Venom: Truth in Journalism

In a style that is a clear homage to Man Bites Dog, or "C'est arrivé près de chez vous", a black and white film crew follow around an increasingly shady reporter - to document his perspective on what's happened to him. While the IMDb title entry currently reveals who this is about, the YouTube video(yes, this is legally available for free viewing... so what are you waiting for?) does not - it is something that gradually dawns on the audience(provided they read comics), and that is as it should be.

Like Dirty Laundry, by the same crew, this does justice to a major graphic novel character that was not already done quite the way it should(this one more than that one - albeit I realize that opinions are divided on that matter), and it is for those already familiar with the source material. This is for the fans, and I agree wholeheartedly with that decision - the big screen has already given us watered-down versions for mainstream consumption.

The acting is solid. In spite of a 17 minute length(and yes, watch all of it, don't stop when the end credits come up... you can thank me later), we get a genuine sense of who the people seen are, what their interpersonal relationships are, and the like. The pace is solid, nothing is wasted. Every scene, line and shot serves a purpose. Humor is mostly black comedy, and there is a sense of danger, of proximity to death and destruction(we open to our lead going beyond police tape to look at a corpse on a crime scene while it's being processed), making the French film mentioned above a logical choice to emulate.

Production values are fantastic. The sparsely used excellent FX, and masterful use of the "found footage" hook shame the big-budget take on the icon. Design choices likewise - once again, this is for and by those who already love the original.

There is a bit bloody, disturbing and violent content in this. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys "funny books". 9/10

I watched the short film and I was surprised with how it was made.

The camera, the acting, the story. You name it.

I like the idea of how Eddie Brock is acting like Spider-Man 3 and Venom: Dark Origin Eddie in way better way.

He doesn't care about what else happens. He is just doing what he does.

And the ending is spooky and I like the footage of Eddie and french crew meeting Bullseye because I like how they mentioned things from 80s Marvel comics.

And I thought French subtitles were added because someone reuploaded the short film.

I wish Adi Shankar could come back to doing the stuff like this instead of making official yet inferior adaptations like Devil May Cry cartoon.

If you like Venom as more of a villain, this short film is for you.