one of the things I can’t stop thinking about from the Venom movie:
Carlton Drake gives the little girl Allie his Life Foundation pin, and then shows up in the next scene wearing the exact same pin
someone who’s paying a little bit of attention, but not too much, might say it was a continuity error. they just forgot to take off the pin because they filmed the next scene first or whatever. but I think they put way too much significance into that pin for it to be an accident. it’s a deliberate characterization choice.
first of all, it means that he has a gazillion of these things. they can’t be too expensive to make, but he presents it to Allie like it’s such a special thing. then as soon as he goes offscreen to change for his interview, he gets another one.
the other thing it says is how image-conscious and self-obsessed he is. he couldn’t bear to be on camera without the little shiny logo of his company on his lapel. he wanted to make sure that it meant something to Allie, but absolutely nothing to him. it would have felt less in character for him not to replace it. Carlton Drake’s introduction scene was perfect, and this detail hit so hard on my second watch.
maybe I’m overthinking it, and maybe I sound like an overly intellectual asshole for thinking about it. maybe it was a continuity error, but if it wasn’t, I want whatever writer out there who came up with it to know that I appreciate them so much.
So we all know that Anne Weying is the best ex-girlfriend a trashbag human ever had, AND the best temporary host a loser Klyntar ever had, obviously.
And one of my favorite demonstrations of that is that Anne talks to Venom when she finds out that he’s damaging Eddie, perhaps irreparably. You’re using him up, she says. You’re killing him.
Dan is still talking to Eddie about what’s happening to his body, because Dan thinks this is a sickness–but from not only seeing him briefly but also watching Eddie interact, Anne knows that there’s a person in there doing this to Eddie, a person who talks to Eddie. A person who can listen to her when she tells him that he is hurting Eddie and needs to stop–a person who can be persuaded if someone advocates for Eddie to him.
So Anne shows up for Eddie in the love language of a lawyer: she presses his case to the person with the power to help him. (And when that doesn’t work she just goes ahead and zaps the bastard–but also hosts him apparently willingly, because, again, she understands that Venom is a person who can be negotiated with, and she knows they have a common goal to help and protect Eddie.)
ok so i’m still thinking about venom but HEAR ME OUT: eddie brock is so emotionally open in a way that i am so unused to seeing superhero/villains being, especially the dudes. his feelings! are right there! he says them! he admits when he’s sad! when he’s scared! when he’s lonely! and it makes this campy, violent little film into something that’s all about heart? his heart? his heart poisoning a poor alien with feelings? a poor alien that just came down for a snack?
AND you guys AND can i just call attention to the fact that there was no love triangle? like the person he loved was not with him and he was sad but there was no macho posturing against dan. no squaring off. no fighting over a person like they were a prize. i can’t remember the last time i felt so relaxed with a romance angle. this was just. wow.
And Dan just saying how much he truly—apparently sincerely—appreciates Eddie’s work, then going inside like it’s nothing to let them talk. Both men weren’t posturing or puffing for a fight, even with Eddie’s incredibly pathetic visit to Anne’s home. Dan helping Eddie with proper do-no-harm medical concern. And even Eddie on the stoop at the end disagreeing with Venom about ‘getting Anne back’.
I just… There was so much to this movie, and I need to see it 5 more times STAT.
The lampshade when Anne starts telling Dan that there’s nothing between her and Eddie and he’s like, what are you talking about I’m not worried about that, I’m worried about THAT SLIMY ALIEN THING
There’s not even any of those ‘if only they talked to each other’ misunderstandings?
It’s adorable, really, but also a refreshingly realistic take on how people interact.
This this this. This was my favorite thing about the movie, and about Ant-Man and the Wasp: none of that toxic exes bullshit. Just people who care about each other, even if they didn’t make it work, and going the extra mile to help them when they’re in need. Dan made me ridiculously happy because he was genuinely concerned about Eddie. And Eddie was a fuckup, and it’s totally understandable why Anne dumps him after he blows up her life, but she doesn’t turn into the harpy that Hollywood always makes the ex girlfriend/wife out to be. A+, keep up the good work Marvel (and Sony), this is one of the few things you’re doing right.
Can I just say, as great as Venom and Eddie’s relationship was, I appreciated Dan and Anne’s. Dan didn’t fall into the jealous new boyfriend category. Not once did he mistrust Anne about Eddie, showing he was totally comfortable in that relationship and trusted her totally, he was so nice to Eddie instead of telling him to stay away from Anne. It was a healthy relationship dynamic (despite Anne’s possible remaining feelings at the end) and I appreciated it and Dan as a character
Update: I forgot to add, Dan had his priorities right like when he told Anne they needed to talk about what was going on and she said there was nothing going on with her and Eddie and Dan was like ‘no we need to talk about the weird parasite thing that’s unknown to medical science obviously’ and I appreciate that he was focused on the right thing
I think part of what made the Venom movie so palatable to me was the whole situation with Dan and how it was handled as if everyone involved was a Decent Adult Person instead of the heteronormative caricatures we’ve come to expect. Just by being written the way he is, Dan makes my queer ass feel so much safer in indulging in this fandom, and I love him for that!!!
I was prepared for a boatload of second hand embarrassment at the restaurant scene but it was wonderfully resolved when Dan was like “Yes this is my girlfriend’s ex behaving inappropriately in a restaurant but also he’s obviously visibly unwell and I’m a doctor so can we all please calm the fuck down so I can get him to a hospital.”
Rebellions are built on hope 