“Morbius,” directed by Daniel Espinosa, was released to theaters on Friday, Apr. 1, 2022. Despite the anticipation and hype around the movie, it was a shortcoming.

The plot was slightly generic. The plot revolves around Dr. Michael Morbius, played by Jared Leto, who suffers from a rare blood disorder. He won multiple awards for his scientific merit and developments and eventually sought to use his science to find a cure for his condition. The antagonist Milo, played by Joseph Esson, had the usual, “I suffered so everyone around me should feel my pain” story. The main idea of the film was to show Morbius coming to terms with his new powers and what they pertain to. There was a plot twist, but it was extremely predictable and hence did not add depth to the film. 

Leto’s performance as Morbius, a funny, intelligent doctor who made a mistake with his knowledge, was emphasized by the performance of Esson’s Milo. Milo was the opposite of Morbius. While Morbius tried to do everything he could with his little time, Milo gave up and spent his time lazing around. Milo wanted to project his pain on the world while Morbius wanted to protect the world from his pain. This contrast had the potential to add depth to the film and make it more interesting if it was explored better.

On the bright side, the movie had many wonderful symbolic shots. They helped compensate for the lack of an enthralling plot to a certain extent. The movie asked many questions but left us without answers. While this is often done to keep the audience gripped by the storyline, it caused a certain detachment. Morbius rejected a Nobel prize and became a vampire of sorts; neither of these things is explained enough for the audience to truly understand what was happening.

Overall, while Morbius had some good film elements, it was a bit of a drag. The film had potential, yet, fell short because of gaps in the plot.