Directed by Taika Waititi

Written by Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle, Christopher L. Yost

Starring Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blachett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Tessa Thompson, Karl Urban, Mark Ruffalo, Anthony Hopkins

It is no surprise to me that Thor: Ragnarok received the glowing reviews that it did. It is, by my count, the second breath of fresh air we have been gifted in the declining MCU alongside Spiderman: Homecoming. The Marvel Studio machine has been pumping out mediocre letdowns almost pathetically consistently since the bad Age of Ultron. That movie was an insult to our intelligence, and then Civil War spit in all our faces. Too often now it has become pointless to rush to the theaters for these films, as in that nothing of value occurs in them.

BUT Ragnarok has a genius team of filmmakers, and just like the people who made Homecoming they have all made the realization that all these movies have amounted to giant wastes of time. They know the MCU has been stretching out their material so they can make more sequels, and they understand that the stakes no longer exist. They know these things and have chosen instead to make pure comedies. To make fun of the very thing that has been holding this entire franchise back. This is filmmaking I appreciate, people who know exactly what they are making and make exactly that, AND do not lie to their audiences like Joss Whedon and the Russo Brothers did. They betrayed our trust in them, as did the studio, and have been abusing our willingness to return to the theater.

I would take good comedies like Ragnarok and Homecoming any day of the week to massive disappointments like Civil War. I’ve flattened all my expectations walking into any of these movies, and instead tried to make the best with what I can from what I see. Something like Ragnarok though, is a mild treasure, and that is in big thanks to Taika Waititi. He previously had directed small comedies like What We Do in the Shadows and The Hunt for the Wilderpeople. Those were solid flicks, but did showcase his ability to act and shoot humor effectively. Taika has all the right timing in his direction. Unlike Guardians of the Galaxy 2, which packed so many jokes that ranged wildly from laugh out loud to awkward painful cringe, Ragnarok is hilarious. And it is consistently funny nearly all the way through. Many people have complained about there being too many jokes in the whole thing, but I think that it only is awkward in a couple scenes in the runtime, everywhere else I was appreciating all the attempts for laughs.

Taika here seems like he scrutinized each and every single line and action and shot to find anywhere he could pack a laugh. He loves playing on movie conventions, in all the dialogue and blocking of the characters he finds humor that only someone who genuinely loves the medium could. He seems obsessed with parodying cliches and staples of not only the genre, but of film in general. And it is in that unique niche of his I find myself smiling long after I’ve left the theater.

At long last we finally have a good Thor movie! And maybe it is the best Marvel film since Ant Man, but almost all of the others have sucked or squandered or disappointed or repeated themselves, so maybe that isn’t such praise. But really, the best thing I can say about Ragnarok is that it works, it really does. Playing every single scene for maximum laughs at least has returned us to a blockbuster that will actually entertain. Couple that with some truly inventive action sequences that don’t feel storyboarded before the movie was written and you’ve got a fun action comedy that we’ve been missing from summers as of late. And what an awesome opening it has, immediately establishing its goofy intentions, with cool action set to Zeppelin to drive it all.

And somehow, in this goofy film, there are actual stakes, moreso than Ultron or Civil War combined. Tom Hiddleston makes his delightful return as Loki, and he’s been sorely missed since, what, Thor 2? You know a big reason the first Avengers movie worked so well was because of Hiddleston. He has so much fun with the role that it is contagious. Spader’s cringeworthy robot cracking stupid jokes in Ultron was painful to sit through, a villain who would switch instantly back and forth between attempted menace and poor comic relief. It was so bad that neither worked, and we spent the majority of Age of Ultron asking, what, am I supposed to laugh at this? Didn’t help that the movie was so poorly shot and edited as well, and the tone was erratic and not balanced. Ragnarok has found that balance. The tone is a self aware humorous one, and it almost never strays from that path. This is what makes the movie effective, it doesn’t pretend to be anything its not. It does not deceive or abuse the audience. Even the trailer for it gave us a perfect portrait of what was to come.

