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dukereviewsmovies · 5 years ago

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Duke Reviews: Thor Ragnarok

Hello, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Duke Reviews Where We Continue Our Look At The Marvel Cinematic Universe...

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Where Today We Are Looking At The 3rd Outing For Thor And The Second For The Hulk In Thor Ragnarok..

This Film Finds Thor And Hulk On The Planet Sakaar Where They Must Escape So They Can Stop Thor's Sister, Hela The Goddess Of Death And The Impending Ragnarok, Will They Succeed?

Let's Find Out As We Watch Thor Ragnarok...

The Film Starts In Muspelheim, Where Thor Has Been Captured By A Being Named Surtur (Voiced By Mr. Krabs)...

I Wish I Were Kidding...

Anyway, Surtur Taunts Thor, Telling Him Not Only That Odin Is Not On Asgard But That In His Absence Asgard Is Vulnerable For Him To Unleash Ragnarok By Getting The Eternal Flame From Odin's Vault...

Calling Mijolnir To His Hand, Thor Breaks Out Of His Chains And Fights Surtur's Minions...

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(Start At 2:53, End At 4:18)

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(End At 1:37)

Returning To Asgard, Thor Meets Heimdall's Replacement, Skurge (Played By Leonard McCoy) Who Tells Him That Heimdall Has Been Declared An Enemy Of The People And Is On The Run. Upset By This News, Thor Goes To See His Father "Odin" Who Is Watching A Play About The Death Of Loki...

Which Has An All Star Cast Including, Luke, Brother Of Thor As Well, Thor, Dr. Alan Grant As Odin And Some Guy Jimmy Kimmel Never Has Time For As Loki...

Seeing Through "Odin's" Deception, Thor Forces Him To Reveal Himself For Who He Is And What A Shock, It's Loki. Taking Him To Earth, He Shows Thor Where He Sent Odin But Unfortunately The Retirement Home He Placed Him In Has Been Demolished...

Taking A Little Time To Talk With His Brother, We Learn As They Do Talk That Thor Broke Up With Jane, Saying That It Was A Mutual Breakup. However, Loki Is Sent Somewhere By Someone Who Leave A Card With An Address To The Sanctum Sanctorum...

Meeting Doctor Strange (Played By Smaug The Terrible) We Get A Version Of The Doctor Strange Mid Credits Scene That Involved Thor And It's Aftermath With Strange Discovering That Odin Is In Norway. Releasing Loki From Where He Sent Him, Strange Sends Thor And Loki To Norway...

Finding Odin, The 2 Brothers Discover That Odin Released Himself From Loki's Spell He Placed Upon Him But He Is Dying And His Time Is Limited As He Tells Them That Hela, The Goddess Of Death, Who Is The Sister They Never Knew Will Be Released From Her Prison When He Dies And That She Is More Powerful Than Both Of Them Combined...

So, Telling His Sons That He Loves Them One Last Time, Odin Dies, Transforming Into Pure Energy...

Angered At Loki For Causing Odin's Death, Any Thoughts Of Vengeance Are Set Aside For The Moment As Hela (Played By Cate Blanchett) Is Released From Her Prison But When The 2 Brothers Refuse To Bow To Her Hela Attacks Them Creating Spears To Fight Them...

Throwing Mijolnir At Her, Hela Just Grabs It And Shatters It As Loki Calls The Bifrost But During Their Return Trip, Hela Throws Both Loki And Thor Out Of The Bifrost. Making Her Way To Asgard, Hela Is Met By Volstagg And Fandral Who She Kills On Sight...

Well, It Makes Signing With The DCEU To Do Shazzam Easy, Right, Zachery Levi?...

Recruiting Skurge To Her Service, Hela Starts Her Takeover Of Asgard As We See That Thor Landed On A Planet Covered In Trash And Wormholes Called Sakaar, Where He's Confronted By Hostile Scavengers Which Thor Manages To Fight Off Till One Of Them Uses An Electrified Net On Him So They Can Beat Him To A Pulp..

But When A Spaceship Lands, A Drunk Woman (Played By Tessa Thompson) Says Thor Is Hers And Fires Her Ship's Guns At The Scavengers Obliterating Them...

Thanking This Woman, She Doesn't Reply And Just Places A Small Disc That Allows Her To Electrocute Thor And Render Him Unconscious At The Touch Of A Button Oh, It Also Prevents Him From Escaping...

Back On Asgard, Hela Faces Asgard's Armies, Led By Hogun Who Will Bow To Her Rule Even When She Tells Them About Odin's Death And That She Has Taken Care Of Thor And Loki, So She Kills Them All...

Wow, A Whole Army And They Couldn't Even Stop Her?!? Boy, Asgard Sucks!

Meanwhile On Sakaar, Thor Awakens To A Holographic Presentation (With Pure Imagination From Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory In The Background, Why?) About Sakaar And The Grandmaster (Played By Ian Malcolm)

Wait A Minute, Dr. Alan Grant And Ian Malcolm Are In The Same Movie And They Don't Have A Scene Together? I Want A Refund!

Anyway, The Grandmaster Is Not Only The Ruler Of Sakaar But Is The Host Of The Gladitorial Contest Of Champions. Buying Thor From The Drunk Woman, So He Can Pit Him Against His Champion In A Battle Saying That If He Wins He Will Earn His Freedom...

Still Restrained, Thor Discovers Loki In The Grandmaster's Company Who Tells Thor That He's Been There For Weeks Earning The Grandmaster's Favor And Is Fitting In Rather Nicely Apparently...

Thrown Into The Gladiator Quarters, We Meet The Funniest People In This Movie, Korg (Voiced By The Director Of This Movie, Taika Waititi) Who is A Kronan And His Friend A Bug Named Miek Who Has Scissors For Hands...

And I Absolutely Love Them!

Anyway, Despite Telling Thor That No One Has Beat The Grandmaster's Champion, Thor Gets Ready To Fight This Man....

Back On Asgard, Hela And Skurge Go To The Throne Room Where Hela Reveals By Destroying The Royal Mural, Another Mural Showing That She Used To Be Odin's Most Powerful Weapon In His Efforts To Create A Powerful Asgardian Empire, But When Her Ambition Outgrew Odin's He Imprisoned Her...

Going Down To Odin's Vault, She Declares Most Everything There To Be Fake, Before Looking At The Casket Of Ancient Winters, Surtur's Crown And The Tesseract Before Looking At The Eternal Flame Which She Uses To Revive The Fallen Soliders From Her Time And Her Pet, The Fenris Wolf To Help Her In Her Conquest...

As Thor Picks His Weapon To Fight The Grandmaster's Champion, He Runs Into The Drunk Woman That Sold Him To The Grandmaster Where He Realizes That She Is An Asgardian Valkyrie, But Unsympathetic To The Plight Of Asgard, Thor Calls Her A Coward Before Being Taken To Get His Hair Cut By Stan Lee...

Stan Lee Cameo!

Before The Fight...

Taken Out To The Stadium Afterwards, Thor Meets The Grandmaster's Champion, Who Happens To Be The Incredible Hulk To Loki's Displeasure And Bad Memories...

Overjoyed To See His Teammate, Thor Attempts To Negotiate With The Hulk But Makes A Mistake When He Accidentally Calls Him Banner...

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Back On Asgard, Hela Sits On Her Throne and Talks With Skurge Stating That When Odin Was King She Was His Executioner And Now Skurge Is Hers...

Going To The Bifrost With Her Soldiers, Hela And Skurge Discover The Bifrost Sword Missing Which Means One Thing, Heimdall Has Returned And Has Taken It From Them, Stopping Hela From Conquering All The Realms For Now...

Attempting To Round Everyone Up To Discover Where Heimdall Is, Hela Sends Her Soliders Including The Woods But While Chasing Some People, Heimdall Arrives And Kills Hela's Undead Soliders Before Taking The People Back To His Hideout In The Mountains Where He Has Been Organizing A Resistance Against Hela...

Finding Himself In The Lap Of Luxury With A Naked Hulk...

Which Is Something I Never Wanted To See...

He Tells Thor That He Arrived In The Quinjet He Stole From Ultron In Age Of Ultron, And That He's Not Going Back To Earth As Here He Is Respected, Where On Earth...

Well, Let's Just Say The Bad Hulk Has Done On Earth Has Kind Of Outweighed The Good He's Done At This Point In The MCU...

Upset At This, Thor Tries To Leave But Gets Shocked By A Force Field On The Door Meant For Him. So, With Hulk Going To Train With Valkyrie, Thor Tries To Mentally Reach Heimdall Who Tells Thor Some Stuff I've Already Said, That He's Working On Evacuating People From Asgard And That They Don't Have Much Time...

Later That Evening, Thor Is Mad At The Hulk But It Eventually Leads To A Bonding Moment Between The 2 That Gets Hulk To Help Thor Talk To Valkyrie, To Try To Convince Her To Help Again And To Steal The Control Device So He Can Release The Disc On His Neck...

Breaking Through The Window, Thor Makes For The Quinjet (Which Is Still In Good Shape For What It Is) But The Hulk Starts Wrecking The Ship When He Doesn't Want Thor To Go...

Because If He Goes, It's Just Him And Valkyrie!

However, When Thor Comes Across An Old Video Of Black Widow Trying To Contact The Hulk From Age Of Ultron, Hulk Starts To Turn Back Into Banner Who's Been The Hulk Since Sokovia Which Leads Banner To Freak Out...

