THOR: Love And Thunder – Movie Review

THOR: Love and Thunder is an MCU Romance Comedy.

Natalie Portman finally makes her return to the MCU in THOR: Love and Thunder. She will wield the hammer Mjölnir, which previously was shattered by Hela in Ragnarok, which came out five years ago. Just like the previous THOR movie by Taika Waititi, this film ups the wackiness but could not capitalize on the magic of Ragnarok.

Synopsis

The God of Thunder is on a journey, unlike anything he’s ever faced. He is on a search for self-discovery. But THOR’s retirement is interrupted by a galactic killer known as Gorr the God Butcher. Gorr seeks the extinction of the gods. To combat the threat, THOR enlists the help of King Valkyrie, Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster. To Thor’s surprise, Jane inexplicably wields his magical hammer, Mjolnir, as the Mighty THOR. Together, they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.

THOR Love and Thunder gives you two THORs for the price of one ticket. That sounds like a pretty good deal to me. However, it is not the best or second-best THORs film. Ragnarok and the first THOR film rank higher, in my opinion. Director Taika Waititi took too much civil liberty with this installment which did not work in his favor. The story on paper is grand but plays small on the big screen. The movie is silly for most of its runtime, and the jokes never seem to end. Waititi’s noble attempt is disjointed as the movie jumbles around.

Natalie Portman’s return was well-received, but her character Jane Foster becoming the Mighty Thor could have been fleshed out better. So many essential parts of her transition and journey felt to be missing. In addition, Since the first Thor movie, the romance between Thor and Jane has seemed forced. This may be due to the poorly written romance arcs in the scripts or the lack of natural chemistry between Chris Hemsworth and Portman.

Hemsworth will be THOR until the end of time.

He obviously still looks the part but has created such a charming personality for the Norse God that just cannot be replaced. He combined dorkiness and hotness, surprisingly creating a complex MCU character. And yes, we get a closer look at his physic. THOR’s character development since the first film has been one of the MCU’s darkest and wildest journeys for a hero.

Christian Bale as Gorr is well-acted and makes you want more.

I would even take an origins movie showcasing the God Butcher’s journey slashing the heads of the worshiped with the necrosword. I had zero issues with the villain’s redesign due to the similarities to Harry Potter’s Voldemort. The decision for Bale’s face not to be plastered with FX allowed him to emote Gorr’s sinister rage and desperation with great allure.

Taika Waititi leaves plenty of gaps.

I have always been impressed by the work of Waititi, but I felt his focus was elsewhere while making this MCU film. Nothing was genuinely fresh in this THOR installment. Even though this is not the worst THOR movie, it does not sit much higher than The Dark World. Everything felt cheap, from the jokes to the special effects. Too much was filmed in front of a blue screen and it shows. The many gags throughout make Love and Thunder too corny to accept as a worthy follow-up.

Verdict

I give Love and Thunder 3.5 out of 5 stars. I was THOR-oughly hoping for more, but it was still an enjoyable MCU adventure. Make sure to stick around for two end-credit scenes.

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