On Wednesday I catch a bus into central London to see Thor: Love and Thunder, one of several previews simultaneously showing in cinemas on Leicester Square. This isn’t the star-studded red carpet deal — across the street, at a posh theater — but Chris Hemsworth had a cardboard ready to take selfies and grinning fans. line up to grab a large plastic hammer. Then, while I sat in the noisy auditorium waiting for the movie to begin, someone behind me was trying to repeatedly record an audible message for his followers, so I heard about 50 times that he summed up every episode of the Marvel movies online (by no means feat) and Marvel offered him a preview as a bonus. He also announced, to his obvious excitement, that Hemsworth was in the building. A pre-recorded greeting confirms later that, alas, Hemsworth isn’t even in the country, but the writer/director/Korg Taika Waititi, Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie), and Natalie Portman (Jane Foster) wander from another theater to thank the audience. “How are gay movies?” a fan shouted at Portman. “So gay,” she replied after a pause, and, movingly, the crowd cheered. (In my mind, they were all swinging big plastic hammers; this could be a false memory.)
Say what you like about the Marvel franchise, the fans are already 29 movies deep and still single. As someone who’s watched less than a quarter of these and hasn’t read a single manga, I’m also not qualified to concoct. a smart critique or even one in level Martin Scorcese’s. What I will say, however, is that over the years it has become increasingly difficult to get your hands on a franchise. Thor: Love and Thunder Forge this house. That’s not exactly a criticism. Instead, it’s a calculation: At this point, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has grown so densely packed and self-referential that it’s hard to watch one of these movies without feeling like you’re dropping out. miss all the jokes and plot revealed. You lose a lot if you don’t know the characters, basically. Love and Thunder was sold as an action movie, but in many ways it was better suited to the hangout genre.
This latest Thor is the first since Thor: Ragnarok, also led by Waititi. In Love and Thunderthe new villain is Gorr the God Butcher, played by Christian Bale, a silver man with a grin like the moon from Majora’s mask and a voice, distinct, like Bale’s real British accent. Gorr wanted revenge on the gods because one of them let his daughter die; conveniently, he already had the Necrosword, a divine killing weapon. Thor, beautifully orange and sculpted, each arm a sun-drenched mountain range, had to be abandoned around with the Guardians of the Galaxy crew to stop him. At the same time, his ex, Jane Foster, was diagnosed with cancer. However, using Thor’s old hammer seems to make her healthy again, and it also helps her appear in a suit befitting the target. They meet with the Valkyrie after Gorr attacks New Asgard and hang out with the city’s children. The group’s journey will take them to the Almighty City, where Russell Crowe plays Zeus, emitting a hilarious hammy (?) Greek accent.
Write in ArtReview, Gerry Canavan reflects what he calls Marvel’s “late style”, characterized by “meta-self awareness” and “preoccupation with one’s heroic past”. “Without a single focus on one plot, everything is building endlessly,” Canavan writes, “instead, the franchise focuses on small variations on itself and its own emotional rhythms.” , about interrogating, lamenting, and incorporating its own past.”
This summary is only about catching the trouble with Love and Thunder. Consider Thor and Foster’s relationship, which blossomed in the first two Thor movies, is not a lauded relationship Ragnarok. In recognition of Waititi’s credit, he provides a variety of synopsis to get you up to speed, usually through the mouth of the lovable rock man Korg, or through plays in the ring featuring Matt Damon. But these may not provide the emotional personality development needed to interest you in the couple’s struggles with love and cancer.
A fair response would be to point out that Marvel movies, like Marvel comics, are meant to be enjoyed in conversation with one another; that they are never stand-alone stories. But there is one notable purpose Love and Thunder that’s hard to ignore if you don’t watch the movie to just watch your favorite characters. In a post-Endgame world, the dramatic rate is only lower, a problem complicated by Waititi and the cold ironic tone of his actors. These films were conceived in his image, shot with the same sly satire that informed him. What do we do in the dark. But that tone gives the impression that nothing really matters: We’re here to have a good time.
And that’s good! (Or it would be okay if the supermassive black hole of the Marvel series didn’t swallow up the prospect of other blockbusters without Tom Cruise or Minions, but that’s a well-known topic.) These movies aren’t. suitable for everyone, and it is interesting, almost avant-garde, that they have grown too forbidden for outsiders. But how will they age? Will the audience, who you imagine have a completely different frame of reference, find them viewable 30 years from now? Can you imagine them logging into Disney + Max and watching Over 50 hours of movies to get references in a movie? Possibly, but we’re also near the end. After Love and ThunderDuring the credits, Zeus appears to summon Hercules, the subject of another movie. Only one humorand many legends, about him too.