As The Hulk Had Completely Taken Over And He Has Absolutely No Memory Of The Past Few Years Which Has Him Start To Fear That If He Becomes The Hulk Again, Banner Won't Come Back...

Back In The Grandmaster's Chamber, He Gives Loki And Valkyrie Orders To Find Thor And The Hulk, But After Loki Shows Valkyrie A Vision Of Herself And Her Sisters Against Hela All Those Years Ago Which Ended With Only Her Surviving To The Point That She Drank To Try To Drown Her Misery, She Decides To Help Thor And Banner Escape...

Kidnapping Loki, He Tells Thor That His Favor With The Grandmaster Has Paid Off And That He Has All The Security Codes To The Grandmaster's System All They Need To Do Is Take Him With Them. However As Thor And Banner Decide To Take Loki Or Not Valkyrie Tries To Find A Way Back To Asgard But Thor Tells Her That The Only Way Back Is Through The Devil's Anus...

That Looks Absolutely Nothing Like Kathy Bates' Nude Scene From About Schmidt...

Only One Problem, Valkyrie's Ship Will Never Survive It Which Leads Them To Release Korg, Miek And The Other Prisoners From Their Cells...

But Despite Helping Thor Get To The Grandmaster's Luxury Ship, The Commodore Which He Only Uses For Orgies Apparently...

Aww, Man! Now I'm Going To Have That Image Of Jeff Goldblum At An Orgy In My Head For Hours, Thanks Thor Ragnarok!

Loki Betrays Thor, Sounding The Alarm As He Escapes But Knowing He Would Thor Placed The Same Disc That Valkyrie Placed On Him On Loki, Saying To Him That He Will Always Be The God Of Mischief But He Could Be More...

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Going Through The Devil's Anus, They Arrive At Asgard Just As Hela Is About To Assault The Fortress Where Heimdall Is Hiding People From Asgard, But When Thor Calls Her Back To The Throne Room, Hela Faces Off Against Thor...

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(Start At 1:22)

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Realizing That The Destruction Of Asgard Was Inevitable, Thor Thanks Loki For Returning For Him And The 2 Brothers Reconcile, Before Taking The Captain's Chair And Assuming His Birthright As King Of Asgard With His Friends And Family By His Side As They Set A Course For Earth...

We Get A Mid Credits Scene Where Loki Wonders If He Will Be Welcome On Earth After Everything He Did In The First Avengers Movie But With Thor Telling Him That He'll Deal With Everything But Not Before Dealing With A Giant Spaceship That Will Ruin The Happy Ending That Came From This Movie...

We Also Get A End Credits Scene With The Grandmaster Confronted By The People Who Used To Be His Slaves As He Tries To Declare A Draw To No Success...

And That's Thor Ragnarok And It's The Best Thor Movie Ever!

The Story's Great, The Characters Are Great And Hillarious And I Like Hela As The Bad Guy But I Think They Shouldn't Have Had Skurge The Executioner In This Movie Without The Person He Actually Serves, The Enchantress (Yeah, I Know They Had A Character Called Enchantress In Suicide Squad But Marvel's Enchantress Is Alot More Sexier Than Her) But Aside From That Criticism I Defiantly Say, See It...

Till Next Time, This Is Duke, Signing Off..

#thor ragnarok #taika waititi #chris hemsworth #tom hiddelson #anthony hopkins #Tessa Thompson #jeff goldblum #cate blanchett #marvel mcu #marvel cinematic universe #marvel #mark ruffalo

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adamwatchesmovies · 6 years ago

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Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

With bold art direction, terrific action, high stakes, an excellent score and a fresh new take on its characters, the third Thor is the best yet. The only thing holding it back from superhero perfection is - ironically - the baggage forced upon it by other MCU films.

Set two years after Avengers: Age of Ultron, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is plagued by visions of Asgard's destruction, Ragnarok. When Odin’s firstborn daughter, Hela (Cate Blanchett) arrives and maroons Thor on the garbage planet of Sakaar, he must ally himself with his treacherous brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), escape the planet's gladiator pits, and scrape together allies to stop the destruction of his home.

The cumbersome baggage comes in the form of characters (like Jaimie Alexander's Sif) who are either missing or unceremoniously killed by Hela early on. The Thor films didn’t ever quite utilize Thor's closest friends fully, making it feels like unfinished business. The conclusion's also partially soured, as all of these developments stand triumphant… only to be stomped on by Infinity War, which basically undoes it all. Will these issues bother everyone? I don’t think so.

Director Taika Waititi (whose What We do in the Shadows and Beasts of the Southern Wild are equally glorious) makes one dynamite decision after another in the pilot's chair. By making Thor into a bit of meathead, he’s never been more interesting.

Threatening to steal the show from Thor is... everyone else. Jeff Goldblum as the eccentric Grandmaster is perfect in the role and he’s sure to become a new favorite. Female warrior Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) is also a lot of fun as the boozing, reluctant slave trader who captures Thor and throws him into a death battle against… wait for it… the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), who is given more to do here than ever before. Like Thor, the big green meanie has been given a new life. Fan of Tom Hiddleston? Don't worry he gets prime scenes too. There are more gems to be discussed - rocky Korg (voiced by Waititi himself), villainous Hela, or demon Surtur but we don't have all day. Let's move on.

Writers Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle, and Christopher Yost playfully riff on Hemsworth’s character, giving us many big laughs that never undermine what’s at stake. Even with the poster spoiling one of the film's biggest surprises, it catches you off-guard every time. Many MCU films - many superhero or action films - lose imagination at the end. It’s just a big slugfest with CGI all over the place. This movie gives you all the best moments in that kind of final confrontation but has clever turns which makes it feel inspired and unique.

Thor: Ragnarok is so good it disappoints. Can you imagine if the series had started off this way? Even without key plot points leading directly into Avengers: Infinity War, it's one not to miss. (On Blu-ray, April 24, 2019)

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douxreviews · 6 years ago

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Thor: Ragnarok (2017) Review

"We know each other! He's a friend from work!"

Thor: Ragnarok will do nothing to silence those who think Marvel movies have a tendency to be more about gags than gravitas. In fact, it is fair to say that this film is essentially two hours of Taika Waititi giving those people the finger.

While the previous Thor films attempted to take Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's colourful take on Norse mythology somewhat seriously (perhaps too much so in The Dark World's case), Waititi is having none of that. Embracing the absurdity of this series wholeheartedly, the New Zealand filmmaker has gifted us with a brilliantly bonkers superhero comedy that bombards its audience unrelentingly with gag after gag, stopping only for the requisite fight scenes or the odd bit of brotherly bonding/bickering between Thor and Loki (the true love story of this series). It's almost as if Kevin Feige wrote Waititi a $180m cheque and told him to go nuts. And go nuts he did.

Taking a page out of Iron Man 3's book, Ragnarok tears its hero down, depriving him of his friends, his hammer, and those luscious golden locks, so that he can learn that true strength comes from within or some such nonsense. As character arcs go it is pretty derivative, but the film manages to pull it off thanks in no small part to the charms of its leading man. This is Chris Hemsworth's fifth time out as the Odinson and he has never looked more comfortable in the role. Waititi takes full advantage of Hemsworth's surprising gift for comedy as well as his sparkling chemistry with Tom Hiddleston (devilishly good as always). The troubled relationship between the brothers has been a key part of the previous movies, but this is the first one where it is unopposed as the central relationship and the film's emotional anchor.

Ragnarok fixes almost everything that didn't work with the first two Thor movies, starting by ditching most of the supporting characters, notably Natalie Portman's Jane Foster, whose absence is explained away with one line and absolutely no fanfare. Thor, like the audience, is sadder about losing his hammer than losing Jane. Instead of a disinterested Portman phoning it in, we have Tessa Thompson as the wonderfully inebriated Valkyrie. Not only is Thompson more game for all this cosmic malarkey than Portman ever was, there is no awkward attempt to force a romance between her character and Thor. Is it possible that Marvel Studios has finally seen the light and will no longer force us to suffer through hopelessly unconvincing love stories in all their movies? I hope so, but I wouldn't put money on it.

Cutting Thor loose from all his Midgard-based allies also has the benefit of saving the film from becoming too Earth-centric. With the exception of some brief trips to New York and Norway, the majority of the action takes place either on Asgard or Sakaar, a junk planet literally at the arse end of the universe where Jack Kirby did all the interior decorating, and ruled over by the flamboyant Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum delivering a performance so deliciously Jeff Goldblumian, too much of it is probably bad for your health).

It is on Sakaar that Thor runs into (and is forced to fight) his fellow Avenger, the Hulk, now wasting away his days working as a gladiator for the Grandmaster. I'm going to put aside my annoyance at Marvel for denying us a proper film version of Planet Hulk (I mean, who wouldn't want to see Hulk do Gladiator in space?) because of how great the Hulk is in this film. Pairing him up with Thor results in some fantastic odd couple comedy which only gets better when he turns back into Mark Ruffalo in full blown neurotic breakdown mode.

Negatives? There are a few, but none that derailed the film for me. Cate Blanchett is clearly having a lot of fun in the role, but Hela is another in a long depressing line of one dimensional Marvel villains. Karl Urban is also pretty much wasted as her surprisingly cockney lackey, Skurge. Doctor Strange's cameo generates a few giggles, but is pretty much superfluous. And the first quarter rushes through events in order to get Thor and Loki to Sakaar as quickly as possible.

