Buicks are fast in a straight line too (Buick Lacrosse Super 0-to-60-mph time: 5.7 sec. Quarter-mile time: 14.2 @ 101 mph)... then come the corners
Toyota is going much the same way: very soft suspensions, lots of roll and lots of avoirdupois.
If Toyota actually made a sporty car that accelerated and went round corners I'd be thrilled. I would have been more than happy with a proper station wagon Camry. Hell offer something other than 6 shades of grey/beige would be a start.
The Venza is the automotive equivalent of the platypuss, neither fish nor fowl. All it's going to do is cannibalize RAV and Highlander sales. Then you have the pleasure of ponying up the better part of $1k for new 19" or 20" rubber in a few years. Yeah!
The four cylinder offering is irrelevant. Previous Highlanders were offered with a four banger. Very few were sold, so it was discontinued. The Venza is even heavier, so I'd say it meets the same fate in a year or two.