EARLY REVIEW—THOR: RAGNAROK

The Thor movies have never really seemed like the most “essential” of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) films—the Iron Man, Captain America, and Avengers movies seem to be where the most important stuff happens. And as a result, in my observation, the Thor movies have been sort of undervalued. The first one, directed by Kenneth Branagh and released in 2011, was a thoroughly enjoyable adventure that expanded the MCU in a major way, introducing the notion that the Norse gods really do exist and that there are many worlds and forms of life and technologies beyond our knowledge and understanding. And for me, 2013’s Thor: The Dark World, directed by Alan Taylor, was the kind of movie that Man of Steel, released five months earlier, should have been.

Which brings us to Thor: Ragnarok, opening November 3, which picks up on threads from The Dark World, 2015’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, and even Doctor Strange, and spins them into a new tale about an existential threat to Asgard, home to Thor, Odin, Loki, and the rest of the characters we’ve come to know from the previous movies. This time, the danger comes in the form of Hela, the goddess of death, played with a dark sexiness by Cate Blanchett—she seems like she’s having the time of her life vamping it up here. Hela is intent on conquering Asgard and leading it to what she feels is its rightful place as the absolute authority over all Creation.

Upon her arrival, Hela recruits Skurge, who can best be described as a working-class Asgardian who feels he’s worthy of bigger and better things. Skurge is played by Karl Urban, who so masterfully took on the role of Doctor Leonard “Bones” McCoy in the three most recent Star Trek movies. That he can play two such disparate characters so effectively is remarkable, and a testament to Urban’s versatility. (As good an actor as DeForest Kelley was, I somehow can’t picture him being able to play a character like Skurge!)

As if Hela wasn’t enough of a headache, we learn that her emergence is supposedly the harbinger of the long-foretold Ragnarok, the end of Asgard, which is believed to be an apocalyptic event brought on by Odin’s ancient nemesis, Surtur the fire demon.

Thor and his ever-devious brother Loki, once again played to perfection by, respectively, Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston, join forces to confront Hela and prevent Ragnarok from occurring. But they get, shall we say, sidetracked, and end up on another world, one under the control of an eccentric alien being who calls himself the Grandmaster and pits various creatures against one another in gladiatorial battles. How eccentric is this guy? Jeff Goldblum plays him. That’s all you need to know.

If you’ve seen the trailers and TV commercials, you already know that at one point, Thor ends up in the arena matched up against an old frenemy: none other than the Hulk, who’s been MIA since the end of Age of Ultron. Needless to say, sparks fly between the two erstwhile Avengers, and we’re treated to a long-awaited rematch between the god of thunder and the gamma-spawned behemoth.

But the threat to Asgard remains, and Thor knows that if he cannot escape this strange world, his home—and his people—will perish.

Thor: Ragnarok, directed by Taika Waititi, is, without a doubt, the wildest Thor movie yet. It has enough ideas and characters and incidents packed into it to support at least one or two other films. There are in-jokes and sight gags aplenty, by the way. I guarantee you won’t catch them all in one viewing.

You can’t help but feel the influence of the two Guardians of the Galaxy movies—from the further exploration of the cosmic side of the MCU to the abundance of humor—some of which gets pretty silly, but much of which works very well—to the musical score by Mark Mothersbaugh, which mostly eschews a traditional orchestral score (as used in the previous two films) for a more modern, funky, electronic approach. In some places, the music sounds a bit reminiscent of “Guardians Inferno” by the Sneepers, from the end credits of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. And there’s even prominent use of 1970s classic rock, in this case “The Immigrant Song” by Led Zeppelin. Overall, the proceedings are never allowed to get TOO dark-and-heavy, and there’s always another fun or funny bit right around the corner.

Hemsworth is more charming and more confident than ever in Ragnarok. Given the nature of the story, he has to carry the movie more than he ever has before, and he is fully up to the task.

Hiddleston continues to be the MCU’s not-so-secret weapon. His Loki is without a doubt the greatest, most complex, most multi-dimensional villain these movies have ever had, and I hope he sticks around for a good long while. (Thankfully, it has apparently already been confirmed that we’ll see him again in next year’s Avengers: Infinity War.)   

Fans of the Hulk (and as many of you know, that includes yours truly) are in for a real treat. He and his hapless alter ego, Dr. Bruce Banner (once again portrayed by the always engaging Mark Ruffalo) are given some really nice character development and growth in this movie, which sets up several intriguing possibilities for future MCU installments. 

Ol’ Greenskin pretty much steals the show, just as he did in 2012’s The Avengers—although this time, he gets some stiff competition from a new character, Valkyrie, played by Tessa Thompson. She brings the same kind of fresh energy, enthusiasm, and passion to this movie that Sofia Boutella brought to Star Trek Beyond, in her role of Jaylah.

Returning Thor alumni include Anthony Hopkins as Odin and Idris Elba as Heimdall. But there are a couple of notable absences. Natalie Portman and Jaimie Alexander are both no-shows this time out, depriving us of appearances from, respectively, Dr. Jane Foster and Lady Sif. But the movie is so jam-packed, with so much going on and so many other characters to serve, that it’s difficult to see where they would have fit in prominently anyway.