Thunder and Lighting

--Loved Mark Mothersbaugh's synth driven score.

--After seeing how this film dealt with the Warriors Three, it's probably a good thing filming of Blindspot kept Jaimie Alexander from returning as Sif.

--Waititi himself all but steals the whole show as Korg, Thor's fellow gladiator and deliverer of all the film's best lines.

--At one point a bunch of Asgardian actors perform a play based on the events of The Dark World. Fair to say it was better than the actual film.

Korg: "PISS OFF, GHOST!"

Bruce Banner: "Last time we saw you, you were trying to kill everyone. What are you up to these days?" Loki: "It varies from moment to moment."

Thor: "How did you end up here?" Korg: "Well, I tried to start a revolution, but didn't print enough pamphlets so hardly anyone turned up. Except for my mum and her boyfriend, who I hate."

Grandmaster: "Hey Sparkles, here's the deal: you want to get back to ass-place, ass-berg, wherever you came from..." Thor: "ASGARD!"

Four out of four luscious golden locks.

Mark Greig comes from the land of the ice and snow, from the midnight sun, where the hot springs flow

#Thor #Thor: Ragnarok #Thor Odinson #Loki Laufeyson #Bruce Banner #Hulk #Hela #Valkyrie #Taika Waititi #Marvel #MCU #Doux Reviews #Movie Reviews #something from the archive

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maryxglz · 7 years ago

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LOS ANGELES—“I always wear leather these days,” Tom Hiddleston quipped with a laugh as he strode in, tall and resplendent with long, flowing hair and Loki’s blue and black soft leather costume, complete with a cape.

He was on a break from filming “Thor: Ragnarok” at the Village Roadshow Studios in Oxenford, Gold Coast, Queensland in October last year. Earlier, we watched Tom and Jeff Goldblum (Grandmaster) shoot a scene in a colorful set.

“This is not my own hair, no,” he clarified with a grin. In contrast, Chris Hemsworth (Thor) surprised us with a short haircut in his return as Thor. “Chris doesn’t have to come in as early in the morning as I do,” Tom said. Is he jealous? “Chris just gets an hour more sleep than I do, but that’s OK,” he answered.

The London native sat down for a chat as he ate an orange and drank bottled sparkling water. There’s a playful mood in the studio which Tom credited to director Taika Waititi and costar Jeff Goldblum. The New Zealand filmmaker, noted for his small movies, is a refreshing choice to direct this third installment of the “Thor” franchise.

Tom and Chris are joined in the cast by Idris Elba, Cate Blanchett, Benedict Cumberbatch, Tessa Thompson, Mark Ruffalo and Anthony Hopkins.

Excerpts from our conversation:

Since we are on the set, what has been this day like for you, so far? Do you thrive in a grueling shooting schedule? I love what I do. I’m lucky to call this a job. In the scheme of things, a day’s work as an actor can’t be called grueling. I do get up very early, but that’s just the nature of how things are run because with Taika on this particular film, we like to shoot between 7:30 a.m. and 5 p.m.

I have to be ready to shoot at 7:30 a.m. so I’ve got to get all of this (hair and makeup) on before then. I get up to train because that’s the only time I have. So I get up at about 3 a.m. but I go to bed early.

At what time? Oh, it depends. If I’m shooting regularly, it’s easy to put myself to bed at around 8 p.m.

How long does the hair and makeup take? It takes a while because I don’t look like this underneath. There are little intricacies. I’m supported by the most incredible team that has done my hair, makeup and costume for some time. They take pride in their precision, and I depend on them. It takes about two and half or three hours. We’ve all seen films where a misplaced wig will take you out of the film.

How do hair, costume and makeup help you? The costume is always helpful. They’re big, structured, heavy costumes with capes, shoulder blades and body armor. It makes you stand in a different way—you stand up straight so you carry yourself differently than when you’re wearing jeans and a T-shirt. All of it is helpful. There’s something about these gloves—they feel like fighting gloves. It’s like armor. Loki is so protected.

The hair and makeup is helpful, too. It helps put me right back into place. The costumes are so brilliantly designed in this film because the designers have to replicate two-dimensional comic-book art, which is very colorful and often practically impossible. And yet, they manage to do it.

I’m not just standing in the costume, but fighting and running in it, doing tumbles and somersaults. They’ve found a way to make the costumes practical, so you can wear them for 10 hours, and they become a part of the performance.

In the scene that we watched on the set, we saw that Loki was delighted his brother was going to be in the gladiator match. Then, it was announced that it’s the Hulk he’s going to compete against. Loki goes, “Oh, sh*t.”

Loki hasn’t seen the Hulk since he lost “Infinity War One” in the first “Avengers” film, so the idea for Loki to be in the presence of the Hulk is immediately terrifying. He knows what happened last time

Also, in that scene, there seems to be a little buddy thing going on between Loki and the Grandmaster. Can you talk about that relationship? The fun thing about the Grandmaster and Loki is that they’re both outsiders, mischievous spirits who probably both feel like they never belong. They have big egos and an anarchistic sense of humor. They recognize each other’s traits.

The Grandmaster has fashioned his own kingdom, which is a tyranny, basically. It’s where people dance and play music, but he’s a despot.

How is it working with Jeff? Jeff is absolutely one of the most consummate actors I’ve ever worked with. He’s so prepared and professional and, at the same time, relentlessly playful. He finds new ways to do it every single time, and he’s given so much. Every one’s been on the floor laughing.

He’s only been here for 10 days, but he’s been shooting every day. When I think of his career, there’s nothing he hasn’t done. But he’s still so fresh and energetic. It’s a real pleasure.

Can you talk about how refreshing it must be to have an indie filmmaker like Taika Waititi direct this? Earlier, Taika said the producers weren’t interested in a director who knows how to blow things up. The thing about directors is that they bring their own fingerprint to their films. I’d say that about any director I’ve worked with on this character—Kenneth Branagh, Joss Whedon, Alan Taylor and now, Taika. His particular artistic fingerprint is one of humor and humanity. He’s very funny and smart. He has injected into this film and into the world of Thor this incredible, light heart and sense of fun.

As Loki, I’m the god of mischief. I’ve always had fun, but every single character is having a great time in this. Chris Hemsworth is loving the fact that, now, people are starting to realize how funny he is. Taika and Chris together are a match made in heaven. This movie will have a lot of laughs in it, and that all comes from Taika. He’s fantastic.

Taika’s independent films are miraculous, truly. I saw “Hunt for the Wilderpeople” before I came here. It was shot in 18 days, which is an amazing achievement

Obviously, you don’t want to repeat Loki as the same evil brother who tries to sabotage Thor. You want to add dimension. But now, we have Cate Blanchett playing the ultimate devil. What are the new curves for Loki in this film?

Loki has always been unpredictable. The most fun thing about him this time around is that I don’t have the responsibility to play the villain or antagonist. Cate is the villain, and she does an extraordinary job.

As for Loki, he has this mercurial presence. All Thor films are about family. There’s some sense of this family with enormous power—the father and two sons. The relationship between the two brothers is something that always evolves. It evolves in this one, as well, without giving too much away.

#tom hiddleston #loki #thor: ragnarok #tompocalypse 2017

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ljones41 · 7 years ago

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"THOR: RAGNAROK" (2017) Review

"THOR: RAGNAROK" (2017) Review Until last fall, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has released three films each for only two of the franchise's characters - Iron Man and (allegedly) Captain America. With the release of "THOR: RAGNAROK", the God of Thunder became the third character to end up with three solo films.

