Morbius is the third film in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (SSU), which was started by Venom and then Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Swedish filmmaker Daniel Espinoza directed Morbius with stars including Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona, and Tyrese Gibson. This USD 75 million budget film, which was supposed to be released mid-last year (due to the pandemic), was finally released towards the summer of this year. With SSU trending well over the previous two films (at least commercially), is Morbius able to get past both in quality?
Since childhood, Michael Morbius (Leto) has suffered from a blood disorder that makes him have to have regular blood transfusions. His ambition to cure himself led him to become a famous doctor with financial support from his best friend, Matt (Smith), who also has the same disease. Through his experiments with blood-drinking bats, Morbius finally found a solution to his condition; however, the results were not what he expected. He became a monster who drinks blood with superpowers.
Watching Morbius is like watching some familiar superhero movies. There are elements of Batman, Blade, to Captain America in the story. The storyline doesn’t provide enough character background for the main character like Venom. The result is the tempo of the plot that moves so fast that you can immediately fill it with action sequences. Unfortunately, Morbius can be explored more deeply to strengthen his relationship with Matt and his lab partner, Martine Bancroft (Arjona). Even a big star, Tyrese Gibson, seemed to pass by. Half of the film is dominated by forced (and often illogical) actions with visual effects that are the same achievements as Venom and its sequels. No more, no less. If you like Venom, you will definitely like Morbius.
Although slightly better than Venom, Morbius does not offer much new territory in the genre or Sony’s Spider-Man Universe but will provide additional color for developing its cinematic universe in the future. Fans may be satisfied with the surprises at the ending. We both know that the relationship between SSU and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is now even closer after Spider-Man: No Way Home. If it turns out that Morbius is a commercial success, as the Venom series, it seems that it will further distance SSU from the MCU. The SSU story can run independently without the MCU with their ace Spider-Man that still belongs to Sony. I wouldn’t say I like this kind of studio tug-of-war, but I have to admit, this crossover will be a challenge for the makers to anticipate the many possibilities in the future. It’s interesting to see how one superhero can change the face of the film industry in the future. This was unprecedented in the history of the film medium.
