Based upon the Marvel Comics series created by Jack Kirby, Stan Lee & Larry Lieber
Screenplay Written by Taika Waititi & Jennifer Kaytin Robinson
Directed by Taika Waititi
** 1/2 (two and a half stars)
RATED PG 13
When is it ever too much of a good thing?
With the ever continuing and expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), that very question has been asked a myriad amount of times by now as the assembly line production of movies and television shows does beg to be inquired. I have gone through my varying feelings about the sheer amount of product that has emerged over these past 14 years and I have now grown accustomed to the serialized storytelling plus my still continued feelings that the Marvel output overall has been consistently good to great with some hiccups here and there.
That being said, I am strongly feeling that while the television slate of the MCU, under the leadership of Producer Kevin Feige, has been thrilling, innovative and captivating, the motion pictures as of late have not shown the same consistency of attentive care and execution. Yes, the films are as ravishing as ever. But the actual storytelling and therefore, that emotional connection, which makes this series one you wish to keep returning to, is feeling rushed, strained and just existing to keep the Marvel pipeline surging ahead. Frankly, for me, after the majesty of Jon Watts' "Spider-Man: No Way Home" (2021), one of the very best the MCU has ever released, it is inexcusable to me to watch Marvel produce anything sub par. They can't go back, nor should they and when they do, it does force the question that opened this posting to be asked.
Taika Waititi's "Thor: Love And Thunder," or titular hero's fourth solo adventure and the MCU's 29th feature overall, is overflowing with artistic vision and one that carries an especially surprising Directorial personality in Waititi as the Marvel aesthetic has been emphasized more than a filmmaker's personal stamp. Even so, it was two exceedingly full hours of wild razzle dazzle, nonsense and Guns N' Roses that ultimately left me feeling underwhelmed to the point where I was curious if there even was a point to it other than commerce driven.
When we last saw The God Of Thunder (again winningly played by Chris Hemsworth), he had boarded a starship alongside The Guardians Of The Galaxy (all of whom make an appearance) after the defeat of Thanos, resurrecting half of the universe in the process and bidding final farewells to Tony Stark, Natasha Ramonoff and Steve Rogers. Through these tumultuous life altering events, which had already endured the death of his Father, Odin, the destruction of Asgard and the creation of New Asgard upon Earth with Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) entrusted as the new King, our very own Thor feels soulfully wayward, as well as still nursing a broken heart from his breakup with Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman).
Meanwhile, certain doom has re-emerged, yet this time, in the form of Gorr The God Butcher (Christian Bale) and the arachnid styled demons of his dreaded Shadow Realm. Gorr, armed with the Necrosword, is intent upon murdering all of the Gods, even as he is cursed by the object. with New Asgard as his next target, Gorr apprehends all of the Asgardian children as bait for Thor, who clearly will need all of the assistance he can find for this battle...
...which includes...the return of Dr. Jane Foster, now as The Mighty Thor (not Lady Thor, thank you very much) armed with the mystical and thought to be forever destructed hammer Mjolnir.
Just as with Taika Waititi's resplendent "Thor: Ragnarok" (2017), "Thor: Love And Thunder" is an orgiastic display of rainbow colored drenched sound, fury and irreverence that proudly never takes itself too seriously, if at all, and is almost determined to try and see how far it can push the Marvel envelope without flying completely off of the Rainbow Bridge. But, boy does it come dangerously close.
Taika Waititi's puckish approach, so welcome and unexpected in "Raganarok," felt that somehow he snuck something past Feige's watchful overseeing MCU eye and in doing so, fully rejuvenated and repurposed a character that never entirely had itself settled as to how it could exist, despite Chris Hemsworth's absolutely perfect casting and clear enthusiasm for the role. "Ragnarok" found Hemsworth and Thor as their most comfortable, treading that very fine line between heroism, pathos and sheer ridiculousness that showcased Hemsworth's considerable abilities (most notably his terrific comedic touch) and broadened the dimensions of Thor himself, making him a character we would love to follow to the ends of the universe and beyond.
With "Love And Thunder," Taika Waititi and Chris Hemsworth truly make a dream team as their sensibilities feel to line up perfectly as they each simultaneously honor and send up our hero to mischievously delicious delight. Additionally, Natalie Portman is clearly having a blast as both Dr. Jane Foster and as the hammer wielding Mighty Thor, just nailing a heretofore untapped charm as her Earthbound Scientist combined with an existential rise and despair, all the while battling foes with the best of our Asgardian heroes and heroines and ever seeking the perfect catchphrase for herself. The magnetic Tessa Thompson owns her role as the swaggering warrior King Valkyrie, making her union with both Hemsworth and Portman a veritable dream team.
But...oh, if they were just given even more to do...
While "Love And Thunder" more than indulges Taika Waititi's relentless imagination and stunning visual dynamism, which feels even more unfiltered with a story that sprawls itself from Earth all the way to Zeus's (a more than game Russell Crowe) Omnipresent City, Gorr's Shadow Realm and the ends of Eternity itself fueled by operatic and comedic overtones of romance, sexual friskiness and fluidity, and the dives into the ocean of love (to think, even Thor's axe Stormbreaker can feel pangs of jealousy).
I deeply appreciated Waititi's restless urgency to seemingly try anything at all to keep those cinematic plates spinning vibrantly, rather than creating another anonymous big budget blockbuster. Yet, while that approach served him exceedingly well in "Ragnarok," he seemed considerably more out of control this time around. It doesn't mean that he needed to be necessarily reined in. It means that I just had wished that greater care was taken with the story and actual storytelling, therefore setting whatever boundaries needed to be in place for him to work within and push. Instead, Waititi was poking us in the eye every single second, which really overstays its welcome even while enjoying it. For if everything is essentially a joke, then why should we care about anything that happens at all?
The love story of Thor and Jane only succeeds due to Hemsworth and Portman's chemistry and ease with each other combined with what we already know about the duo from previous Marvel entries and not really due to anything Waititi brings to the table, aside from some sweet montage moments. Even Christian Bale felt to be underused, which is a serious misfire, because when he is on screen, he exudes as much pathos as creepiness and truthfully, if you are going to have a character named Gorr The God Butcher, shouldn't we see a figure that more than lives up to his moniker?
To that end, all of the character motivations felt rushed, in a screenplay hat felt to be barely written, so that they never fully resonated and existed solely to get to the next scene, thus, and again, undervaluing the film as a whole and threatening to make the MCU experience tiresome rather than enthralling.
Certainly, when producing a slate of material on an assembly line such as Marvel's, quality control is bound to miss once in a while. Yet with Sam Raimi's undercooked, over rushed missed opportunity which was "Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness" and now followed by Taika Waititi's "Thor: Love And Thunder," I am admittedly getting nervous going forward, especially as Ryan Coogler's long awaited "Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever" is set to arrive by the holiday season.
Tighten it up, Marvel. For we need a reason to return to the MCU other than because it simply exists.
No comments:
Post a Comment