Directed by Taika Waititi, "THOR: RAGNAROK" told the story of Asgardian prince Thor's efforts to prevent the destruction of his world, Asgard, from his aggressive and more powerful sister, Hela. The movie is the franchise's version of a similar story featured in one of the Marvel Comics titles for the Thor character. Screenwriters Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle and Christopher Yost also used elements from the 2006 Marvel story, "Planet Hulk" to include the Dr. Bruce Banner aka the Hulk into the movie's plot. Set four years after the events of "THOR: THE DARK WORLD" and two-and-half years after the events of "THE AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON", this film begins with Thor as a prisoner of the fire demon Surtur in Muspelheim. Thor had went there to search for the remaining Infinity Stones. Surtur reveals that Thor's father Odin is no longer on Asgard, and that the Asgardian realm will soon be destroyed in the prophesied Ragnarök, once Surtur unites his crown with the Eternal Flame that burns in Odin's vault. However, Thor frees himsel, defeats Surtur and claims the latter's crown, believing he has prevented Ragnarök aka the Asgardian version of the Apocalypse. Upon his return to Asgard, Thor discovers that his adoptive brother Loki has been posing as Odin. He also finds that a warrior named Skurge has replaced the all-seeing Heimdall as the Bifröst Bridge's sentry. Thor forces Loki to help him find Odin on Earth. With assistance from the sorcerer Dr. Stephen Strange, the pair finds Odin Norway. The latter explains that he is dying and that his passing will free his ambitious firstborn child, Hela the Goddess of Death, out of a prison in which she had been sealed. When he finally dies, Hela appears on Earth, destroys Thor's hammer Mjolnir and demands loyalty from him and Loki. Instead, the two brothers attempt to flee via the Bifröst Bridge. Unfortunately, Hela pursues them and forces them out into space to die. Hela ends up in Asgard and violently assume control of the throne. Thor crash lands on a garbage planet called Sakaar. There, he is captured by a bounty hunter, whom recognizes as a Valkryrie named Brünnhilde, and forced to participate as a gladiator for the planet's "Contest of Champions". He also discovers that Loki has become a companion of Sakaar's leader, the Grandmaster. And that Bruce Banner aka the Hulk has been a champion gladiator on Sakaar ever since his disappearance, following the Sokovia battle over two years ago. Thor not only needs to survive a match against the Hulk, but also escape from Sakaar and prevent his sister's complete control over Asgard and her plans for expanding the realm's empire. "THOR: RAGNAROK" had received a great deal of praise from film critics upon its release. In fact, the movie went on to become a box office hit. In a way, I could see why. The basic narrative for "THOR: RAGNAROK" struck me as a rare thing for a MCU solo film - an epic in the making. Thor facing a possible apocalypse for Asgard, a gladiator match against a fellow ex-Avenger, and more family drama from the Asgard Royal Family. "THOR: RAGNAROK" had the potential to be another "CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER". There was a good number of things I really enjoyed about "THOR: RAGNAROK". One, I enjoyed director Taika Waititi's use of the Led Zeppelin tune, "Immigrant Song" around the film's beginning and near the end rather effective. I was also impressed by Joel Negron and Zene Baker's editing for the film. Their work seemed especially impressive in the scenes that featured Thor's chaotic arrival on Sakaar and his gladiator match with the Hulk. I also found Javier Aguirresarobe's cinematography very colorful . . . almost outstanding. Hell, there was one scene featuring Hela's past conflict with the Valkyries that reminded me of Larry Fong's work with director Zack Snyder:

Much has been said about the humor that permeated "THOR: RAGNAROK", thanks to the screenwriters and especially Taika Waititi's direction. I cannot say that I had enjoyed all the humor featured in the film. But there were a few scenes that I found particularly funny. One included Loki's play about Odin's grief over his fake death. This scene featured Matt Damon, Luke Hemsworth and Sam Neill portraying Loki, Thor and Odin respectively. Brünnhilde's first appearance in the movie, in which she is drunk as a skunk, struck me as rather funny, thanks to Tessa Thompson's performance. Another scene I found hilarious was Thor and the Hulk's first meeting inside the Sakaar arena, along with Loki's fearful reaction to seeing the latter again. But the funniest scene - at least for me - featured Thor forcing a reluctant Loki to play a "Get Help!"trick (something from their childhood) on one of the Grandmaster's minions. The movie featured some first-rate performances. Chris Hemsworth gave his usual first-rate performance as Asgard's crown prince, Thor. Tom Hiddleston was equally impressive as the mischievous and self-absorbed Loki. Cate Blanchett chewed the scenery in grand style as Thor and Loki's power hungry sister, Hela. Tessa Thompson gave a skillful performance as the ambiguous former Valkyrie, Brünnhilde, who used alcohol to runaway from painful memories. Mark Ruffalo was excellent as both the mild-mannered Dr. Bruce Banner and his alter ego, the Hulk; who seemed more happy as a worshiped gladiator on Sakaar than as a wanted fugitive/Avenger on Earth. Jeff Goldblum was his colorful self as the Grandmaster; the gregarious, yet tyrannical and self-absorbed leader of Sakaar. Idris Elba provided much needed gravitas as Asgard's former gatekeeper, Heimdall, who found himself the leader of the realm's refugees from Hela's reign. Karl Urban was surprisingly entertaining as the boastful warrior Skurge, who would do anything to survive Hela's reign. The movie featured two cameos. Benedict Cumberbatch made a solid cameo appearance as the arrogant sorcerer, Dr. Stephen Strange. However, Anthony Hopkins' cameo as the dying Odin struck me as poignant and a lot more effective. Despite all of the above, despite the critical acclaim, "THOR: RAGNAROK" proved to be rather disappointing for me in the end. What went wrong? One problem I had with this film was its treatment of certain characters. Remember Lady Sif and the Warriors Three? Thor's closest friends who had traveled all the way to Earth to find him in "THOR"? And who helped him defy Odin and leave Asgard with Loki and Dr. Jane Foster in order to remove one of the Infinity Stones - the Aether - from the realm and the Dark Elves? Well . . . Lady Sif never made an appearance in this film. One would assume that actress Jamie Alexander had scheduling conflicts with her TV series, "BLINDSPOT". Then why not hire another actress to portray Lady Sif . . . as they had did with Fandral? But not only was Lady Sif missing, she was not even mentioned in this film. That was quite a head shaker for me. Another head shaker were the fates of the Warrior Three - Fandral, Volstagg and Hogun. Both Fandral and Volstagg were immediately killed by Hela upon her arrival on Asgard. I found that so disappointing and a waste of both Zachary Levi and Ray Stevenson's time. At least Tadanobu Asano's Hogun was able to speak more than one line and engage in a brief fight with Hela before she eventually dispatched him. But what made this so damn annoying was that Thor was never told about his friends' deaths on screen. Audiences never got a chance to see him react to their deaths. Believe it or not, I also had a problem with the Hulk. Well . . . I had a problem with his ability to form near complete sentences. How did that happened? Aside from uttering the phrase "Hulk smash!" in the 2008 movie, "THE INCREDIBLE HULK", I do not recall him ever speaking any sentences - complete or not. Not when he was portrayed by Eric Bana, Edward Norton or Mark Ruffalo. What I found even more puzzling was Thor's lack of surprise over the Hulk's conversational skills. Odin's death was handled in an equally questionable manner. First of all, from what did he died? What caused Odin's death? Being away from Asgard for so long? If so, the movie's screenplay was very vague in conveying this. And why did Odin's death lead to Hela's appearance on Earth? If she was in a prison, why did she not appear in Asgard upon her father's death? That made no sense to me. Movie audiences learned that Thor and Dr. Jane Foster finally had their breakup, following his departure from Earth two years earlier. I am already annoyed at Kevin Feige for hinting that Jane was not worthy of being Thor's love interest. Not worthy? Why? Because she was not a skilled fighter with or without super strength who wielded a sword or gun? Fuck Kevin Feige and his sexist bullshit. What made the news of the breakup even worse is that the news of Thor and Jane's breakup was treated as comic relief. Thor's breakup with a woman with whom he was in love for four years . . . was treated as a joke? Natalie Portman was right to dump this franchise. If "THOR: RAGNAROK" was about the God of Thunder's attempt to prevent Asgard from experiencing Ragnarok (or an apocalypse), why in the hell did it focus on Thor's activities in Sakaar for so damn long? Why did the movie stay on that damn planet for so long? Once Thor and the Hulk's gladiator's match had ended, I figured it would not be long before Thor would have left Sakaar with the Hulk, Loki and Brünnhilde. Instead, it nearly took them FOREVER to get off that planet. It was sheer torture watching Thor trying to convince the Hulk and Brünnhilde to help him get off the planet. And I found Loki's backstabbing shenanigans not only unoriginal, but lame. Come to think of it, I found Loki's presence in this film rather lame . . . except in the movie's last twenty minutes or so. He more or less became a punching bag for Thor and everyone else, than the dangerous and tricky villain he used to be. Once "the Revengers", as Thor called himself and the others, arrived on Asgard, it was . . . eh. I just did not care at that point. Their final conflict with Hela and Thor's decision to kick star Ragnarok (using Surtur's crown and the Eternal Flame) just could not lift me from my apathy toward this film. But what really sank "THOR: RAGNAROK" for me was the humor. I do not mind the occasional use of humor in an action film like this. I do not even mind when there is more humor than usual - especially in films like "GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY" and "ANT-MAN". But what I could not deal with was a barrage of humor in a narrative that featured the possible apocalypse of Asgard, the deaths of familiar characters and the further drama of the Asgardian Royal Family. Nearly everything was transformed into a joke - from Thor's discovery of Loki's impersonation of Odin, Brünnhilde's post-traumatic stress disorder (PTS) over the deaths of her fellow Valkyries, the reason behind the Hulk's longing to remain on Sakaar, the revelation over Thor and Jane's breakup, the Sakaarians' decision to rebel against the Grandmaster, and Hela's revelations to Skurge about hers and Odin's murderous creation of the Asgardian Empire. These were all plot points that should have been treated with a good deal more gravitas. And I could not believe that Waititi forced moviegoers to watch Thor argue with the Hulk's S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet over who was the most powerful Avenger. I mean . . . really? The Hulk actually went out of his way to program the jet's computer to acknowledge him as the most powerful Avenger? That scene was so unfunny that in the end, it became sheer torture to watch. Hela's constant complaints about her father's failure to appreciate her only reminded me of Loki's petulant man pain in "THOR". Only her carping was punctuated by jokes and witty comments. Worse, this barrage of humor prevented the screenplay from exploring Hela's revelations about Asgard's imperial past. The overuse of humor also transformed Thor's character. Everyone made such a big deal about Chris Hemsworth's comedic talents in recent years that I suspect that Marvel had decided to exploit it in this third Thor movie. Well, it turned out to be too much, as far as I was concerned. I have been aware of Hemsworth's comedic talents since "THOR" back in 2011. But Marvel picked the wrong movie and the wrong director to exploit that talent to an excessive degree. Hemsworth came off as some semi-witty California surfer than the Asgardian God of Thunder. Between the characterizations, the dramatic moments robbed for the sake of humor and the barrage of jokes, it was just too much. Unlike many film critics and MCU fans, I have always enjoyed the franchise's Thor films. Well, I certainly did enjoy the first two featuring Chris Hemsworth. But I cannot say the same about this third film, "THOR: RAGNAROK". It both annoyed and disappointed me on so many levels. Although I found the cast led by Hemsworth rather first-rate, I was disappointed by some of the film's characterizations and the plot holes. But I was especially disappointed by the film's use of humor. In the end, Kevin Feige, Marvel Films, the movie's screenwriters and Taika Waititi took a potentially epic comic book movie and transformed it into a long, goddamn joke fest. By the time I left the movie theater, I felt disgusted.

