Wednesday, March 14, 2018

‘Bluray or Bust’ - THOR: RAGNAROK



‘Bluray or Bust’
THOR: RAGNAROK (2017, PG-13, 130 minutes, MARVEL STUDIOS/WALT DISNEY PICTURES)


I look forward to THOR films now, because I get to be more caustic, more insulting and sarcastic.  After THOR: THE DANK WORLD came out four years ago, I have made it a point to include a new insult of that particular installment in every Marvel review I do—partly because it’s fun, but mostly because I still want a direct apology from the studio for that garbage heap of a “film”.

Yet my fun is now being spoiled by director Taika Waititi (totally giggle every time I say his last name out loud) (and by the way, he is the dude that directed the masterfully hilarious WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS) has crafted a hybrid of GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY and IRON MAN that works… no, you did not read that wrong.


He pulls off a successful Thor movie by not focusing entirely on its titular (I’m so punny!) character.  You get a whole lotta Hulk, you get the scene chewing Cate Blanchett as Thor’s evil sister, you get Doctor Strange, and you get Jeff Freaking Goldblum.  It is with these characters that you get your biggest laughs (not so much with Cate, but she does garner a few chuckles), and the longer lasting impressions.  Now for the “hey, can I borrow some plot points?” part of the review: you also get a character made out of rocks—who also has a pint-sized sidekick, one with tattoos on her face who could be a future romantic interest for Thor, imprisonment… any of that reminding you of GUARDIANS yet?  And the Iron Man thing—I’m sorry, but Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) owns the market on snark when it comes to the Marvel Universe.  Most notably in his dealings with the boy in IRON MAN III; the quick and easy banter, the sarcasm—RAGNAROK is literally dripping with these elements.


For the most part, they work, but there are several instances in which the jokes fall a bit flat.  And relying on one Led Zeppelin song (twice, no less) to add buoyancy to the moment and not include any other relative music?  Seriously?  Instead, Wayboobie—sorry, Waititi, relies on a score that sounds ripped right out of a bad eighties film.  On second thought, thanks for playing “Immigrant Song” twice—it was a nice break from that terrible score.

As far as the plot of the film goes: Thor (Chris Hemsworth) finds out he has an evil sister, who kicks him and Loki (Tom Hiddleston, who also hijacks several scenes) out of Asgard so she can take over (see: kill everyone).  They both wind up on a planet ruled by The Grandmaster (Goldblum, playing the part with more snark and giddy self-awareness than anything else you’ve ever seen him do) whose main form of entertainment is fight-to-the-death gladiator-style matches.  As usual, no spoilers, but if you’ve seen the trailers, you know the plot already.  Also, if you’ve seen a Marvel film before, you know the main character’s spin, because you’ve seen it so many times before (hero is heroic, hero loses power, hero learns to believe in him or herself—why hello again, IRON MAN III…)


As with most Marvel releases, there are a ton of special features, including a horribly unentertaining gag reel.  There are not too many surprises in the docs, although I am the geek that enjoys the behind-the-scenes stuff; watching people be creative is always fun, but these special features seem to focus more on the lighter side of Thor this time around.  Which is fine, there is some funny stuff here.  But it all seems like the same vibe as the film, and I, for one, appreciate a closer look at the technical work done to complete a film, effects laden or otherwise.


Thor’s next go will be in the upcoming AVENGERS film, due out at the end of April.  While he always seems to do better in an ensemble piece (obviously, because I liked this one), it will be interesting to see if the studio opts for another stand-alone film for the character.  And after this two hour and twenty minute apology letter for THOR: THE CRAP WORLD, I’m game.

Grade: B
Special Features: B-
Blu-ray Necessary: Most definitely

-- T.S. Kummelman

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