I know I’m late but hey I was busy this weekend, but I finally saw Thor: Love and Thunder. And you know what I enjoyed it. I understand some people didn’t enjoy Thor: Ragnarök but I certainly did. I loved having a little more humor and something that truly made me feel like Thor had a greater field to play in instead of just Earth. And as a fan of Jack Kirby, I enjoyed seeing his work brought to life. But hear me out. I always had this sense of sadness throughout the film, and I think it made the experience all the much better.
So, Thor: Love and Thunder picks up after the events of Endgame with Thor traveling the universe with the Guardians of the Galaxy. And it finds Thor a bit lost as to what he’s supposed to be doing in the Universe, but a threat posed by Gorr the God Butcher played by Christian Bale sends the God of Thunder on a quest to assemble a team to take down a threat to the Gods themselves. And joining this team is Natalie Portman returning to role of Jane Foster wielding a reformed Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor.
The thing that I love about these movies directed by Taika Waititi is that they seem like genuine fun. Chris Hemsworth really gets to show us a bit more of his range and it works for me. Now, I must bring up the performance of Christian Bale as he really shows us hi acting chops as a villain with a legitimate axe, or in the case a sword to grind with the gods of the universe. He’s a tragic character but he’s not the only one. Now those of you who are fans of this version of The Mighty Thor where Jane Foster wields the hammer, that thing that you know that is happening, is happening. And it’s that underlying plot point that keeps a sense of sadness and the inevitable coming at us full speed. Also, I must mention Tessa Thompson is a joy. That’s it, she’s just that awesome, pretty, and talented. Korg, I love Korg and Korg would be hurt if you didn’t love him. I bring up these guys because I feel a chemistry between the cast that I hope is genuine.
But the story does have a few times where it starts to drag. And I felt like the main villain took a backseat to the other characters and it’s a shame since Bale was so good. And the movie has a runtime of 119 minutes putting it just under two hours, but it doesn’t feel long till the third act. Casuals could feel a bit fatigued with something this dialogue heavy. But anyone complaining about social issues can go kick rocks and watch something else for all I care.
Overall, this movie left me bittersweet. The story is told well and though I knew from being a comics reader the journey was still exceptionally good. Two post credits scenes and I implore you to stay for the final one. Thor: Love and Thunder has a bit of everything and I’m ready to give it a rewatch. 4 out 5 movie to be sure.
Jason The X