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twh-news · 7 years ago

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'Thor: Ragnarok’ Thunders To $107.6M Overseas Debut – International Box Office | DEADLINE

Launching in about 52% of the world a week before entering the domestic arena, Disney/Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok hammered out a $107.6M international box office start this session. The strong debut on the Taika Waititi-helmed threequel is 4% ahead of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol 2 and 22% above Doctor Strange when looking at the same suite of 36 material markets this frame, and using today’s exchange rates.

As we saw in early mid-week bows, the Chris Hemsworth-starrer posted the biggest October opening weekend in many markets and continued to do so as more were added through the frame. The film can boast No. 1s everywhere — while Dis earlier said Italy was too close to call, WB is giving Thor the win over IT locally.

The top plays thus far are the UK ($15.8M), Korea ($15.5M), Australia ($8.4M), Brazil ($8.3M) and France ($7.4M).

The overseas opening on the third pic in the god of thunder’s franchise was eyed at a range of $85M-$100M by industry sources ahead of the early non-traditional Tuesday UK opening. Most topped it out at $100M with one seeing anticipation high enough to push it past the century mark.

The comps also include Thor: The Dark World, and Thor 3 is 34% above that which is little surprise given the lighter tone of this refresh on the series. At current exchange rates Guardians Of The Galaxy 2, which bowed in April this year, finaled at $481M internationally while Doctor Strange earned $456M overseas after opening at this same time in 2016.

The Top 5 overall markets on the last Thor were ultimately China, Russia, the UK, Brazil and Mexico (its offshore results improved 63% on the 2011 original). Doctor Strange was tops in China, Korea, the UK, Brazil and Russia — notable that on Thor 3 Korea did such big business at open whereas the market did not figure in the Top 5 GOTG2 ultimate plays which were China, the UK, Germany, Russia and France.

In IMAX, Thor: Ragnarok delivered $6M on just 189 screens, a $31,500 per-screen average. That’s on par with IMAX opening results of GOTG2 in like-for-like markets.

Significant markets where the Crown Prince of Asgard and his friend from work, the Incredible Hulk, did not face-off this weekend include Germany, Russia, China, Japan and Mexico. They head to those hubs as well as North America and virtually all other territories this coming week.

Thor and Coco helped push The Walt Disney Studios across the $4B global box office mark this session ($4.103B to date), making it the only studio to have achieved the milestone for the last five consecutive years. Domestic box office for the Mouse in 2017 stands at $1.402B with $2.701B overseas thus far.

Breakdowns on the film below.

THOR: RAGNAROK

Outperforming pre-weekend industry projections, Disney/Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok smashed onto the international scene with $107.6M in 36 material markets. In several of those, this was the biggest October opening ever (see below), and overall Thor 3 is running 4% higher than Guardians Of The Galaxy 2, and 22% ahead of comp Doctor Strange which bowed in this corridor last year. It’s 34% bigger than Thor: The Dark World whose title is indicative of one of the big differences from sequel to threequel given the lighter tone of Ragnarok.

On 189 IMAX screens in 39 markets Thor 3 nailed down a $31,500 per-screen average, on par with IMAX opening results of GOTG2.

GOTG2 finaled at $481M internationally while Doctor Strange earned $456M offshore. All comp numbers are at current exchange rates and across like-for-like markets.

Ragnarok, directed by Taika Waititi, is off to a strong start. Key will be how it holds in the mid-weeks (there are a lot of overseas school vacations right now) as well as how it fares in the China debut next Friday. Looming is Warner Bros/DC’s Justice League which begins assembling from November 15 offshore, and opens domestically and in China on November 17.

But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s look at Thor’s first weekend. Anticipation was high for the god of thunder’s return with Chris Hemsworth’s titular hammer-wielder imprisoned on the other side of the universe (and sans said hammer) as Asgard comes under threat. The only way to escape and save his home world is to fight former ally and fellow Avenger — the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).

The rest of the cast features the returning Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba and Anthony Hopkins, as well as newcomers Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum and Tessa Thompson.

The playful trailers and clips landed. The first teaser drew 136M views worldwide in its first 24 hours last April. Rotten Tomatoes has the movie at a marvelous 98% fresh. The UK’s Radio Times calls it “a fabulous fantasy and the funniest Marvel movie yet.” Audiences have been looking for some salve after a limp August and a disappointing run for would-be blockbuster Blade Runner 2049, also a darker, if well-reviewed, film.

Thor: Ragnarok was No. 1 in all markets this session.

Tops was the UK at $15.8M, +27% on Doctor Strange and the biggest non-Bond October opening ever. Disney now has three of the top four bows of 2017 in the market. Next up, Korea, where action tends to rate over humor, had a great start of $15.5M. Disney played up the action aspects here and saw a result that is 68% bigger than GOTG2 with 64% of the market share.

Australia opened 57% ahead of Doctor Strange and 17% ahead of GOTG2, and saw the biggest industry opening weekend ever for an October release at $8.4M. Likewise, Brazil scored the top October bow ever, the 3rd best all-time debut for the MCU, well outperformed comps and came in with 81% of the market share.

Rounding out the Top 5, France debuted 13% ahead of Doctor Strange and nabbed the 2nd biggest October opening ever. There is strong competition in that market from local period comedy/drama Au Revoir Là-Haut directed by Albert Dupontel.

Asia was stronger than expected overall with the Top 10 rounded out by Indonesia ($5.5M), Taiwan ($5.4M), Italy ($4.2M), the Philippines ($3.8M) and Malaysia ($3.5M).

Along with those indicated above, Indonesia, Taiwan (already beating GOTG2’s lifetime), the Philippines and Malaysia also set October opening records. So did New Zealand (Waititi’s from here and this is the biggest opening of the year overall), Vietnam, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia and South Africa.

Significant markets not opening this weekend included Germany, Russia, China, Japan and Mexico. By next Friday, along with North America, those will be online.

#thor Ragnarok #box office

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bishreview · 7 years ago

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Top 20 Films of the Year

I think it’s about time I did something about films so here’s my list for the top 20 movies. This year has seen a rise in quality superhero films, some strong horror flicks, but I’ve felt genres like comedies and science fiction have really dropped. This list will include films that were released to Australian audiences in 2017 but will miss the Oscar nominated ones at the start of the year because they were classified as 2016 still. Enjoy.

20. Spider Man: Homecoming

Superhero films really did well this year, with Spider Man’s first lead film in the MCU a pleasure to watch from start to finish. Focusing on the high school aspect rather than the superhero aspect (like all previous movies of the hero have done), Holland brings the role to new levels of excitement, humour and reliability, making this maybe the best film incarnation of the hero.

19. Split

Split is a different sort of film. It’s a super-villain film, disguised as a psychological thriller, disguised as a horror. James McAvoy’s role as the character Kevin, a person who has multiple personalities, is incredible as he switches between different personalities, with their own characteristics, with ease. M. Night Shyamalan looks like he’s making a comeback, and it’s exciting to watch.

18. Raw

Have you ever watched a film so gross but so engaging that you can’t look away even though you’re disgusted by what you’re watching? Because that’s Raw. Julia Ducournau’s unique film about cannibalism is incredibly unique and brilliant, whilst also being one of the hardest to watch films I’ve ever seen. Big warning to those with weak stomachs.

17. Star Wars: Episode VIII - The Last Jedi

The Last Jedi will probably go down as the most decisive Star Wars film ever. Disney have made it clear that they are avoiding canon in their trilogy, turning away from the comics and focusing on the films. With The Last Jedi they took it further, taking risks throughout the whole movie. In doing so, they made the most unique Star Wars film yet, and maybe the strongest since the original trilogy, focusing on the balance of the force instead of the usual ‘good vs. evil’.

16. John Wick: Chapter Two

John Wick is such a brilliantly written character. Although the second instalment in the hit-man, revenge franchise looks more into his past and the organisation he was a part of, we still know little about the ‘Boogeyman’. Keeanu Reeves is brilliant as the titular character and Derek Kolstad has again written another amazing story, creating one of the most interesting and unique cinematic universes.

15. A Ghost Story

There are some movies which capture your imagination and place you in a story that you can escape in. A Ghost Story is a different story. It’s heartbreaking but makes you feel warm. Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara are brilliant as the two leads, holding a chemistry which is hard to create so naturally. Although it’s slow at times, there is a certain beauty throughout the movie, drawing you into the love story even at it’s slowest moments

14. Logan Lucky

Logan Lucky is a really fun film. With a great cast including Adam Driver, Channing Tatum, Riley Keough, and Daniel Craig, the heist film is an entertaining watch. Although heist films sometimes feel cliched, Logan Lucky utilises the American car racing competition NASCAR as its setting, allowing the film to explore a different range of characters, making it one of the most intriguing heist movies in years.

