REVIEW: Thor: Ragnarok

Courtesy of Marvel

Marvel’s first two Thor films weren’t as critically beloved as the studio’s other franchises (I enjoyed them, but I seem to be in the minority), but taking the saga in a different direction, both narratively and tonally seems to have done the trick. Thor: Ragnarok is easily the best entry in the series – currently rocking a 96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes – for quite a few reasons.

First and foremost, director Taika Waititi (working from a screenplay credited to Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost) has finally figured out how to make Thor (Chris Hemsworth) work as a character: turn him into Jack Burton, the bumbling truck driver Kurt Russell played in Big Trouble in Little China. John Carpenter’s underrated kung fu comedy is one of my all-time favorite films, so I’m fine with Marvel stealing from the best.

Jack Burton was entertaining because he was a sidekick who thought he was John Wayne. The same concept applies to Thor here. Waititi shrewdly understands that Hemsworth has killer comedic instincts, so he makes Thor: Ragnarok a full-blown comedy. It might be the funniest movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to date. (It’s at least tied with Guardians of the Galaxy.) That’s the second reason the film works as well as it does.

That’s not to say there aren’t stakes. The main character and his allies face off against Hela (Cate Blanchett), a villain powerful enough to either rule the universe or destroy it out of spite. Oh, and if that wasn’t dramatic enough, it turns out she’s the long-lost sister of Thor and Loki (Tom Hiddleston).

When she returns to Asgard after being imprisoned for millennia, she immediately banishes her siblings to a planet where a crazed, bloodthirst ruler known as the Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) forces captives to fight to the death. Things begin to look up when Thor realizes the undefeated warrior he must face is the arena is his Avengers teammate the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). Soon the duo joins forces with a reluctant Loki and another Asgardian with a tragic past (Tessa Thompson) to prevent Hela from destroying the kingdom.

My favorite aspect of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is that the creative team understands narrative momentum and drama are important, but the main reason these movies exist are for people to have fun. These aren’t three-hour mediations on the human condition; they’re about gods who wear spandex and beat the heck out of each other.

Waititi gets that. He takes the characters seriously but makes sure to undercut their arrogance with absurdity. It’s a wonderful mixture, especially since the cast is clearly having a great time. Hemsworth gets to go to weird places with his humor, as do Hiddleston, Ruffalo, Anthony Hopkins (who plays dual roles in his brief time on screen), and Waititi himself – he voices a hilariously odd CGI creature named Korg.

But the clear MVP of the weirdo Olympics is Goldblum, who delivers some bonkers line readings as the Grandmaster. Any time he was on screen, I ended up laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe. I’m sure I annoyed my fellow audience members by gasping and wheezing so much. Blanchett is also entertaining and does what she can to breathe life into her underwritten role, but Marvel maintains its unfortunate trend of underwhelming villains.

Still, Thor: Ragnarok is worth seeing on the biggest screen possible with the loudest speakers available. In addition to being one of the year’s best comedies, it’s positively gorgeous to look at. Waititi makes practically every scene look like the cover of a 1980s Trapper Keeper. The soundtrack is also a nostalgia overload thanks to Mark Mothersbaugh’s synth-heavy score.

The best compliment I can pay the film is that I can’t wait to see it again. I’m sure I missed a ton of jokes the first time around because I was laughing so hard. This one is something special, folks. Be sure to check it out.

Thor: Ragnarok is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and brief suggestive material.

Grade: A-