Rating: 3.5/5
Boasting director Taika Waititi’s trademark humour and a stacked cast, ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ doesn’t necessarily lend itself to the typical Marvel formula, but remains an enjoyable watch for fans and casual viewers alike.
The film sees Chris Hemsworth’s Thor, in the midst of an existential crisis, pitted up against new villain, Gorr the God Butcher, portrayed by Christian Bale.
Natalie Portman also returns to the franchise for the first time since 2013’s ‘Thor: The Dark World’, as she reprises her role as Jane Foster, and picks up the new title of Mighty Thor.
Flashbacks narrated by Waititi’s character, Korg, and theatrical performances within the film help to connect the dots not only within ‘Love and Thunder’, but also with films earlier in the series.
It’s because of this that ‘Thor: Love and Thunder’ almost feels like two films in one. On one hand, you see Jane and Thor’s love story from start to finish – literally.
These parts of the film are light, colourful and humorous. But, when we return to the main plot, the dichotomy of Bale’s depiction of Gorr provides the necessary reminder to viewers that they are, in fact, watching a Marvel film, and not a rom-com.
Although the film strays from the expectations built up by the final films of Phase 3 of the MCU, such as ‘Avengers: Endgame’, it builds on the silliness of ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ and is consistent with the more unique and playful direction we’ve seen from Phase 4 so far.
Now showing.
See this movie at Hoyts Penrith.
Cassidy Pearce is a news and entertainment journalist with The Western Weekender. A graduate of the University of Technology Sydney, she has previously worked with Good Morning Macarthur and joined the Weekender in 2022.