In addition to Loki, we also have the Hulk comeback since he dipped at the end of Ultron. And yeah he buddy cops it with Thor deep into the movie. And seeing Mark Ruffalo’s Bruce Banner disguised in Tony Stark’s casual clothing going back and forth in conversations with Chris Hemsworth is even funnier than you would think it would be. There’s so much fun to be had in this movie, and everyone on set seems to be having a blast. Jeff Goldblum plays the Grandmaster, who runs the arena where everyone does battle. Even he seems right where he needs to be, playing himself but being perfectly at place. He even gets away with a fucked up Schindler’s List reference (Seriously, did anyone else catch this?! HUGE WTF). But somehow we laugh at it, and we laugh because just about everyone in this movie is funny. Taika even voices a talking rock monster named Korg, who has some of the film’s best lines. Listen to how quick and well written his plan for a revolution against the Grandmaster is, I’m giggling just thinking about it. Thor himself is forced into so many ridiculous situations where as the God of Thunder he experiences fear, and I never grew tired of laughing at his screams. And what a bizarre Willy Wonka reference to have him (and us) sit through!

And you know, the fight between Thor and Hulk in the arena does work as well. It is a decently thought out match, although it’s kinda silly that Thor would even stand a chance against the Hulk. But in the moment it’s believable. Taika and Hemsworth make it work. Sadly Hulk’s CGI does look a little fake in some of these moments, but I think this may be the longest he has been onscreen in a long while so it makes sense. Oh, and I didn’t like Karl Urban in this. He was funny in his first scene, and then in his last, everything in between was so off putting. An unnecessary use of a great actor.

But I’ve gone ahead and forgotten to talk about Cate Blanchett (Galadriel!), who, as Hela, is still rocking it even in her late 40s. She’s a wonderfully thought out villain in appearance. As Thor’s sister sealed away by Odin, her motive of revenge was expected. But man does Blanchett rock the look and voice, having so much fun with it like everyone else, even though a few of her scenes lead to unfortunate exposition. What a cool intro she has, and how great is it the way she stops and breaks Thor’s hammer.

A movie with so many jokes probably shouldn’t have worked, but given Marvel’s decline and waste of potential, and that Taika and the cast have all the right timing, and the funny script to lead them all it has surpassed expectations. Not one person on the planet was hyped for Thor 3 two years ago. But Taika and gang have transformed a near useless property into something of great entertainment. And Tessa Thompson did grow on me, and I found her more charming and funny as the movie progressed. They even found an epic moment in the story with her, as Loki awakens a deep memory of Hela wiping out her team, leaving her the last of the Valkyries. How is it that this small sequence was more visually effective than ANYTHING in fucking Civil War?! Answer me people. Fuck you Zemo.

Thor: Ragnarok finds enjoyment in all the little things. The way these characters talk and move and even look into the camera is tantamount to clever winks to the audience. This movie was made for us, to comfort us, at a time where we have been taken advantage of at the movies. It is no wonder Netflix, HBO, and all the television shows of today continue to destroy the majority of movies coming out. Mostly the paper thin retreads have been succeeding at the box office, and the formula has grown tiresome. The movie going collective is smarter than they give themselves credit for, I think they have subconsciously felt superhero and Hollywood fatigue for years but didn’t quite how to voice it. Thor: Ragnarok knows this, and has padded its shoulder for us to lean on.

Now I want you to look at this movie. Where Loki and Hulk return. Where a creative take is made on a familiar revenge story. Look at what happens to Asgard. Look at what happens to Thor’s face. How did this goofball comedy manage to have more consequence than the movie where THE AVENGERS LITERALLY FIGHT EACH OTHER. AHHHHHH FUCK CIVIL WAR HOW DID NO ONE DIE IN THAT MOVIE YOU HAD ACTUAL GODS DOING BATTLE AND THERE WERE ZERO CASUALTIES oHSrtOSHSD:HFPOEFOEFJA AND IRON MACHINE IS IN PHYSICAL THERAPY AT THE END AHOFHOHFOSDHOFSODICJSDKCJSDKL:JSDJFPISDJFPSDKFL:SDjkfSDJf;isdhf;iosehgioeg’