MINOR SPOILER WARNING!
When Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) receives powers from the Necrosword he begins murdering gods everywhere. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) must enlist a series of trustworthy companions, including Korg (Taika Waititi), Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), and Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), to defeat this threat and protect the gods from harm. This feat will prove to be Thor’s greatest challenge yet, in a number of ways. Thor: Love and Thunder sees the god of thunder facing some of his greatest tests to date, both on and off the battlefield.
The world has not so patiently been anticipating the next installment of the Thor franchise, especially after hearing that Writer-Director Waititi would be running the show once again. He ushered in a new era of Thor, redefining the character and presenting the character and the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) the ability to shift in entirely new directions. There were things, however, that worried fans of the MCU regarding the new film–at less than two hours, how could Thor: Love and Thunder possibly fit everything into it that they had hoped for? And with the absence of Heimdall (Idris Elba), Odin (Anthony Hopkins), and the beloved Loki (Tom Hiddleston) it seemed unlikely that the current cast could fill the void with which those three characters left the world.
The length proved to be an issue for the god of thunder and his friends, as a great portion of the narrative is told through the eyes (and mouth) of Korg, leaving some things to the imagination and fracturing the narrative to some degree. Furthermore, Thor: Love and Thunder travels the vast galaxy with such speed that it’s not afforded the time needed to fully develop its new worlds and characters. There are moments when new individuals are underdeveloped and it’s difficult to see their potential in the grand scope of the MCU–time is the only thing that could have saved this–as I believe that Waititi has the potential to bolster his narrative and his characters if there had been more time. However, Waititi is partially to blame for the issue of time, as he would have had final say regarding the finished product. Realistically, he should have given himself more time–and that’s the greatest downfall of Thor: Love and Thunder.
The other concern actually panned out in favor of Thor: Love and Thunder. Bringing back original cast members and introducing new, enticing characters (even if they were a tad underdeveloped) allows the absence of those aforementioned characters not to bog the film down. Waititi does a wonderful job of appealing to viewers in this sense, and he finds ways to usher in a great combination of both the old and the new.
Phase four of the MCU has taken Marvel, and superhero films, in new directions. It’s constantly explored the multiverse and has done everything that it can to expand the landscape of the ever-changing MCU–but Thor: Love and Thunder shifts a bit from that overarching narrative. Thor: Love and Thunder aims to keep things close to what fans of Thor have come to love about the hero’s films, and, while the film still explores the vast galaxy that exists in the MCU, it exists on a much smaller scale than the MCU of the past couple of years. It’s nice to see that the films in the MCU can dial things back from the expanding saga, look at things in a different light, and still find ways to surprise fans.
It’s no surprise that the acting throughout Thor: Love and Thunder is phenomenal. With massive players such as Russell Crowe (Zeus), Hemsworth, Portman, etc., the world expected superb acting, and they got it–but the individual who absolutely steals the show is Bale. Gorr the God Butcher is a villain similar to what viewers have seen in the past in terms of his backstory, his ability to appeal to the emotions of viewers, and ultimately his quest to destroy whoever is the titular hero. What sets him apart from some of the previous antagonists, however, is the fact that Bale is one of the best actors of our generation and the ability of Waititi and co. to make him massively darker than most of his predecessors. Firstly, I’m not sure that you’d get much pushback when discussing Bale’s prowess, and he brings that talent with him to the set of Thor: Love and Thunder, bringing Gorr to life in a vibrant and electrifying fashion. In addition to what Bale is able to convey in terms of emotion, Writers Waititi and Jennifer Kaytin Robinson create something scary compared to what the rest of the MCU has seen. His aesthetic is creepy, his demeanor horrifying, and, simply put, he will terrify younger audiences. This shift, the ability of the Marvel and Disney families to create something horrific, is welcome–and this character brought to life by Bale is everything that viewers want and need him to be.
Thor: Love and Thunder came out less than two months after the highly-anticipated, somewhat underwhelming Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness–and the world was hoping for something superior to what had recently been seen. I found Thor: Love and Thunder to keep pace with the MCU’s previous installment, but for different reasons. I believe that this film lived up to the expectations that I had for it, but, in general, it’s not exactly what viewers had expected. While there is a narrative present that will certainly play a role in the grand scheme of the MCU, it’s not the narrative that drives Thor: Love and Thunder forward, but rather the comedy. At the center of Thor: Love and Thunder lies comedy that is ultimately the heart and soul of the production. Led by Hemsworth himself, the comedy never misses, making this one of the most comedy-heavy films in the MCU. There are some clear issues that befall Thor: Love and Thunder, but all in all it’s a fantastically fun film that will surely resonate with the majority of viewers. Understand that the narrative isn’t riveting, but you’ll likely fall in love with the film regardless. Finally, I leave you with this: come for the characters and the narrative, stay for the comedy.
Directed by Taika Waititi.
Written by Taiki Waititi & Jennifer Kaytin Robinson.
Starring Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Christian Bale, Tessa Thompson, Taika Waititi, Russell Crowe, Jaimie Alexander, Chris Pratt, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Pom Klementieff, Sean Gun, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper, Carly Rees, Kieron L. Dyer, Kat Dennings, Stellan Skarsgård, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10
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