13. Wonder Woman

The DCEU is getting really hard to watch. Justic League, released late this year, was more of the same average flicks which has plagued the franchise since Man of Steel. Before that though was Wonder Woman, the cinematic universe’s saving grace. Gal Gadot is incredible as the iconic superhero, carrying the movie all the way through with her engaging performance. Mid-way through the year I stated this film was the saving grace of the franchise, and that could never be more true now.

12. The Big Sick

Rom-com’s have never really been my thing. I often feel their stories have been done over and over again and that the genre doesn’t try to be do anything different. The Big Sick though is a story which hasn’t even been attempted by the industry yet, a movie about religious and cultural traditions and progressing forward with them. Kumail Nanjiani explores his real life story in such a tongue in cheek way that you can’t help but love the story and the characters.

11. The Lost City of Z

I was remembering this film the other day (I’ve only watched it twice) and the feelings I got from it still gives me the chills. The exploration of the jungle in James Gray’s film about real life explorer Percy Fawcett is gorgeous. It’s a slow burning movie that depicts Fawcett’s addiction to the Amazon rainforest in such a mesmerising way that you often forget that he’s searching for gold, rather just wanting to live in the Amazon. Charlie Hunman is brilliant as the lead and it’s a movie that will stick in your mind for a long time.

10. Thor: Ragnarok

2017 was a great year for the MCU, and Thor: Ragnarok was the shining light. Although the previous Thor films have been some of the more weaker entries in the franchise, Ragnarok was able to give the titular character his best story yet, combining the comic with the Planet Hulk storyline. With incredible performances by Chris Hemsworth, Cate Blanchett, Mark Ruffalo, Tom Hiddleston, Tessa Thompson and Jeff Goldblum, NZ director Taika Waititi created the best and most fun Thor that has ever hit the big screen.

9. The Beguilded

The Beguilded was a strange watch. Based on the 1971 novel of the same name, the film explores lust, forbidden love, obsession, fear and hate in a stable manner, balancing these themes effortlessly. Sofia Coppola has deservedly won awards for this film and will hopefully be nominated for a few more after being snubbed at the Golden Globes.

8. Silence

If I were to pick a film that I have seen this year that still disturbs me it would be Silence. Set in 17th century Japan, during the Tokugawa shogunate, Silence follows two Christian priests (Adam Driver and Andrew Garfield) trying to track down their mentor (Liam Neeson) whilst continuing to spread their outlawed religion. The movie is very graphic and doesn’t hold back on the Crucifixion techniques that were implemented during this period. Garfield also delivers the performance of his career, pulling you in emotionally to his character’s experience.

7. War On The Planet of the Apes

It was always going to be hard to complete the Apes trilogy, as the first two films of the franchise were both amazing. War though is best of the three. An incredibly emotional experience as we watch Caesar and his fellow apes fight for survival against humans. Andy Serkis is again incredible as Caesar, continuing to prove that he’s the best actor in a motion capture suit.

6. Logan

Superhero movies were truly a shining light in 2017. The fourth comic book movie on this list (and the highest), Logan (based on Old Man Logan comic) is an incredible experience. Allowing the movie to have a restricted rating was a risk but it paid of as it allowed the character to be at his brutal best. Hugh Jackman will always be Wolverine and Logan was a perfect way to send off nearly two decades of the character on the big screen.

5. A Monster Calls

A Monster Calls (can also be called How to Tear Someone’s Heart Out) is the saddest film of the year. It hits you deep in the feels, ensuring the audience cries their eyes out by the end of the film. Lewis MacDougall is incredible as the lead, and the supporting cast are brilliant, especially Liam Neeson as the voice of The Monster. The film blends a heartbreaking story about cancer with a beautiful fantasy world, utilising water-colour animations to bring the audience into the imaginary world.

4. T2: Trainspotting

T2 has been a long time coming. A sequel to the incredible original (Trainspotting) has been rumoured for a while, and Danny Boyle has finally delivered two decades on. Bringing back the beloved Scottish gang, led by Ewan McGregor, T2 doesn’t hold back on themes of getting old, reminiscing on youth, and trying to make up for the mistakes of youth. With all four of the characters being on a path which joins them back together, fans of the original will feel blessed with this sequel, whilst new fans will straight away connect with their stories.

3. The Disaster Artist

The Disaster Artist is a perfect homage to the greatest film of all time, The Room. Delving into the creation of the aforementioned masterpiece, The Disaster Artist is about more than having a laugh at the people who were involved in making it. Instead it allows a sympathetic view on the desire to be an actor, to create film as an art form. Both Tommy Wiseau and Greg Sestero are respectfully portrayed by the Franco brothers, allowing a look into the hardships they faced during the making of The Room. It’s a fantastic story, both hilarious and relatable, and could be the Franco brothers best performances.

2. Dunkirk

I’ve always felt like Christopher Nolan has an obsession with outdoing himself every movie. After the epic (albeit flawed epic) which was Interstellar, it looked like he was going to stick on the sci-fi route which had dominated so many of his previous films. Instead he made Dunkirk a history piece about the Allies biggest failure in World War II, the loss of France. The film is tiring to watch, moving slowly and feeling like it’s in a constant route, as every small victory is followed by the plan going wrong. Fionn Whitehead is terrific in his debut mainstream role, and Kenneth Branagh, Mark Rylance, Tom Hardy and Harry Styles also bring in strong performances, suggesting that Dunkirk may be Nolan’s best work.

1. Get Out

I watched Get Out again last night and it still hits me the same way as it did the first time I watched it. Jordan Peele’s directorial debut is incredible. The comedian jumps into a genre unfamiliar to him, in a horror/thriller, and he delivers. Get Out is a unsettling film, raising issues of racism (and anti-racism) without making it overbearing. Daniel Kaluuya is incredible as the lead and will hopefully get rewarded during award season, and the supporting cast of the film (notably Lakeith Stanfield and Betty Gabriel) help create a chilling atmosphere throughout the whole film. The twist ending also may be one of the most impactful non-events in film history, with the expectation of what is going to happen making more of a statement than what actually happens (it will make more sense once you see it). Get Out is an incredible film, close to the best for this decade so far, and my number one film for 2017.

That’s my film list. It came out later than I wanted it to but I’ve just been hammered with work at the moment. I’ve completed the Top 50 Singles of 2017 list and that will be released tomorrow so stay tuned for that. Thanks for the support and hopefully you’ve enjoyed this list.

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everybody-needs-a-hiddleston · 7 years ago

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SPOILER ALERT! Thor: Ragnarok review

Ok guys, this is a SPOILER! Stop reading NOW, if you don't want to spoil yourself. But I'll try not to spoil too much.

This is your last chance to quit now, because you'll find some spoilers in my personal review. . . SPOILER ALERT! Are you sure, you want to go on reading? . . . . . This is your last chance to leave this site and avoid SPOILERS! . . . . Let's start Today was the day, I waited so long for. At 11:30am German time the movie started (after 30 minutes of commercials and trailers...) It begins with Thor in chains in a cage, talking. The first funny moment is after - let me guess - one minute. Thor is in Surtur's cave (?). Ok, somewhere, where a fire demon can live. The following dialogue contains some really hilarious moments. Like the rest of the movie.

A couple of minutes later, Thor returns to Asgard where he meets Skurge instead of Heimdall. We find out what happened to Heimdall (no worries, he is still alive). Skurge wants to inform the palace that Thor had returned, but Thor just swings Mjolnir and flies away. In the palace, he finds himself in a crowd of Asgardian people, who are actually the audience of a theatre play. A play about - I don't want to say too much - Thor, Loki and Odin. Matt Damon plays Loki, Sam Neill Odin and Luke Hemsworth Thor. I'm not saying too much when I say that the whole scene is hilarious. And it doesn't take too long until Loki appears.

Ragnarok Loki is definitely the sexiest Loki of all times. Tom is in peak form. He portrays a very versatile Loki and - what I really appreciated - when they meet Odin (some minutes later after Thor meets Loki for the first time since years) the three have a personal moment. Odin has the word, his sons just listening. Sometimes Thor answers, but Loki remains quiet, but you can read from his face. I liked that detail that he was NOT talking. We all know that Loki has an answer to everything so I really appreciated this moment. (I forgot to mention Thor's and Loki's meeting with Dr. Strange just before they meet Odin. Dr. Strange is the key to get to Odin. Again, very funny, as always. The whole movie is fun)

A few minutes after they meet Odin (a surprise is revealed), Hela appears for the first time. Cate Blanchett is a wonderful Hela. She gives the character everything. She is funny, she is serious and she is the DEATH. You don't mess up with Hela, never. You can really see that Cate Blanchett enjoys herself as Hela. It gets a bit dramatic for Thor in this scene, he loses a very precious thing and in the end, he arrives on the planet called Sakaar while Hela uses the Bifrost to get to Asgaard. Obviously, she is not getting there for a holiday vacation ;)

Thor has some struggles on Sakaar because Valkyrie catches him and brings him to the Grandmaster, portrayed by Jeff Goldblum. The Grandmaster likes games, especially brutal games where his champion (Hulk) smashes every other contestant.

