Fans and critics often lump the first two Thor movies together as two of the worst and least popular entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. They have their fans, sure, but not many are championing them as pillars of superhero movies. Then came 2017 and Thor: Ragnarok, with Taika Waititi taking control of the God of Thunder’s story. It was a smash hit with critics and fans alike, and there was new life breathed into the character. That success, and Hemsworth continued positive reception in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, created high hype levels for the 4th in the series, Thor: Love and Thunder.
Love and Thunder continues the wacky feel of Ragnarok while also fitting in a surprising amount of heartfelt moments. Thor has been going through it lately (to put it lightly), something that has been a major part of his story since Ragnarok. Love and Thunder picks that right up, with Thor going through essentially a mid-life crisis. He’s lost nearly everyone he’s ever loved. It’s made him question everything. What’s his purpose? Has he outlived his purpose? Is all he has to look forward now dying a warrior’s death on the battlefield?
A renewed sense of purpose returns, however, when he learns Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale), has been running amok and, well, butchering gods. Thor learns Gorr’s next target is New Asgard, so he rushes home to defend his people against the maniacal Gorr. Upon returning, another surprise awaits him: Dr. Jane Foster, with whom he is still clearly deeply in love. But that’s not all. She’s not the Jane he remembers. She’s Mighty Thor, even wielding Mjolnir, another lost love of Thor’s. Together, along with help from King Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) and Korg (Taika Waititi), they begin their mission to stop Gorr once and for all.
One of Ragnarok’s strengths was that it knew exactly the movie it wanted to be. It’s identity as a story was clear from the beginning and never wavered. Unfortunately that’s not quite the case here. I love what Waititi was trying to do. But he tried to have it all, and in just a two hour movie. Don’t get me wrong, more movies should be two hours. It seems like many directors feel like their movies these days have to be pushing two and a half hours, and they don’t always need that extra time.
Love and Thunder could have used a little bit more to flesh everything out. It tried to be a traditional comic superhero movie plus an action comedy plus a rom-com plus an existential story about finding yourself and accepting loss and finding a way to continue pushing forward. And two hours simply isn’t enough time; not if you want to do everything justice. There are moments where everything comes together, and that’s where Love and Thunder shines. When it’s hitting on all cylinders, it’s terrific. But Waititi struggles to find a consistent, steady flow. Something inevitably gets pushed to the side.
Two of the biggest victims here are Tessa Thompson and Christian Bale. Thompson was a star in Ragnarok and is one of the best actors working today. And she’s great again here, but the script sidelines her a little bit to let the Thor and Jane story take more of a center stage. And while it makes sense, it was still a little disappointing to see such a great actress and character not used to her full potential.
But Bale gets the shortest end of the stick. Let’s be up front, though. Bale is fantastic. He’s creepy and terrifying and while you may not agree with his methods, you can at least see and understand his point of view. But it was a big missed opportunity to not rely more on Bale and Gorr. Gorr’s origin and back story have several important parallels to Thor’s. Diving deeper into his psyche would have been a really interesting turn, especially for an MCU movie. To put it into NBA terms, Bale’s PER is off the charts, Nikola Jokic MVP-levels. While I’m grateful Bale completely showed out in a more-limited-than-expected role, it’s frustrating to think about what could have been.
All that said, there’s still plenty more good than bad. While I wish Bale had a larger role, I appreciate why he didn’t. Defeating Gorr wasn’t the main story. Thor’s personal journey was. You don’t always get that with these superhero movies. In a landscape that can often feel repetitive, Waititi found a way to make this story feel fresh while still playing all the hits.
With Thompson and Bale getting less screen time, that correlates to Hemsworth and Portman getting the most minutes. We already knew Hemsworth would be great again. He’s really grown into this character over the years and just gets it. So let’s switch the focus to Portman. After playing a major role in Thor and Thor: Dark World, Portman was absent for Ragnarok, which only served to make her reappearance all the more welcome.
She slips right back into the role as though she never left. Portman and Hemsworth still have the same easy chemistry they always have, and they play the awkward exes-unexpectedly-reuniting-while-still-obviously-harboring-feelings-for-each other perfectly. She also feels completely believable as Mighty Thor, even if the script does mostly gloss over the “how” of it all. But it’s so much fun seeing her kick so much butt, that becomes forgivable.
And she’s not just the bad-ass love interest. She has her own problems to deal with and has her own personal story as well. It would have been all too easy for Waititi to make Jane a completely surface level character, but he puts her journey on near-equal footing with Thor’s. And it makes for a much more well-rounded story.
For my money, Ragnarok still holds the title as the MCU’s funniest movie, but Love and Thunder is no slouch in the laughs department. The jokes come fast and furious, and hit at a pretty successful clip. There weren’t any huge laughs for me, but when the jokes consistently work, that’s okay.
With Waititi behind the camera, you know we’re getting his unique style and flare, and that fits like a glove with the direction he’s taken the character. The rock and roll soundtrack, the bright and flashy colors, it’s a fun aesthetic that pairs perfectly with the characters and tone of the movie, even with its more serious themes.
Thor: Love and Thunder is too inconsistent to break into the “great” MCU tier. But it has moments reminding you how special these movies can be when done right. The emotional moments in particular show that there’s still plenty of room for Marvel to grow and deliver fans something more than just another copy and paste superhero adventure.
Score: 84/100
