A Ragnarok Of A Thor Movie!

Let me begin by saying that Thor: Ragnarok is a diverting entertainment. The pace is brisk and the action is well staged. We tumble along in a plot that though a bit creaky at times, manages to hold together enough to propel the viewer to the end. I've seen movies with much less. That said, Thor: Ragnarok was far from being the "best" of the Marvel movies to date and is not even the "best" Thor movie to date. While the Guardians of the Galaxy are a ton of fun and their misadventures set the world on fire, I  personally don't understand why the Thor universe was transformed into a movie with the same tone and character. More below, but SPOILERS will ensue. Thou art warned!

The GOOD: The acting in this movie is decent with Chris Helmsworth and Tom Hiddleston leading a dandy cast. That said, the story they were in demanded much of their comedy chops but exceedingly little else. Odin dies (of course being a god his death is suspect) yet the emotional effect is almost nil. Thor sheds a tear and Loki frowns but you'd expect a bit more angst with the loss of the All-Father.

Jeff Goldblum is an actor with a distinctive style and it's used to decent effect here as the Grandmaster, but the trick is overused by the end of the film. (Stay for the very end by the way.)

Tessa Thompson is dandy as Valkyrie and provides a little emotional depth to the proceedings. Alas the Hulk's counterpart Bruce Banner as portrayed by Mark Ruffalo is a tad clownish though that's what's expected of him.

I love Karl Urban, my favorite actor. He always delivers the goods and he did nothing less with his portrayal of Skurge, the Executioner. Though it takes a damn long time, he finally gets his shining moment and it's a keeper. His outstanding portrayal of the Brit super-cop Judge Dredd remains the best and most unsung presentation of a comic book character in the last decade. Likewise his Bones McCoy on the Star Trek movies threatens always to steal these giant flicks. Urban is the real deal and elevates everything he's in.

Kate Blanchett as Hela was exceedingly good and I loved the attention to her costume, especially when the mask would appear. There are so few masks in these movies and it's good to see one when it serves a good purpose. Liked seeing Surtur in the finale putting the sword to Asgard as foretold. It's a keeper of an image.

The BAD: The nigh instantaneous dispatch of the Warriors Three was a major bummer. Fandrall is killed with a glance and Volstagg gets a slightly more detailed demise. Only Hogun gets a death worthy of his role in the mythos. The story is crowded but these guys deserved much more after serving well and true in the previous movies. Cut one of Goldblum's Grandmaster riffs and you have thirty seconds to send them off with a bit more gusto. Sif was nowhere to be seen so she can still return I suppose. Heimdall is around but to honest his screen time is pretty minimal, though important to the plot.

There's a ton of back story in this movie and as the Marvel Universe expands onto the screen I expect things to get more and more confusing. There's a lot not explained nor even an attempt at doing so. Why for instance to the Grandmaster's guards all look exactly like Celestials. Was that just the appropriation of classic Kirby design or is there a story there? I suspect the former, but it's a puzzler.

The UGLY: The humor in this movie is well crafted and I enjoyed it, but that said, it was not what I expect in a Thor movie. Marvel is free to do with their characters what they want, but after the elegant Shakespearean wonder of the original and the dark foreboding of the second movie, this light-hearted romp seemed less important. Hardly a franchise killer as I'm sure it will make oodles of money, but as contribution to  saga of depth and mythic scope it might've have fallen a bit short.

The SPOILERS ENDETH!

I fault others for complaining about movies and books that aren't what they want them to be and I won't do that...exactly. But I wish we could have more than one tone in a Marvel movie and hopefully this sidetrack into a frothy comedy will be a mere diversion. It concerns me in a broader way in that this ironic way of viewing superheroes reminds me of the vintage Batman TV series where such types were the butt of jokes. One of the keys to the Marvel Universe is that it took its heroes seriously even if that didn't mean the heroes themselves were always serious. It's all too easy for movie creators, mildly embarrassed at working on a "superhero movie" (you hear the snide dig in reviews all the time) will increasingly want to bring in humor to deflect criticism. When that humor is well place fine, but as I detected in some scenes of this particular feature, the humor is out of character.

Still and all a pretty fun flick.

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