Thor: Ragnarok (2017 – PG-13)

I’m still trying to decide how I feel about Ragnarok.  It’s undoubtedly awesome and undeniably entertaining – it’s a great, well-made film, and I enjoyed the hell out of it.  Still, I’m trying to decide if it’s quite the movie it should be (premise spoilers.)

Death is coming to Asgard.  Literally – Hela, the goddess of death, has broken free from her imprisonment and plans to rule Thor’s world with extreme prejudice.  In trying to stop her, Thor (and Loki) are flung across the universe to Sakaar, an intergalactic way station.  Thor, desperate to get back home and defeat Hela, tries to recruit a warrior with a dark past and an unexpected familiar face to help him.

Let’s talk about this first:  this movie is hilarious.  There are numerous comic situations and surprising bits of physical comedy that venture into slapstick, and the jokes are virtually – but not quite – wall-to-wall.  It’s so funny that there were moments in the theater where I honestly couldn’t hear the lines because the audience was still laughing so hard over the previous joke.  All the actors deliver nicely on this front, particularly Chris Hemsworth, who ably demonstrated his comic chops in Ghostbusters. 

And it’s a little weird.  Because I enjoy it – honestly, I do – and it’s not like the Marvel movies in general skimp on humor, the Thor movies included.  But there’s just something about it here, the general tone of it and the sheer volume of it, that doesn’t quite fit in with Thor or The Dark World.  There are moments in the film where, even as I’m laughing, I find myself thinking, “Is Thor really that much of a meathead?”  I don’t know.  Tonally, I’m still not sure what to make of it.  As fun as it is, I don’t know if it’s quite right.

Fortunately, the movie has plenty to offer besides copious, slightly-jarring hilarity.  The action is killer – I’d be hard-pressed to highlight a favorite fight, but anything involving lightning is pretty sweet.  It’s nice to see a non-earthbound Thor movie, to really get into the space opera of it all and exploit the potential in that.  Everything about Sakaar is fun and awesome, and it opens the story up to new characters as well as the new setting.

Speaking of new characters?  Basically, yes all the way.  Cate Blanchett is regal, fierce, and wicked as Hela, a destructive goddess from head to foot.  Jeff Goldblum is a hoot as the Grandmaster, who runs the show on Sakaar – I mean, his main task in any movie is basically to “bring that Jeff Goldblum energy” to whatever role he has, but it really works in this setting.  Special props to Tess Thompson, who is sheer awesomeness as the Valkyrie, as entertaining as she is badass.  And for the “Marvel veteran, Thor movie virgin” characters, I could take or leave Doctor Strange’s brief appearance, but the Hulk is terrific, and I love seeing Mark Ruffalo getting to play the Hulk as a bit more of an actual character.

Warnings

Comic book violence, swearing, drinking, sexual references, and thematic elements.