‘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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