It’s a Thor point
THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER
Cert 12A ★★★
In cinemas now
Once a Shakespearean space prince, Love and Thunder cements Thor’s role as the Avengers’ funny one, a heavy metal himbo providing comic relief to Marvel’s rapidly expanding and increasingly difficult-to-follow Cinematic Universe.
With Guns N’ Roses needle drops and a guitar solo version of the Marvel fanfare, Love and Thunder leans further into the soft rock styling.
Here every heroic line uttered and every vainglorious pose adopted is almost instantly shot down with a knowing look or snarky one-liner. Taika Waititi, director of the riotously amusing Thor: Ragnarok, has turned his comedy god up to 11.
There are some very funny moments, the most memorable involving a brief turn from Russell Crowe as vain Greek god Zeus.
But tonally and narratively it’s a bit of a mess – a jumble of low-stake CGI action scenes, jokey cameos and serious drama.
The plot sees Thor tangle with Christian Bale’s Gorr The God Slayer, who is seeking revenge on the gods who allowed his infant daughter to starve to death.
Bale is eerily intense but soon gets lost in a cosmic sketch show.
Waititi switches to rom-com mode when
Thor reunites with old flame Dr Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) who has been granted the powers of Thor by his shattered magical hammer Mjolnir.
The poor dolt doesn’t know who to be more jealous of, his ex-girlfriend for hooking up with his old weapon, or the hammer for cosying up to his ex-girlfriend.
It’s a funny joke, for the first couple of times at least, but it doesn’t sit so well with scenes of Jane undergoing chemotherapy.
Since the mass resurrection in Avengers: Endgame, death isn’t a serious matter in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe.
But Jane’s stage four cancer probably should have been left in the comic books.
The poor dolt doesn’t know who to be jealous of, his ex-girlfriend or his hammer