Jeff Goldblum is so "goldblumish", it's fantastic. I loved the character from the very first second. Same with Tessa Thompson. I never heard of her before Ragnarok (shame on me). She plays a very likable character, who had gone through a tough time. If I really should criticise something than it would be the fact that there is not enough time for Tessa to show the diversity of Valkyrie. Depending on the ending of the movie, I hope to see more of her in Infinity Wars ;)

On Sakaar, we also meet Loki again, who is there for weeks. At first, this makes no sense, because he and Thor are thrown into space at the same time. I don't remember exactly what he explains, but I guess Albert Einstein could answer the question. However, Loki got friends with the Grandmaster, of course only for his own advantage. When Loki and Thor meet again for the first time on Sakaar, Loki pretends not to know Thor. Well, for a minute or so. The main plot during all the Sakaar scenes is Thor's endeavour to leave the planet and return to Asgard (remember, Hela is there). The Grandmaster promises him freedom if he fights his champion. Oh wonder, this is Hulk. There are a lot of funny moments in the arena while they fight and in the end, none of them is dead, instead, we find them in Hulk's room. Blah blah here and there (as I said, I don't want spoil too much) and in the end, Thor, Banner! not Hulk and Valkyrie form a team to save Asgard. Loki joins at some point, we see some great scenes between Loki and Thor and then Thor, Valkyrie and Banner leave the planet through a wormhole. Loki is not there, but no worries, of course, we will see him again (oh poor Loki, let me comfort you, evil Thor, big brothers can be so mean sometimes^^) The final fight in Asgard brings them all together, even Surtur joins again. Seems as if the Balrog got a new role after Lord of the Rings.

There is so much more in the movie, which I won't tell you because the spoiler would totally ruin everything. We see new Loki magic and if you ask me, Loki developed his magic. There are some really great Thor/Loki moments. You can also tell that Loki is up to something. He is still the trickster, but not the same man like he was in the early Marvel movies. Nevertheless, it's obvious that he acts to his own advantage. There is a short scene in which Loki walks by the Tesseract. He looks at the Tesseract like "well, what can I do with it? Leave it here or take it and do some Loki trickster stuff with it?" We don't see what he is doing, but we all know Loki and after the leaked footage of the Infinity War trailer, I'm pretty sure Loki took the Tesseract. Loki, I really hope you are on the right side and not with Thanos!

And don't forget Korg! Korg is a Gladiator on Sakaar. He is made of stones and is played by Taika Waititi. Korg is a very lovable character and has an important role in the movie. If you watched "What we do in the shadows" by Taika Waititi, you will recognize a short reference to the movie. And not to forget Rachel House as Topaz. She had a major role in Taika Waititi's "Hunt for the Wilderpeople".

Oh, did I forget Skurge? He is portrayed by Karl Urban. He is an Asgardian warrior who has to decide on which side he is. I don't want to say too much about him. Before I watched the movie, I wasn't sure about this character at all. I still don't know if he is in the comics or not. However, Skurge fits into the movie perfectly and it was a joy to watch him.

The music and the setting of Thor: Ragnarok is really 80ties like. It's in video game style and totally different from any other Marvel movie. Even Guardians of the Galaxy is different. I'm glad that Taika was allowed to do this movie his way. In my opinion, Thor: Ragnarok is better than Age of Ultron or CW. Ok, CW was great, but too much of BOOM BOOM all the time. Same with AoU. To be honest, AoU was lame and Ultron and all the storyline around him, too (and too much of BOOM BOOM either). Thor is a refreshing movie, different, extraordinary, funny and brilliant. I don't have much to criticise.

3D What is all the fuzz about 3D? I really don't like 3D. It's annoying. There was only one scene which was really cool in 3D. The rest was like: "yeah, nice, predictable, not really cool" But as I said, I don't like 3D anyway, so don't give a fuck about what I say.

Cutting At some points, the cut between scenes seemed a bit hectic, enforced. I don't know how to describe it. Maybe it's just the fact that Taika doesn't waste time with unnecessary storytelling. He throws you directly into the action like: "Take this you mewling quim, this is all you need to know".

Ending: WHERE IS THE HUG???? Taika, why???? Why??????????

I'm not sure if I see Thor in theatres again because it's expensive, but I will definitely buy the Blu-Ray. And then I will watch Loki in slow motion, again and again. And worship his fine ass. Oh Lord, believe me, his ass, his legs, his smile, everything is just sexy. A sexy trickster, the worst combination ever.

#Thor spoiler #Ragnarok spoiler #spoiler #tom hiddleston #chris hemsworth #thor #grandmaster #jeff goldblum #taika waititi #tessa thompson #loki #skurge #korg #hela #cate blanchett

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wits-writing · 7 years ago

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Thor Ragnarok movie review

Amidst the solo-character filmsets in the MCU, the Thor movies have never managed to have the same kind of reputation as their contemporaries. They don’t have the distinction of starting the whole shebang like the Iron Man films or the praise from fans and critics alike the Captain America movies have received.

Director Taika Waititi (What We Do in the Shadows, Hunt for the Wilderpeople) now brings his own voice into the proceedings of the trilogy capping Thor Ragnarok, a film that manages to elevate the other two films in its series by bringing the Norse God of Thunder’s character arc full circle.

[Full review under the cut]

Thor (Chris Hemsworth) has been trying to figure out what his visions of Asgard’s destruction and the Infinity Stones from Avengers: Age of Ultron meant since that film’s end. When he’s told that Ragnarok, the end of Asgard, is already underway, he rushes to return home to find what Loki (Tom Hiddleston) disguised as Odin (Anthony Hopkins) has made of it since Thor: The Dark World. After forcing Loki to reveal himself, the two go to Earth where Loki hid their father. Finding him near death, Odin’s last words to them are a warning about the imminent return of Hela the Goddess of Death (Cate Blanchett). After their first encounter with Hela leads to them being thrown out of the Bifrost midtrip, the two gods are stranded on a junkyard planet called Sakaar run by the Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum). While Thor looks for a way to get back home between being forced to compete in the Grand Master’s gladiatorial Contest of Champions against the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), Hela goes to Asgard to resurrect her army and lead a brutal conquest.

How funny Thor Ragnarok can be should come as no surprise to anyone familiar with Taika Waititi’s other films. Tone in this film is communicated in a very matter-of-fact style, letting the characters’ behavior and reactions to the situation at hand speak for themselves. When a moment is supposed to be funny, it can be laugh-out-loud hysterical while still being able to transition seamlessly into more dramatic or thrilling sequences without missing a step. Waititi’s control over the tone and style of this film is one of the major things it has over its main predecessor, Thor: The Dark World.

The original Thor had a distinct style of its own as well thanks to the direction of Kenneth Branagh that could serve it well in either grounded Earth moments or theatrical Asgardian ones, but The Dark World didn’t have many distinct goals of its own on those terms. In Thor Ragnarok, the tone hues closer to the likes of Big Trouble in Little China or the 1980 Flash Gordon movie, self-aware without ever entering full wink-at-the-camera territory.

Side characters are one of the key places the film stays grounded within the alternatively bombastic/comedic space fantasy events. Goldblum as the Grand Master is at his most, well, himself as he’s been in a role, he serves the film as a sort of secondary antagonist for Thor during the middle stretch of the movie where he’s stuck on Sakaar. He’s a seeker of entertainment, mainly through the gladiatorial combat he organizes that has all the flashy style of professional wrestling. The fact that Goldblum himself seems to be having a grand old time playing him doesn’t hurt either. Also on Sakaar is Korg (Waititi), a soft-spoken giant rock monster alien that seeks to lead a revolt on Sakaar to free all the enslaved fighters under the Grand Master’s control. Waititi’s line delivery as Korg are exemplary of the matter-of-fact style humor this movie excels at using with plain spoken observations on how events are playing out.

Eventually joining up with Thor in his journey to get back to Asgard are the Hulk, Loki and Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson). Hulk has been Code Green for two years straight since arriving on Sakaar after disappearing at the end of Age of Ultron, in that time he’s managed to develop distinct childlike persona of his own separated from Bruce Banner. The Green Goliath has been caught up in the fame and attention that fighting in the Grand Master’s games has brought him. He’s initially in no hurry to change back to puny Banner or help Thor leave. The new, if simplistic, way Hulk can express himself is the best addition to the character’s portrayal in the MCU since Ruffalo first started playing him.

There’s not much new to say about Tom Hiddleston’s Loki that hasn’t been said repeatedly since his first on screen appearance. The interesting parts of his performance this time around involve a few new wrinkles in how Thor has become jaded by their dynamic. The God of Mischief has double crossed his brother so many times that Thor is anticipating it at this point, especially when Loki finds favor with the Grand Master in a way that could jeopardize any escape plans. He’s been a fan favorite since the beginning for good reason and Thor Ragnarok uses these new elements to provide more moments to highlight him, especially a moment towards the end that seems inspired by Hiddleston’s past in-character appearances at San Diego Comic Con.

