Thor: Love and Thunder

Cert - 12, Run-time - 1 hours 59 minutes,

Director - Taika Waititi

Often after major Avengers films within their franchise, Marvel Studios will release a palate cleanser like an Ant-Man film. Now, after two features introducing and expanding the multiverse it seems time for a Guns N’ Roses and ABBA infused space jaunt in the form of Thor: Love And Thunder.

We re-meet Thor (Chris Hemsworth) parting ways with the Guardians Of The Galaxy, alongside rock monster Korg (co-writer, alongside Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, and director Taika Waititi), embarking on a journey of self-discovery. A journey which reaches a bumpy course when ex-girlfriend Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), wielding once-treasured hammer Mjolnir and using pseudonym The Mighty Thor, appears. Here self-discovery turns into a deeper course of trying to understand that - as one of the film’s taglines claims - ‘the one is not the only’. Yet, all of this is put aside as Thor teams up with Korg, Jane and king of New Asgard Valkyrie (a highly enjoyable Tessa Thompson) to defeat brutal murderer Gorr The God Butcher (Christian Bale).

Bale puts in a fantastic scene-stealing performance as the mad villain. A truly dark, and potentially scary, turn that’s only really let down by his limited screen-time. Certainly he gets one or two strong scenes, largely thanks to his performance, but the most we see of Gorr is in the third act battles, where action is often the main focus; although the film’s action sequences often prove highlights. There’s no denying that, even if he is learning to work as part of a team, this is Thor’s film. Trying to tackle his ego as he travels across space to try and find ways to take down Gorr.

This takes us from tourist haven New Asgard to the expansive city of the gods in a narrative that largely feels like it’s made of various tangents. Going from Point A to Point B via Points C, D, E, F, etc. While the humour certainly helps to keep you engaged - although perhaps not with the frequency of Waititi’s previous Marvel entry Thor: Ragnarok - it’s not quite enough to lift up the plot’s location jumping nature.

Despite this, there are still good ideas floating around the film. They may feel spaced out by narrative tangents, but there are some pleasantly surprising, and unexpected, elements introduced; it’s perhaps better to focus on this than some of the more familiar, and increasingly tired, elements of the final stages.

It creates a nice shift for Thor, who spends much of the film in a jealous relationship with his axe, Stormbreaker. This may not be his strongest hour as he, and the film, juggle a number of different elements in various locations, but Love And Thunder, largely thanks to its humour, manages to serve as an enjoyable palate cleanser after the last few MCU releases.

Jamie Skinner - Three stars