The social embargo for Venom has lifted, which means those that have seen the film are now free to give their short-form Twitter thoughts on the long-in-the-works Marvel Comics adaptation. This movie was a long time coming, with various attempts having been made over the years to bring the alien character to the big screen. Sony Pictures ultimately succeeded with Tom Hardy in the role of Eddie Brock/Venom and Zombieland and Gangster Squad filmmaker Ruben Fleischer at the helm. Working from a script by Scott Rosenberg, Jeff Pinkner, and Kelly Marcel, they crafted a Jekyll & Hyde origin story that finds the titular symbiote attaching itself to reporter Eddie Brock, wreaking havoc in San Francisco. All the while, Dr. Carter Drake (Riz Ahmed) is conducting experiments that make the symbiote all the more dangerous.

So what’s the word? Does the Venom movie live up to decades of fan expectations? Well the volume of tweets from professional critics is admittedly a bit low so we don’t have a huge sample size, but those that did choose to air their thoughts about them film are decidedly mixed. More than a few people mentioned that they found Venom unintentionally funny at moments, but that led to a genuinely “enjoyable” experience at times. The highlight for most appears to be the relationship between Eddie and Venom (Hardy provides the voice for Venom), and pretty much no one had anything to say about the supporting cast or villain. Overall, this is a curious first sampling of reactions, but it’ll be interesting to see what critics at large have to say about the film when the full review embargo lifts later tonight.

Check out the reactions below. The film also stars Michelle Williams and Jenny Slate and opens in theaters on October 5th.

Significant chunks of #Venom don’t work *at all* but there is some serious charm to the Eddie/Venom relationship. Not sure I had the intended reactions to some scenes but fun is fun – even when it’s totally ridiculous, right? It’s too bad they didn’t go for the R rating though. — Perri Nemiroff (@PNemiroff) October 2, 2018

I’m *fascinated* with VENOM. The cast seems to all know they’re in a darker superhero movie, except Tom Hardy who is basically remaking Jim Carrey’s Liar Liar. I kinda loved watching this movie, in a Rocky Horror type of way. At one point Tom Hardy and Venom make out. — Mike Ryan (@mikeryan) October 2, 2018

The whole movie is Venom telling Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock over and over “I’m hungry, Eddie. I want to eat a brian, Eddie. You’re a loser, Eddie. You’re a pussy, Eddie.” — Mike Ryan (@mikeryan) October 2, 2018

Tom Hardy’s performance in #Venom is either Johnny Depp in the first PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN or Chris Klein in STREET FIGHTER: THE LEGEND OF CHUN-LI. Either way, it’s not boring. — Scott Mendelson (@ScottMendelson) October 2, 2018

In parts the Venom/Eddie Brock vibe in VENOM reminded me of Audrey II/Seymour. So what I am saying is…VENOM should be a musical? Idk…. — Esther Zuckerman (@ezwrites) October 2, 2018

VENOM is mostly just fine but has a new moments of inspired comedy work from Tom Hardy — Esther Zuckerman (@ezwrites) October 2, 2018

Venom calls Eddie a pussy which is essentially “C’mon Seymour don’t be a putz.” Also the plot of this movie is outlined pretty well in “Finale (Don’t Feed The Plants)” — Esther Zuckerman (@ezwrites) October 2, 2018

Action-sequences and Eddie and Venom’s odd relationship are the highlights of #Venom but if Sony wants to move forward with a universe, it needs to just keep the few parts that work and scrap the large portion which does t. — Brandon Davis (@BrandonDavisBD) October 2, 2018

Social embargo for #Venom is up. I talk about this a lot in my review but this is a movie that somehow slipped through a wormhole from 2004. That’s my biggest take. It’s a movie that spilled from the pre-MCU era through a crack in time and space. — The Mothmeg NYCC (@rustypolished) October 2, 2018

It’s…not a complete disaster? At least I was never mad watching it? But it is an excruciatingly surreal experience. The humor, the story beats, everything right down to the Eminem theme song feels like it emerged Kimmy Schmidt style from a sealed off early 00s bunker. — The Mothmeg NYCC (@rustypolished) October 2, 2018

Think Affleck Daredevil. Think Ang Lee Hulk. Think Halle Berry Catwoman. That’s…I mean, that’s really all there is to be said, I think. It’s absolutely bizarre. — The Mothmeg NYCC (@rustypolished) October 2, 2018

Anyway, your mileage is really, really going to vary on this one. There are genuinely some echos of clever ideas but…man. If there’s one superhero franchise that’s having a killer couple years, it’s Spider-Man. No matter how you slice it, Venom is a major non sequitur. — The Mothmeg NYCC (@rustypolished) October 2, 2018

Sorry to say that #Venom is pretty much a complete failure – a tonal mess that feels 15 years old, ignoring the storytelling strides that the superhero genre has made in recent years. A few fun Venom-centric moments aside, it has nearly nothing to offer. Don’t get your hopes up. — Tom Horrorgensen (@Tom_Jorgensen) October 2, 2018