In terms of having a major impact on the larger MCU, all I’ll say about Thor: Ragnarok is that STUFF HAPPENS. Things are set up here that will need to be addressed, in one way or another, in future movies—one of which, presumably, will be Infinity War. But more important than that, the movie, like both of its predecessors, never fails to entertain. It is a well-paced adventure with a lighthearted, rollicking spirit and moments of breathtaking wonder. In my book, that’s enough.    

And, as always, stay to the very end for bonus scenes.

© All text copyright Glenn Greenberg, 2017.

EARLY REVIEW: WONDER WOMAN

It took a woman to rescue the DC Cinematic Universe. Two women, actually. The first, of course, is Wonder Woman, as played by Gal Gadot. The Amazon warrior made her big-screen debut in last year’s notorious grimfest Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, in which she was one of the very few bright spots.

The other woman is director Patty Jenkins, who previously helmed 2003’s Monster and was, at one point, slated to direct what ultimately became Thor: The Dark World. Based on Wonder Woman, Jenkins either didn’t get—or simply chose to ignore—the memo that DC’s comic-book superheroes had to be portrayed in movies as joyless, tortured, barely-likable beings for whom heroism is more of a burden than a calling.

Under Jenkins, Wonder Woman—also known as Princess Diana of the hidden island paradise Themiscyra—is everything that Superman should have been in 2013’s Man of Steel and the aforementioned Batman v. Superman. Which is to say, she’s absolutely committed to the cause of making the world a better place, she exudes charm, warmth, and compassion, and she has absolute faith in humanity’s inherent goodness. That faith is put to the test, to be sure, but there’s never any doubt that when all is said and done, Diana (she’s never referred to in the film as Wonder Woman, incidentally) cares deeply for us.

The film is an origin story, showing Diana’s early life with the Amazons—particularly her mother, Queen Hippolyta (played by Connie Nielsen) and her aunt, General Antiope (Robin Wright)—and the events that lead to her eventual departure from Themiscyra to take an active role in world affairs. Early in the film, we find the Amazons enjoying their peaceful existence, blissfully unaware that beyond their island, World War I is in full swing. But the brutal global conflict reaches their shores with the sudden arrival of a man: U.S. military officer Steve Trevor (played by Chris Pine), who forms a bond with Diana after she saves him from a plane crash. Having learned of the war and the number of lives that have already been lost, and believing that she may be able to bring the conflict to a quick end, Diana is inspired to get directly involved, against her mother’s wishes. To reveal more would be to delve into spoiler territory.

I can’t say enough good things about Gal Gadot. Her performance is simply terrific, displaying a wide range of emotions and moods while never straying too far from the character’s underlying passion to do good, to help as many people as she can, and to inspire love throughout the world. Even moreso than in Batman v. Superman, Gadot proves herself to be a worthy successor to the much-beloved Lynda Carter, who, like Christopher Reeve, is one hell of a tough act to follow.

Chris Pine is equally good, and he has strong chemistry with Gadot. Amusingly enough, in Wonder Woman, Pine really shows just how well he can play Captain James T. Kirk—something he hasn’t always gotten a chance to do in the Star Trek movies he’s starred in. Pine’s Steve Trevor is bold, courageous, decent, mature, charismatic, and a natural leader.

Chris Pine and Gal Gadot

Connie Nielsen and Robin Wright make great Amazons, and they turn in effective performances that help shape Diana’s character.

Diana (Gal Gadot), left, stands with Queen Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen).

The supporting cast is uniformly solid, particularly: Lucy Davis, who provides some delightful comic relief as Steve Trevor’s British secretary, Etta Candy; the always reliable Danny Huston, who is appropriately menacing as the German army general, Erich Ludendorff; Elena Anaya as Ludendorff’s scientist associate, Dr. Maru, affectionately known as “Dr. Poison”; Saïd Taghmaoui as Sameer, a lighthearted member of the international military team Trevor assembles to work with him and Diana in Europe; and David Thewlis (who is absolutely brilliant in the current season of Fargo) as Sir Patrick Morgan, a British official pushing for armistice.

With a running time of 2 hours and 21 minutes, Wonder Woman is long, but for the most part, it’s well paced. The action scenes are nicely choreographed and there’s a sufficient amount of time spent building up the key characters and their relationships.

Wonder Woman deserves to be a big hit for Warner Bros. I hope it proves to be one. I much prefer Patty Jenkins’s approach to the DC Cinematic Universe, and to heroic figures, over that of Zack Snyder, the director of Man of Steel, Batman v. Superman and the upcoming Justice League (set for release on November 17). An enthusiastic response from audiences, and huge box-office returns, may finally send a clear message to the studio that superheroes should be inspirational, that they should appeal to our better selves, that they should be rays of light and hope that pierce through the darkness, and that they’re able to actually smile every now and then.

© All text copyright Glenn Greenberg, 2017.