‘Thor’ gets hammered by surprising humor
“Thor: Ragnarok” owes a lot to “Guardians of the Galaxy.”
If that movie series hadn’t been an enormous success and proven to Marvel that fans would be willing to accept a lot of humor along with the heroism, the 2017 edition of the hammer-wielding Norse god’s screen exploits – which TNT presents Sunday and Monday, Feb. 14 and 15 – might have turned out a lot differently.
And, frankly, a lot duller. As enacted by Chris Hemsworth, Thor’s unrelenting seriousness has made for unrelentingly serious movies – but not this one, and what a surprise that is. Even if he suffers the brunt of many jokes here, a change in the approach was needed, and director Taika Waititi (“What We Do in the Shadows”) certainly provides it to “Ragnarok.”
Yes, there are the usual destined-for-relentless action trappings ... this time furnished largely by Cate Blanchett as Thor’s sister, who’s out for the ultimate power grab by seizing control of the family’s home planet from dad Odin (Anthony Hopkins). But that’s offset somewhat by Jeff Goldblum as the gleefully weird runner of a sort of bizarre fight club, and by heart-to-hearts between Thor and the Hulk, played again by Mark Ruffalo.