the help of a star such as Jared Leto portraying Morbius be enough to a least find success with fans? A quick spoiler-free honest review may help to answer that question
The Plot
Michael Morbius, a brilliant biochemist, is trying to find a cure for a rare blood disease that is killing him. When he experiments on himself, he inadvertently infects himself with a form of vampirism instead. Now Morbius must struggle to control the violent urges and bloodlust that come with his new lease on life.
Michael Morbius isnot the only person who wants a new lease on life. His best friend Loxias Crown is also dying from a rare blood disease and wants the cure for himself. When Morbius forbids Loxias from taking the serum and suffering the same fate, Loxias steals it and becomes the monster that Morbius is trying to contain. Morbius is determined to save others from his friend and find a cure that will save them both.
Fun Facts
Critics and fan have very different views on Morbius; this blog will get into why that is later. This movie is not perfect but these are some good things about the latest Marvel entry that is worth mentioning. The best place to start would be the man carrying this film, Jared Leto.
Jared Leto is the Living Vampire
Jared Leto’s performance will linked to his method-acting technique that allows him to embody the character of the living vampire. His ability to have his body react in specific ways helped the crowd connect with the fact that he is fighting against himself to maintain control. The acting of Leto, coupled with some pretty good CGI will leave you with a strong image of Morbius that will claim space in your brain long after the movie is over.
Hard Truth
As mentioned before this film is not perfect, that is a polite understatement at best. In this section, we will break down why critics are having such a hard time with marvel characters that do come from the MCU. The best place is to start with the story or script
Does the Story Suffer Because of the Short Runtime
After watching the movie it did not feel long but the story felt short-changed from the moment the film started. A character just saying things for the sake of saying this. The movie opens with no context about what’s happening except for ramblings of a scared Helicopter pilot are supposed to make us feel something, scared maybe, but of what? All we know is it might have to do with a vampire bat. Regretfully, the rest of the movie has very little to offer in sensible character plot or character development.
Under Developed and Unnecessary Characters
Developing a competent character, let alone a great villain can be tough. Marvel has had a villain issue and that has carried over to the Sony Pictures versions of the Marvel franchise. Using the hero or protagonist as guide for the villain is understandable but literally making the villain exactly like the hero is played out and uinspiring.
Nothing New to See Here
We have seen this trend over the course of many movies starting with first iron film here he battled a larger version of himself called the “Iron Monger”. We then got a list of movies that would have the hero figuratively and literally battle themselves. Sony pictures has repeated the same approach with Venom and now Morbius.
Oddly enough in each instance, the villain with the same abilities is always stronger than the hero with no real rhyme or reason. We understand this is a Marvel Comics issue because these villains exist there but cinematically it does not translate to be the most entertaining on the big screen.
Loxias Crown, A.K.A , is Morbius’st best friend and also suffers from a rare blodd disease. The rare blood disorder will kill Milo eventually. Morbius denies Milo to keep his best friend from suffering his same fate but his attempt is to no avail Milo becomes a living vampire and evil, just because the story needs him be. Prior to Milo becoming a vampire no character development would lead him to become this evil person but that is where the film needs to end up to have a standoff for the conclusion.
Why is Tyrese Gibson in the Movie?
Another instance of underdeveloped character is Tyrese Gibson as Stroud. He is supposed to be an FBI agent who is on the trail to finding out about Morbius. The character is supposed to be formidable but the character is just a placeholder with nothing really to do. Simon Stroud actually could have been replaced with a far more interesting characer have at least made for a formidable opponent to Morbius
Great Powers Deserve Better Writing
The abilities Morbius possess are without a doubt cool to see on the big screen. The problem is how to get to Morbius using some of his abilities. Thing just happen, most notably him flying. He just kind of figured he could fly because the comic book version can. Another great ability is Morbius’s echolocation; its awesome to see but how it works felt erratic throughout the movie.
Truth Bomb
If I’m Being Honest, critically speaking, “Morbius” deserves a dumpster. I generally don’t differentiate the rating but in case of audience rating vs critic rating, the gap is wide on what the two sides think about this film. The big question is why; why are the two sides so split and why are we seeing this more often?
Good Movie VS Entertained
From my point of view, it al boils down to entertainment. Let’s be clear, this is a bad movie from the writing to some of the CGI finally this is not good film. that does not mean people cannot have not been entertained by the by what they saw at the theaters. It begs the question, is entertaining enough to make a move a good one?
I would respond to the question by explaining that for someone like myself, the technological aspects of good writing, camera work, and other aspects entertain me and, its hard for me to look past those elements when they are lacking or not present at all, but I have my exception just like anyone else, I enjoyed ” The Rock’s” movie Hobbs & Shaw, it was incredibly entertaining and it stars Idris Elba but I would not defend it as a “good movie”.
Ultimately the film did well enough at box office that we well probably get a sequel. Does that mean the movie is good because it does well financially? I would say, no that does not make it a good film and honestly, I did not find the movie very entertaining, even o a basic level and that’s why it could earn no more than a dumpster.
This last Bit is Important!
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The Honest Movie Rating System
