Thor: Ragnarok

2017 superhero movie

Rating: 14/20

Plot: Thor has to save his glittery kingdom and probably the cosmos from his diabolical but kinda hot sister.

Well, shit my pants and call me Slappy because after suffering through the first two Thor movies--Thor and Thor II: Funky Elves--and swearing that I was done with this particular superhero/god, I ended up enjoying the hell out of this one. I was mildly interested after I found out Taika Waititi was involved, and even more interested after seeing some fun previews. Whereas I thought the other two Thor movies were stumbling, nearly incoherent affairs, I thought this one struck the right consistent tone from the beginning. At times, it almost seems like a parody of a Marvel movie, but it never crosses the line. Waititi, et al., magically succeed in taking these characters and their story seriously without taking anything too seriously. It's quite the high-wire juggling act, and a misstep here or there could have been disastrous. He nails it though!

What Chris Hemsworth does with this character has really grown on me, and I'm not just talking about the scene where he's not wearing a shirt. Hiddleston is still just about perfect as Loki although his whole trickster thing has to be getting a little old even for diehard Thor fans. I thought Cate Blanchett's character brought just the right amount of mayhem and dark humor as the villainess, and I'm glad that she got loads of opportunities to swing swords around and be a badass instead of just kind of standing in the background while henchmen did all her dirty work. Hulk doesn't do much for me, but his rapport with Hemsworth is fun, and I really enjoyed the scenes with Mark Ruffalo. Tessa Thompson's another strong female character, wearing almost as much cliche as she is armor, and Idris Elba shines as a character who was probably in the other movies but whom I've forgotten about because I don't have much of a movie memory. Oh, and Jeff Goldblum! What can you say about Jeff Goldblum? He plays some kook called The Grandmaster, and it's almost impossible not to have fun while watching him having fun playing this character. Finally, Waititi himself voices a rock character, and nearly everything that character says is hilarious.

This Marvel movie is as vibrant and colorful as Guardians of the Galaxy and much more consistent than the second installment of that franchise. The special effects dazzle, the action sequences titillate, and the pace makes the movie feel like it's about a half an hour long. In fact, I still can't believe this movie was 2 hours and 10 minutes. It moved so briskly, and it's the rare superhero movie that I actually wanted to spend more time with.

It's also the rare Marvel movie that I'd be interested in seeing again. I wouldn't mind revisiting Jeff Goldblum's trash planet, rewatching that fight on the Mario Kart Rainbow Road, or seeing Thor and The Hulk pound each other in the gladiator-style arena again. And I'd love to pay more attention to Mark Mothersbaugh's score, which I really loved. There's also a great use of "Immigrant Song," something I was sure was actually used similarly in Guardians of the Galaxy. I was wrong about that though.

As I watched this, I wondered whether Marvel superfans would dig it or not. I guess they like the Guardians movies, and those are pretty goofy. It seems that Thor: Ragnarok is beloved. I wonder if this particular incarnation of Thor is close to the comic book version of the superhero. Should I revisit the other two Thor movies again? Maybe I took them too seriously?

I'm rambling a bit, but it doesn't matter because nobody is reading this far. This was the most fun I've had with a superhero movie in a while, and while some nerds may disagree with me, this is better than both the recent Spider-man and Wonder Woman movies.

What are there now--22 of these Marvel movies? I'm starting to appreciate the vision and ambition of telling one story over so many movies and with so many characters. I'm still not sure how it all will come together because I'm not smart enough to understand what these Infinity Stones are all about.