We are continuing on with our coverage of the 52nd Nashville Film Festival. Today, one of our writers Luis had the chance to sit down and talk with Serhat Karaaslan, the director of the short film, The Criminals. Serhat and Luis discuss the film and how Serhat approached directing on this film. The Criminals will make its premiere at Nashville Film Festival on October 4th and the Belcourt Theater, and you can purchase tickets here. It is available to watch through Nashville Film Festival’s virtual cinema right now.
There is no secret that Venom was disliked by many fans of the character and the same goes for its sequel, which isn’t being welcomed with open arms. Many I questioned if they were going to go see it confidently told me if they were it was because of work, unlike myself who just wanted to see this sequel.
If you haven’t noticed in my other articles by now my taste in films are very different than the norm, liking what most people would call “trash.”
I have no problem admitting that this film wasn’t the best, even concluding that it falls under its predecessor, but I can also say that I enjoyed certain aspects of the film.
Overview
Venom: Let There be Carnage is a sequel that was overall disliked before it even came out, there’s no running from a preset destiny. Overall the film’s run time played against it having it feel rushed in certain acts and having the characters not go through a proper growth pattern. Andy Serkis had a good vision having certain scenes feel like a cheesy comic panel, which isn’t bad in my opinion, but having certain characters be too over the top gave out. I honestly can say it wasn’t a good rendition but I also don’t want to say that it wasn’t entertaining, as I enjoyed the overall time I spent watching the film. But it’ll ultimately comes down to you the viewer to decide if you are going because you want an accurate depiction of the characters or if you simply want to be entertained for an hour and a half.
Review
Overall I’ll keep this review short and spoiler free. Serkis from what I saw and understood, wanted to depict Eddie Brock and Venom, played by Tom Hardy, to be a sort of comedic anti hero. Similar to Deadpool they wanted to bring a joking relationship between the two and I don’t mind it at all, but it honestly doesn’t play well with such a short run time being about 30 minutes shorter than the first film. There were many scenes that had great potential showing the characters attachment to each other but the necessary movement forward in the film failed to provide such views into their relationship.
I personally feel if it wasn’t cut short, these characters could have had a greater opportunity to be fleshed out. On the other hand, Cletus Kasady played by Woody Harrelson did a good job at showing the psychopathic killer in a live action atmosphere. We all know how his love for murder and blood is what makes his symbiote attracted to him and Carnage’s hatred feeds off of this satisfaction of chaos and that can be shown in many parts of the film. Not to mention the incredible character design and the sound design which gave me chills when I first heard his screech in theaters. Although in this film there isn’t a bond between the both like in the comics it shows a lot for his character and his actions, which you can clearly see if you watch till the end.
Naomie Harris also does an incredible job at portraying Shriek, now although she doesn’t have a symbiote in this film like the comic counterpart, I thoroughly enjoyed her performance. Although without having spoilers we may be in for a Shriek variant in the next film, although I can’t say for sure if it will happen. Not to mention having the mid credits makes it worth the viewing of the entire film, which was a BIG surprise for fans all around.
Now before I go in a train of confusion, I’ll keep it short. Venom: Let There be Carnage wasn’t a film that will obtain a nomination for an award but it does a good job at keeping me entertained. This is my own opinion though, and I understand majority rules against such expressed opinion but if you enjoyed the first one then you may enjoy this one as well. Granted I want to hear others’ opinions before I would give a full spoiler included talk, but for now check it out if you want, and let me know what you think in the comments. Till next time, peace.
Luis joins Raul to talk about Nashville Film Festival. This has been five years in the making for the team and they are finally covering their first festival. Luis and Raul talk about what movies they are most looking forward. Raul also expresses his heartbreak over not being able to watch Spencer as it will be only in person. Listen to our precursor to our festival coverage of #NashFilm52! Keep up with all our coverage of the Nashville Film Festival here on the site!
Andy Strohl’s deep dive into the Americana duo The Young Fables is a pleasant examination of life and art’s symbiotic relationship.
Courtesy of Hope Tree Entertainment
Life is filled with various obstacles. Sometimes we are able to move past them, or sometimes it is tough to move on. The road to healing feels so long that you feel it may never end. Some of us have been dealt a tougher hand than others but it still doesn’t take away from the various challenges we face. Us artists have a special relationship with these hardships. At times we can use our art to help move on from these hardships, for example I talk a lot about one of my favorite albums of all time, The Notorious B.I.G’s Ready to Die. Ready to Die is poetic in every sense of the word. Biggie Smalls gives us a raw and honest look into his life and he never looks back on it. Sometimes we just feel that art is the only way for us to move on.
The Fable of a Song is a music documentary that chronicles the songwriting process of Americana duo The Young Fables members Laurel Wright and Wes Lunsford. Throughout this documentary, we are watching the writing process of “Daddy’s Girl” which is being written after Laurel Wright’s father had suffered a heart attack. We also hear about the writing process of other songs like “Your Kind of Company” that is about Laurel’s sister’s fight with her personal demons. Along with the process, we are also dissecting the importance of the group’s faith, family, and experiences.
It is always a pleasure to watch documentaries like The Fable of a Song because we rarely see the real people behind the instruments. Most of the time we are just left to get to know these artists by their music or their shows. Rarely, are we given the chance to actually get to know what makes them unique. That is what I loved about The Fable of a Song, we had the chance to really get to know these musicians. We got to see them laugh, smile, and cry throughout this film, but we also had the chance to get to know those who inspire them to create music like Laurel’s family. Even though there were moments where the documentary felt like it was straying off of the path of its central direction it still found its way to make its way back. The most important part lesson we leave with after credits roll is the role of everyone in Laurel’s life and how she needs all of them to continue being the musician she is.
This is a wonderful documentary for people like me who have never heard of The Young Fables as it includes their music so you get to experience their music for the first time and get to know the artists. The Young Fables can be found on their Instagram and YouTubechannel. You can listen to The Young Fables on Spotify, Apple Music, and other music streaming platforms.
The Fable of a Song will have its premiere on October 2nd at the 52nd Nashville Film Festival at the Rocketown at 9:30 PM CDT in Nashville, Tennessee. You can buy tickets to its premiere by visiting here. If you are not able to attend the event the film will be available to watch through their virtual cinema.
Raul and Brad are ready to finally close out International Film Month as September finally starts to come to an end. Today they discuss the 1966 samurai film, The Sword of Doom! Get those swords ready because this was quite the polarized review. Listen to find out why Raul is spoiled by Akira Kurosawa’s samurai films. What did they think of the film? Listen to today’s episode to find out!
IMDb Synopsis: “Through his unconscionable actions against others, a sociopath samurai builds a trail of vendettas that follow him closely.”
The Nerd Corps 