*Spoilers for Morbius*
As much as it may feel like it is, Sony’s Morbius is no prank. On April 1st the next standalone film in Sony’s cinematic Spider-verse; was released to reception colder than the blood Michael Morbius stores in his freezer.
Who is Morbius, the Living Vampire?
For those who are unfamiliar with the Marvel character here is a brief introduction. Dr. Michael Morbius is a well renowned biochemist with a rare life draining blood disease. After experimenting to find a cure; he transforms himself into a pseudo-vampire who is then given superhuman abilities, so long as he consumes human blood. Well known as a villain for Spider-man he is also known to be an antagonist for Blade. Morbius’ first appearance was The Amazing Spider-man #101 (1971.)
Looks that can kill, but a bite that fails to draw life.
The film begins to fly by introducing a young Michael Morbius in a hospital meeting his new hospital room mate, who Michael dubs as “Milo” and proceeds to tell him how many “Milo’s have been in that spot” before he arrived. The two have a brief conversation about their rare blood disease that’s slowly draining their lives. Shortly after Milo has a health scare, he fixes the IV machine by simply using the spring taken from a ball point pen. Impressing the Doctor who is trying to cure the boys, Michael is sent to an Ivy League school for being a young genius. After a time skip it shows Morbius is not only grown, but also an award winning biochemist working to cure their ailment. The film is quick to get to the point in this regard. It doesn’t spend very much time on building a relationship between these important characters, and by the time the movie reaches the final fight, you still aren’t very invested in their friendship. Milo and Michael have been best friends their entire lives, but when they both inevitably become rivals; the film fails to build their connection enough for anyone to really feel the emotional impact that would have. The same goes for Michael’s love interest Martine Bancroft (played by Adria Arjona.) It almost feels rushed without any big indication of them being in love with each other. Milo suggests it early in the movie by mentioning something along the lines of “love is a waste of time” when he and Michael speak about how long it’s been since they’ve had a visit; but it’s played off as him just being a nihilist. By the time Michael and Martine kiss, it feels sudden and almost obligated, there’s no real indication of their romance before then. We get a sense that she is just another doctor who is trying to help Michael find a cure. A lot of the characters have this issue. They all feel inorganic in the connection department, and it seems as synthetic as the false blood Michael drinks to prevent himself from consuming real blood. By the end of the movie, you don’t really feel anything when something major happens. For example when Morbius’ mentor is murdered by Milo.
An inspired song and dance, but it stumbles and goes off key.
With some major character writing issues, the pay off was Matt Smith’s performance as Milo. He was easily the most entertaining part of the film, despite the lack of writing he had. The score of the movie is also a solid touch, with some of it having heavy horror influence. The visuals during the scenes in where Michael is in vampire form also look sharp and clean. His first transformation into the vampire was a lot of fun, and it held a very tense horror atmosphere. It’s a small glimpse into the potential Morbius had if they approached the film that aspect. Instead it displays feeble attempts to be campy, while also attempting to be take itself too seriously. The charm is definitely there, and some of the tones worked well with certain scenes. The humour is on the same level, very hit and miss. The dialogue is inspired, but often weak; with only some of the jokes landing. Most of them feel unfinished, cut, or just lacking in the strength department. The punchlines often missed. Two of the other stand outs in the humour department seemed to be Tyrese Gibson as Simon Stroud and Al Madrigal as Alberto Ramirez. Whether or not their characters were meant to be a form of comedic relief, the two actors performed their parts well, despite it being a shame that they felt under-utilised and somewhat lacking as far as how much screen time they deserved to have. Leto felt sometimes wooden as Michael, and almost monotone. His moments in vampire form had a lot more energy, but it didn’t feel quite enough to balance the difference. Which leads you to wonder if it it boils down to a writing issue, or if Sony gave the director too much restriction. Some of the decisions feel forced; for example Milo’s sudden change of heart after somehow sneaking into the lab to steal a cure for himself. He is seen a couple of times just watching Martine, like a loner who is just driven by jealousy towards his friend for having a romantic partner. The film makes an attempt to have you understand Milo’s position, but fails in consistency to keep you caring. By the time the final fight starts, and the action really sparks an interest, the movie ends. There isn’t much to remember in the way of action between Milo and Morbius. Which feels lackluster considering the potential that was there.
Sony holds a nice looking hand, but the beauty doesn’t last.
Every scene that Morbius is in vampire form looks nice. His display of powers is clean, especially when he’s moving at increased speeds and using the sonar sense. At one point he touches a puddle of water and uses a vibration to call forth a legion of bats commanded by his will. The action is fun, and so are the campy moments when they work. Still, with pacing and writing issues, Morbius fails to make a real impression on Sony’s cinematic Spider-verse. It forces itself to connect their universe with Marvel’s shared multiverse; with post credit scenes that don’t seem to make any sense. Making the effort feel almost obligated and rushed. The potential in Morbius was certainly there, but it fails to fly high and delivers a weak adaptation.
Morbius feels like it’s a 4/10
The CineSquad 