Outside of Spider-Man, Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters initiative hasn’t had much in the way of critical success even if they’ve done well at the box-office.
The first “Venom” pulled in just 30% (4.5/10) on Rotten Tomatoes with the sequel a bit better at 58% (5.5/10). They’re certainly far worse than the worst ranked of the Marvel Studios films which is “Eternals” at 47% (5.7/10).
Now though, the long-delayed Jared Leto-led vampire film “Morbius” has overtaken them all in the race to the bottom with the movie clocking in at a woeful 18% (3.9/10) on the site. Other films to hit around that mark include the recent “Hellboy” reboot, “Pixels” and the “Assassin’s Creed” film.
A common complaint in the reviews is that the movie feels like a throwback to the worst of the early 2000s pre-MCU films ala “Daredevil,” “Elektra,” “Ghost Rider,” and “Fantastic Four”. Here’s a sampling of reviews:
“Mostly, the film occupies a strange no-mans-land of the sprawling Spider-Verse, not charming like the Spider-Man films, not funny like the Venom films, and certainly not technically impressive like the animated ‘Into the Spider-Verse.'” – Kate Erbland, Indiewire
“The entire movie, directed by Daniel Espinosa from a script by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless, is generic — naggingly, almost jarringly so. You watch it and think, “This is what now passes for a new Marvel chapter?” – Owen Gleiberman, Variety
“Compelling characters are the lifeblood of a good superhero story, so its tragic that a film about two warring vampires in the Marvel universe is utterly bereft of them.” – Cathy Brennan, TimeOut
“Without, say, someone like Tom Hardy embracing the weirdness of the character in Venom, it’s tough to find rooting interest or muster any excitement for the vampiric bat man.” – Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting
“Is Morbius the worst Marvel movie ever made? In an alternate universe without The New Mutants, the answer would likely be yes.” – David Fear, Rolling Stone
“Morbius is bad, yes, but its not even fun-bad, like the Venom movies; its just kind of depressing. D-” – Jason Bailey, The Playlist
“The viewer struggles to care. We’re also aware that there are many, many better vampire stories than Count Dreckula here” – New York Post
“Logic and plot flow are generally treated like civilian casualties, but the movie, with its canny mix of whiz-bang violence, goth atmosphere, and high camp, feels pleasingly pulpy and urgent up until its last minutes.” – Leah Greenblatt , EW
Despite the reviews, the film is reportedly on track for a $40-50 million launch domestically this weekend.
Source: Rotten Tomatoes
