Thor: Love and Thunder Review (No Spoilers)

'Thor: Love and Thunder' Marvel Studios

If any Marvel franchise took a hard look in the mirror and realized that they needed a change it was Thor. After two different directors for the first two films which have been infamously depicted as two of the worst received MCU movies, Director Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit, Hunt for the Wilderpeople, What We Do in the Shadows) put life back into the franchise with Thor: Ragnarok. Now, with his second go-around Waititi provides, yet again, an all-around comedic experience.

Synopsis:

"Thor embarks on a journey unlike anything he's ever faced -- a quest for inner peace. However, his retirement gets interrupted by Gorr the God Butcher, a galactic killer who seeks the extinction of the gods. To combat the threat, Thor enlists the help of King Valkyrie, Korg and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster, who -- to his surprise -- inexplicably wields his magical hammer. Together, they set out on a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher's vengeance."

What You See, Feel, and Hear

As the first MCU hero to have a 4th solo film, Taika Waititi has gained the trust of Marvel Studios President, Kevin Feige and for all of the right reasons. In continuation from Thor: Ragnarok, Waititi wastes no time introducing the comedic tone for this film. From start to finish the story has a qwerky humor that allows audience members to sit back and laugh without feeling too tense about the overarching story. However, this element ended up being the biggest pro and con for this film. Because of the saturation of comedy, the build-up of the story felt underwhelming. Everything felt a bit rushed; the introduction of Christian Bale's Gorr the God Butcher and how he became a villain, the reunion between Thor and past girlfriend, Jane Foster, along with the severity of the plot itself. A major risk was introduced in theory, however it was poorly executed as the story went on.

Christian Bale's villain was a perfect fit for this story, however something just didn't feel right. The visual appearance of his character was detailed, creepy, and intimidating. However, the dialogue and direction of the character's motive seemed out of place. From the surprisingly few moments that we had to delve into his character I admired Bale's portrayal in his first, and potentially last attempt as a comic book villain. The contrast in this story which differs from most within in the MCU is that the energy starts at an all-time high and then slowly degrades as the movie progresses, rather than a steady build-up throughout the plot. Because of the steady decline of energy, the weight of the emotional circumstances throughout the film feel anticlimactic.

The music was brilliant. Whether the moment was serious, funny, emotional, or adventurous, the choice of music was spot on. In a world filled with special effects (aka most Marvel films) the relationship between an actor and their environment can feel choppy and misplaced. Besides some fluency issues with character movements, the visuals were stunning, and Taika provides a twist in the color contrast during the second half of the film.

My Take

With an equally talented cast as Thor: Ragnarok and a director in Taika Waititi who I admire more than most, I easily had this film in my projection of top 10 movies of 2022. Unfortunately, the outcome wasn't what I expected. During the first act I was convinced that this was going to be one of the best Marvel films up to date, however with a lack of direction, and non-essential moments to fill time I became bored during the heart of this story. Though the amount of humor to plot detail was lopsided, I still enjoyed the fun moments that this film had to offer, but without the complexity of a well written plot, you can only go so far. Thor: Love and Thunder had its fair share of moments to be proud of, but didn't live up to the expectations that were left in place from its predecessor.

Grade: 7.1/10