Disney+ Blockbuster Is The Best Marvel Horror Movie

In advance of Kraven the Hunter’s release in December, 2024, I re-watched Morbius with my daughter to get a look at the potential for the Sinister Six to become part of the franchise. For those who are unaware, the Sinister Six is composed of super villains from Spider-Man who team up to eliminate the superhero who has trouble them all. Rumor has it that Morbius could be part of that team, and the mid-credit scene at the end of the film seems to back that rumor up. 

Still, Dr. Michael Morbius (Jared Leto), much like Venom, is not a super villain. While his character certainly started out that way in the comic books, he has long since become more of an anti-hero. The Sony film supports the journey of Michael into Venom-like antihero status.

It opens up with a brilliant Dr. Morbius dealing with a crippling blood illness that should have killed him years ago. He survives only by cleansing his blood, hooked up to a machine, three times a day. 

We see Morbius in flashbacks as a child showing himself to be a child prodigy, headed off to a special school for the gifted, and graduating with his doctorate by the age of 19. We learn early on that he is working diligently on a cure for his illness and to help others like him. In one scene, he pairs up with his lab research partner, Dr. Martine Bancroft (Adria Arjona), to save the life of a young girl with the same blood illness.

In another, we learn that his childhood friend, Milo (Matt Smith), who also has the illness, is ridiculously wealthy, and is the primary source of funding for Michael’s research. 

The film takes a dark turn when Morbius heads out to the jungles of Costa Rica to capture dozens of vampire bats living in a cave there. Back in the lab, he splices their DNA with human DNA in the hopes of creating a cure that will allow his blood to coagulate as it should. When the animal trials turn out to be successful, he begins human trials on himself.

Unfortunately, because the work is illegal and unethical, he must perform the experiment in international waters. 

Of course, the experiment works a little too well. Michael Morbius grows from a skinny, sickly, dying man to a super cut, bulked up, brutal killer with bloodlust. He murders everyone aboard the ship except for Martine, who is hit on the head and unconscious.

Michael snaps out of his bloodlust, calls for help for Arjona’s Martine, and jumps into the ocean. When he returns to the mainland, distraught over his terrifying acts, he runs into his best friend and beneficiary, Milo, who demands Michael give him the serum. 

This is the horror that is Morbius — killing for the sake of killing — and not in a fun, Venom kind of way. Innocent lives are taken, and the murderer is quite pleased with himself. It makes for a supremely horrifying watch at times, and it gives the MCU films a run for their money. 

GFR SCORE

Look, you don’t have to love the acting, the special effects, or the screenplay, but it is fun to finally get a darker take on the superheroes and supervillains. They can’t all come from traumatic backgrounds and become instant heroes. Morbius goes very dark before he decides to step into the light, and even then, he leaves us wondering if he’ll stay there.

Morbius isn’t my favorite movie of all time, but it’s definitely worth a watch. Stream it on Disney+.