Direction: Taika Waititi
Country: USA
After directing Thor: Ragnarok in 2017 with appreciable creativity, New Zealander director Taika Waititi plunges the God of Thunder into a synthetic puppet circus that, being as heavy-handed as downright silly, never finds an emotional center amidst the chaos. Waititi, who garnered hearty acclaim for works like What We Do in the Shadows (2014) and Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016), doesn’t know what to make with this super-talkative Thor (Chris Hemsworth), a totally devitalized superhero overshadowed by the mighty presence of Gorr (exemplarily performed by the amazing Christian Bale), a galactic anti-god killer. Prosthetic artist Adam Johansen did a wonderful job with the characterization of the villain, particularly noticeable with the black-and-white images.
To defeat Gorr, Thor turns to the indifferent, moody Zeus (Russell Crowe) and surprisingly teams up with his ex-girlfriend, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), who inherits all his powers and his former hammer. Tons of fireworks adorn this concoction of fragments from other movies - Avatar, Star Wars, Mad Max, and even Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox. With a narrative that jolts rather than compels, the film tries to go everywhere but ends nowhere. It tells a story with no head and tail, fully packed with shabby dialogue and romantic mush. The absence of good laughs is also overwhelming, making it one of the weakest Marvel flicks ever.
This Thor flick is the compendium of all things that should not be done when it comes to superhero movies. And the ludicrous parody keeps rolling at the sound of Guns N’ Roses’ powerful hits.
