Short of boring you on the list of movies within the Marvel
Cinematic Universe so far, I’ll just say that we’re here on film number five of
Phase Three (the 17th film altogether) and there are still a lot of
films slated to be released for the next three years. Thor: Ragnarok is more or less a
sequel of sorts after the events of Avengers:
Age of Ultron and where Thor—and especially Hulk—went from there. If you’ve seen Doctor Strange, the post credits scene of that film is lengthened a bit in this film as well and all of that
dialogue is explained here in this story.
Of course, I’m getting well ahead of myself and making this
a bit confusing to the Marvel novices out there, so let me just get into this
as easily as I can. Although, if you’re
really new to these films and starting with this particular chapter, you may
want to be more acquainted with this series of films and start from the beginning
with 2008’s Iron Man. Believe me, it’s a lot of fun to go through
each one, enjoying how they all tie together and seeing the little clues or
cliffhangers at the end of each one as you wait for that extra scene (or
scenes) in the middle of—or after—the end credits…all paying off with the
eventual The Avengers film…as well as
the subsequent chapters.
But…let’s dive into the summary of Thor: Ragnarok…
Imprisoned on the other side of the universe, the Mighty
Thor (Chris Hemsworth) finds himself in a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits
him against the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), his former ally and fellow Avenger. Thor’s quest for survival leads him in a race
against time to prevent the all-powerful Hela (Cate Blanchett) from destroying
his home world and the Asgardian civilization.
Now, the story starts off with what may be perceived as Thor
breaking the fourth wall, chronicling how he came to be in the predicament he
finds himself and it’s kind of along the lines of Deadpool explaining to the
audience the happenings in his
film. But as the camera shows his plight
in his confines, we see he’s talking to a skeletal corpse…and this is the
beginning of the comedy we’re going to witness in this flick (more on that
later).
In Thor: Ragnarok, we get a more
lighthearted hero, with a bit of humility and clowning (bordering on
buffoonery) that we haven’t seen in the previous two solo outings. But make no mistake—he’s still the hero and
still the Mighty Thor of this story…but he’s forced to be submissive for the
sake of returning to his home in the hopes of saving his people from the evil
Hela.
Speaking of Hela, I wasn’t sure what to expect of this
character, if we were going to get someone along the lines of the opponents of
the other Marvel heroes or if it was going to be a boring character that Thor
would easily defeat. It turns out that
Hela is a very complex character who is very powerful and the story shows how
dangerous she is from the moment she’s brought forth on screen. Cate Blanchett really shines as this evil
adversary and is probably the most refreshing antagonist Thor has faced thus
far.
Going into my favorite portion of this film and being
somewhat familiar with the Hulk line of comic books, there has been one aspect
not explored and that is the character’s ability to speak. In the late 70s, Lou Ferrigno famously
brought the hero to life but had roars and growls dubbed in when he opened his
mouth. In the 2003 Ang Lee film, there
were a couple of scenes (one was a dream sequence) where the Hulk spoke a line
or two and the 2008 film had a few words as well. In The
Avengers, Hulk had his “puny god” line he delivered, but not much
else…until now. Giving him many
lines—mostly hilarious—makes it easy to build on the bond we see between the
two heroes of the film. The anger, the
tantrums…even the silly display of childishness in this film is so comical and
uplifting. The moment he’s introduced in
the gladiatorial match against Thor, yelling out his name along with the chants
of the crowd, is the moment you’ll grow a grin from ear to ear.
So, I mentioned the comedy of this film and it’s one of the
little things I can nitpick about it.
I’ll admit, just about every gag and one-liner that’s performed in this
movie had me laughing out loud and I enjoyed every minute of it. But standing back to look at what I’d just
watched, especially comparing Hemsworth’s performances in all the other Marvel
films in which he’d been featured, makes it very obvious that he’s a different
person here. In the first film there are
funny scenes because he’s a fish-out-of-water character on Earth, in the other
films there may have been one or two funny moments but he was always the
straight man. Here…he’s funny for the
sake of it and it’s very obvious.
However, since it’s entertaining—and not very annoying—it’s easily
forgiven, especially knowing that director Taika Waititi has a comedic
background and infused it into the character of Thor and the surrounding Marvel
characters.
Finally, Jeff Goldblum as The Grandmaster is perfect as he’s
given the freedom to just be himself and just run the character as he sees
fit. Being the ruler of the planet
Sakaar, he plays the character as a giddy—yet likable—villain, but shows his
bad side in ways that are both funny and extreme. Goldblum fits so well in this film and you’ll
love it every time he gets screen time.
Overall, the emotion most of us comic book geeks have is the
anxiousness we’re feeling for the future films to come: The Black Panther, Avengers:
Infinity War, Ant-Man and the Wasp, Captain Marvel, and so many others. It’s a
great time for us fans of Marvel Comics to be alive!
My final “bit” on Thor: Ragnarok?
There is so much here, much more than I can go over without
spoiling the main plot as well as minor subplots within the film. The film will leave you wanting more and
hoping it’ll never end. The music score
is wonderful, with an 80s synth vibe, leaving Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song”
to pop up during the climatic part of the film (I’ve never heard the song sound
so good!). All the players do such a
great job in this film, from the returning cast members (Tom Hiddleston as
Loki, Idris Elba as Heimdall, and Anthony Hopkins as Odin) to the newcomers of
the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie, Karl Urban as
Skurge, and Taika Waititi voicing the fan-favorite Korg), I’m hoping we get
more Thor films like this one. Thor: Ragnarok should not be missed!
By the way, make sure to wait for the mid-credits scene that
will give you a taste of what’s to come in Avengers:
Infinity War. However, it’s up to
you if you want to wait until all of the credits finish up to view the last
scene…it’s a bit amusing, but it’s a coin-flip if you want to sit through all
that time to see it.
Thanks for reading!
