Thor Ragnarok (2017) ***

Run Time: 2:13

US Release Date: 11/3/2017

Rated: PG-13 (Cartoon Violence, Profanity)

Director: Taika Waititi

Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Mark Ruffalo, Tessa Thompson, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Karl Urban, Anthony Hopkins

There was a lot of negativity surrounding the release of Thor: The Dark World a few years back and not without good reason. That movie was slow and brooding at times and took itself way too serious for it’s own good. After all, the idea of Norse gods battling it out in the cosmos over some red floating liquid that could destroy the universe isn’t exactly heady material. It also wasn’t all that exciting. To compound the problem it was a sequel to a film that was visually impressive but not much else. This doesn’t seem like the type of property to greenlight a third film yet here we are with Thor Ragnarok, a movie which ditches the feel and tone of both of its predecessors and skews so broadly into camp as to almost qualify as parody. There are moments in the film that would have felt right at home in a Scary Movie type of super hero film.

The film opens up with Thor (Chris Hemsworth) bringing us up to speed on how he got to where he is since the events of Avengers: Age of Ultron. Almost immediately we’re thrown into an action set piece that holds no danger to our lead character and serves only to showcase the power of Thor’s hammer, a point that was felt needed to set up just how formidable our lead villain, Hela (Cate Blanchette) is when she later destroys it.

Upon returning home to Asgard Thor finds his brother Loki right where we left him at the end of The Dark World, impersonating their father Odin. The two set out to find the real Odin only to come face to face with their heretofor unmentioned older sister, Hela, who is determined to take over Asgard and use her powers to expand her rule beyond the nine realms. Thor gets banished and forced to compete in a gladiator style arena where comes face to face with the main reason people will want to see this film, The Hulk (Mark Ruffalo). This is all stuff that can be gleamed just from the trailers and all of it plays out just as expected. This movie really isn’t out to surprise you with its story. Instead, it tries to keep you invested by hitting you over the head with humor and pop culture as if to say ‘Look at how silly this concept is. See, we’re in on the joke, too.”

Nearly everything about this movie plays like a punchline. It’s evident from the first moments of the movie while Thor is narrating to a skeleton in a cage. First he asks it how much longer he has to wait in there in reminiscent of a popular meme about waiting on women in a craft store long enough to have degraded into nothing but bones. Then, to add a second joke into the same moment, the jaw bone falls off the skeleton as if the dead person is in awe of the story it is being told. There are at least a dozen more jokes and visual humor just in this scene alone and while they are mostly funny it is quite a bit jarring, especially after coming off all the previous Marvel movies that take their over-arcing stories much more serious.

Aside from this dramatic shift in tone Thor Ragnarok doesn’t really take any chances and serves up more of the same for the MCU. It advances the story leading up to Avengers Infinity War but only a little and only for the two lead characters. It barely mentions any of the other Avengers and the only other one we actually see is Black Widow via a recording that comes straight from Age of Ultron. While this might dissatisfy hard core MCU fans it actually helps Thor Ragnarok to stand on its own two feet without relying too heavily on the films before it. Doctor Strange gets an extended cameo, too, but it doesn’t add up to much other than to show that he has gotten better at his powers than when we last saw him.

Cate Blanchette is a delight to watch as Hela. She is clearly enjoying herself playing the part and it shows every time she is on screen. She chews up the scenery in a way that was sorely missed when she played another villain in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. She is better here and she knows it. She has presence and charisma, and she is formidable, something that comes across loud and clear the first time we see her. She is definitely the highlight of this film. Tessa Thompson and Karl Urban are both good but could have been utilized a little better, especially when undermined by their comedic moments. Elba is also good but sorely underused. The biggest let down is Thor’s brother, Loki, who never grows as a character. He’s in the same place as a character as he was last time and, if advance footage from Comic-con can be trusted, will still be there in the next film out the gate featuring him, Infinity War.

The film as a whole is disjointed, wanting us to be drawn into the stakes while at the same time hitting us over the head with over-the-top humor. While most of the time it works there are moments that take it too far and push us out of the film. A little better writing and editing could have gone a long way towards fixing this. Altogether it is a fun movie to watch, just don’t expect anything revelatory.