No hammer. No problem.
Thor: Ragnarok is a 2017 superhero film directed by Taika Waititi, written by Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle, and Christopher L. Yost, produced by Marvel Studios, and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The film is based on various Thor comics by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby. It stars Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson. The film was not nominated for any Academy Awards. This is the seventeenth film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is the third film in the Thor franchise. This acts as a sequel to Thor: The Dark World and Avengers: Age of Ultron. It is followed by Avengers: Infinity War and will be followed by Thor: Love and Thunder.
"Tell me brother, what were you the god of again?" -Hela
Plot
After the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron, Thor is banished from Asgard after getting his hammer destroyed. Halfway across the universe, Thor battles his friend and ally, the Hulk, in an intergalactic gladiator arena. After the fight, Thor forms a team that consists of Hulk, a lone Valkyrie, and his mischievous brother, Loki. They must escape the planet that they are on, Sakaar, and get back to Asgard before Thor's evil sister, Hela, takes over the Nine Realms.
Positive Aspects
The biggest thing is the humor. This film is, as the headline says, the funniest film in the MCU. During a seemingly intense scene, one of the characters will crack a joke or something that will make the audience chuckle. The quips and one-liners are the highlight of this film. There are certain new characters, such as the Grandmaster or Korg, that are absolutely hilarious.
Speaking of characters, this film is full of them. Pretty much all of them are amazing. Thor is very likable, charming and charismatic. He is, as mentioned before, the funniest he has ever been. He's the least Shakespeare-like, which was good. Loki is also charming and charismatic in this film. He's very funny, too, and likable. When a movie or series finds a way to make a former villain likable, that's a sign that the people making these movie(s) know what they are doing.
The villains are also a highlight in this film. Hela carries the film as a strong, female, badass villain. She is violent, intimidating, and has some pretty funny lines as well. She is one of the better villains in the MCU. Without her, the film would collapse.
The Grandmaster is one of the funniest characters in the MCU. He is definitely a supporting character, but he has a good amount of screen time. Every time that he's on screen, there's a laugh. He also is a horrible dude, which makes him a villain, but he's more of a jokester than a true, mustache-twirling villain.
The acting is as consistent as ever in the MCU. Chris Hemsworth is the same, perfect Thor that he always has been. Tom Hiddleston balances Loki's good side and bad side very evenly , which makes him as entertaining and as conflicted as ever. Cate Blanchett is scary but funny as Hela. She adds a spice to the character that a lot of villains don't have. Her performance lit up the stage. Mark Ruffalo is at his best as Bruce Banner in this film. He even shows a comical side, which almost never happens. Tessa Thompson works as well. She plays the stereotypical hero-turned-drunkard and really nails that part of the film. Finally, Jeff Goldblum is absolutely hysterical as The Grandmaster. He is charming, gross, funny, and mean, and he steals the spotlight whenever he is on screen.
I think that this movie has one of the best Stan Lee cameos ever. It is, like everything else in this movie, incredibly funny. I also think that the Doctor Strange cameo is very cool. That scene is one of the best in the film, and it really shows how intertwined and complex this universe is.
I think the final sequence is very fun. There are so many good parts in it, but the highlight of it, by far, is the use of the Immigrant Song. It is one of the best uses of music in the MCU and in film history. That is the coolest sequence and shows Thor in full swing as they showed him beating the crap out of the Asgardian zombie warriors.
Finally, the after-credits are great. For a movie that has a ton of funny moments and not a lot of seriousness or foreboding messages, the after-credits are a dark tease. This movie came out about 6 months before Avengers: Infinity War, and the post-credit scene gave us a perfect tease for Thanos.
Negative Aspects
I have two big complaints about Ragnarok. The first is the way that the death of the Warriors Three was handled. They weren't major characters, but they weren't exactly minor characters either. Hela entered Asgard and killed two of them with less than a fight. The third one was killed after a bit of a fight, but they were not deserving of their deaths.
The second big complaint is the way that Thor's hammer being destroyed was handled in marketing. The trailers were centered on the idea that Thor got his hammer destroyed, which is a big plot point in the movie. I though that that was unnecessary and ruined some of the film for people.
The final thing, which isn't as big, is the absence of some major characters from the previous Thor films. Lady Sif isn't mentioned at all, and she was one of the biggest characters in Thor and Dark World. It is briefly mentioned that Thor broke up with Jane Foster, but that is about it. She was literally the secondary protagonist of the other two Thor films. That was lazy storytelling, and that's something that is not usually seen from Marvel.
Final Score
Despite some character problems and bad marketing, Ragnarok has really funny moments, great acting, a great final sequence, and is an all-around success.
I will give it a Sweet rating. Age range is 8+.
SWEET N' SOUR SCALE
Sweet (Great)
Savory (Good)
Sour (Bad)
Moldy (Terrible)
"Thor: Ragnarok"
Fun Factor: 9/10
Acting: 8.5/10
Story: 9/10
Characters: 9.5/10
Quality: 9/10
WHERE TO WATCH
Disney+: Available with subscription
Amazon Prime Video: Available for rent
Apple TV+: Available for rent
Directed by Taika Waititi
Released on November 3, 2017
Rated PG-13 for superhero violence and action, language, thematic elements
2 hours and 10 minutes
Chris Hemsworth as Thor Odinson
Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie
Tom Hiddleston as Loki Laufeyson
Cate Blanchett as Hela Odindottir
Jeff Goldblum as The Grandmaster
Idris Elba as Heimdall
Karl Urban as Skurge
Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/The Hulk
Anthony Hopkins as Odin
Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Stephen Strange
Taika Waititi as Korg
Rachel House as Topaz
Clancy Brown as Surtur
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