Valkyrie is presented in an archetype we don’t often get to see women characters embody. She’s an embittered, hard-drinking former elite Asgardian warrior who retreated to Sakaar after the rest of the Valkyries were wiped out by Hela. She’s been making a living gathering fighters for the Grand Master ever since. When Thor finds out her identity, he starts trying to convince her to try fighting for Asgard again. Valykrie’s dynamic with Thor is fun. He grew up hearing stories about the might of the Valkyries, so when he first realizes who she is he becomes a bit star struck, fumbling over his words while trying to get her to fight for a worthy cause once again. When she finally does, she’s easily the most effective fighter among the group Thor brings together to fight against Hela.

Hela herself comes from Odin’s time as a warmongering leader who sought to conquer and subjugate realms rather than protect them. When she comes back and sees the revisionist sheen the All Father has put over Asgard’s history, she feels insulted that Odin would diminish the role she played in giving Asgard its grand status. She revels in the brutality on combat, mowing down armies with her endless supply of dark swords and delighting in the cruelty of it. She recruits the slovenly Asgardian Skurge (Karl Urban) as her Executioner to enforce her will on the rest of the realm and to help snuff out any resistance. Blanchett’s joyful indulgence playing this malicious figure push what could have simply been a cackling mad villainess into something more complex by leaning into the arrogance the character exudes, which is backed up by the immense power we see the goddess wielding on screen.

The villainess’ role in this movie ultimately become providing a contrast against Thor so that we can see how far he’s come as a character since his first movie. In origin and attitude, Hela is a dark extreme version of who Thor was before his initial humbling in that film at Odin’s hands. We start this film by seeing how Thor has already dedicated himself to saving Asgard from its prophesized fate of Ragnarok, because “that’s what heroes do.” His arc in this film, after losing Odin and Mjolnir within the span of minutes of each other, is to figure out how he’s going to define himself going forwards on this quest if he’s to be able to save anything. Since the first film, Thor’s relation to the throne has been at the core of his character arc as we’ve seen him go from an entitled brat of a warrior prince to Avenger and finally, by the end of this film, being truly worthy to lead the people of Asgard. How Thor Ragnarok ties everything that’s happened to Thor since his first appearance in the MCU is why I began this review by saying the movie is so good it elevates Thor’s entire trilogy. Accomplishing that while still letting the hero be the butt of the joke on several occasions is another feat of how well it juggles tone.

The production design of Thor Ragnarok goes together with the overall mood of the piece to make it such a fun time at the movies. Each of the major locations that this film is set in have an aesthetic unto themselves that give each of them a unique sense of life. Asgard maintains the earthy and golden hues that have defined in on film up to this point. This puts the home of the gods into visual contrast with the bright, playful design of Sakaar ripped right from the pages of Jack Kirby, where the Marvel version of Thor originated. Since Sakaar is an intergalactic scrapyard, rained down on by portals from across the universe, a lot of the tech and buildings on the planet look cobbled together from pieces that were probably never meant to go together. Helping to further differentiate these locations is the score from Mark Mothersbaugh (of Devo fame), incorporating leitmotifs consistent with the instrumentals of the previous films for Asgard, chip-tune-esque electronic music for Sakaar and when those elements start blending together on screen, so does the music. Then there’s the costume designs, which seem to take most of their influence from equal parts Jack Kirby and Walter Simonson’s work on the comics, especially the designs of Hela and her undead army.

Thor Ragnarok is satisfying as a trilogy capper in a way I don’t think anyone could’ve seen coming. I went into this film expecting to like it quite a bit, since I’m a fan of Waititi’s other directorial work. I didn’t expect it to all come together in a way that makes a film series that’s changed directors twice feel like the conclusions reached here were deliberately pre-planned. There’s only one problem I have with the film and that’s how cavalier it disposes of characters and elements from the previous Thor movies that never got their due previously and now likely never will. Other than that, Thor Ragnarok marks a superhero movie that manages to stand out spectacularly, even among the other great offerings from the genre this year.

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siobhaneardley · 7 years ago

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REVIEW: Thor Ragnarok

Ragnarok has been one of my most anticipated films of this year, this is mainly down to the choice of director, Taika Waititi, who has produced two of my all time favourite comedies, What We Do in the Shadows and Hunt for the Wilderpeople. He is genuinely one of the funniest directors around who produces films that are both hilarious and beautifully crafted. So I was very excited to see what he would do with a Marvel film, but I was also very aware of Marvel/Disney’s track record with ‘risky’ directors. We had Edgar Wright who was going to direct Ant-Man, (I am still desperate to know what his version would have been like) and more recently The Lego Movie’s Phil Lord and Chris Miller being fired from the up coming Han Solo movie. With all this in mind I was so relieved that it all worked out in the end with Marvel and Waititi. Yay! What has been produced is the most thematically different Marvel film since Guardians of the Galaxy back in 2014, and it is really so refreshing.

The one thing that struck me, as with my previous review, Blade Runner 2049, was not the humour or the visuals, but the score. I have never really noticed anything special about any Marvel score, they don’t really stand apart from each other and feel like variations on the same kind of theme. In places, the composer, Mark Mothersbaugh’s score did hark back to previous Marvel scores, but on a whole his score was beautiful, fun and dramatic in all the right places, and was hugely helped by a healthy dollop of synth. But despite the synth-tastic score, I was particularly struck by the piece ‘Twilight of the Gods’ which was one of the slower pieces in the score, evoking folk-y nordic beautifulness that did tug at my heartstrings quite a bit! There are also many times throughout when Mothersbaugh brings out his inner John Williams and I loved it, and would love to see him work on one of the Star Wars spin offs in the works.

The overall feel of the film was greatly enhanced by the score, and that feel is just an overall sense of craziness, amazing, but downright madness. Think the 1980s, on LSD but in space. It was a plethora of colour, not just the nebula, rainbow road kind of colour seen in the previous Thor movies, but bright, garish and beautiful colour- especially on the planet Sakaar, which at times really evoked aspects of Blade Runner, but brighter and less depressing. I did really appreciate some of the practical effects in the film, especially with some of the city sequences on Sakaar, but it is a shame this wasn’t consistent throughout the film.

I am very aware that this is a very fantastical film and a lot of CGI is necessary, but I like my CGI when I can’t really notice it that much. But there was one fight scene that was so obviously CGI, it was so noticeable and it really took me out of the film and had the Uncanny Valley effect that is so distracting. It is definitely understandable that a lot of this film has to be CGI, but I really expect better from Marvel at this point, for something to be so obvious, it was actually quite annoying.

So lets get over that negative point and delve into one of the best aspects of the film, the humour. I was, I will admit a little bit worried that it may come across gimmicky and forced, but it really didn’t, the film is genuinely hilarious from start to finish. I was actually quite surprised with how much they managed to get away with really, and you will see what I mean when you see it! I have always loved the lighter side of Thor and I have always wanted it to be showcased more and it was to a huge extent in this film without it feeling out of character. All three of the familiar characters were all believably funny.

It was also great to see some new faces, I will start with Hulk, and I know that he has been in previous Marvel films, but we do get a lot of Banner and not much Hulk. But Hulk in Ragnarok, is amazing and I am so glad we got to see more of the character of Hulk, as a separate character rather than just a violent green monster smashing up buildings. I would also love to gush about how amazing Cate Blanchett and Tessa Thompson were as new characters to the universe, but I really don’t want to spoil anything about them or the film, so I will just leave it at: they are amazing female characters!!

So on that note, overall there were some amazing comic performances, great new characters, stunning visuals with some minor hiccups and some amazing and fun music to go along with all of it. I adored the wild, hilarious ride that was Thor: Ragnarok and I hope you do to!

8.5/10

By Siobhán Eardley.

#Thor #Ragnarok #Chris Hemsworth #Marvel #film #film review #critic #loki #Tom Hiddlestone #taika waititi #comedy #films #movies #film nerd #thor: ragnarok #film critic #marvel movies #writing #film blog

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scifigeneration · 7 years ago

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Thor: Ragnarok, a joyous, trashy, retro-nostalgic comedy, is the best of the Marvel films

by Ari Mattes

Thor: Ragnarok - the latest addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe – is the best of the Marvel films. The third in the Thor series, directed by New Zealand wunderkind Taika Waititi, its narrative follows the battle between Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the brawny god of thunder, and his sister Hela (Cate Blanchett), goddess of death.

Hela makes a push to claim the throne of the kingdom of Asgard; she wants to use this power to conquer the rest of the universe, which, she believes, rightfully belongs to the Asgardians. Thor, assisted by a diverse group of allies, including his shifty brother and occasional enemy Loki (Tom Hiddleston), undergoes various trials and tribulations, before coming up against his evil sister in a final epic battle, waged over the fate of the cosmos.

Though the story does connect with and extend elements from the earlier Thor films, Thor: Ragnarok feels like a different beast entirely, and I can understand why diehard Marvel fans (I’m not one) might be disappointed.

From left, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson and Tom Hiddleston. Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Pictures

Whereas the earlier Thor films featured numerous pompous, posturing monologues about heroism, virtue, and fate, the spirit of Waititi’s film is diametrically opposite to this. It offers a joyous kaleidoscope of colour and swirling psychedelic imagery, underscored by a crisp, retro-synth soundtrack. The flamboyantly designed action sequences, including one where the Hulk battles a giant wolf, are frequently punctuated by moments of genuinely hilarious dialogue.

Hemsworth is in his element as the hunky God, appropriately shirtless for at least one scene, albeit a short one. He plays the part with a disarming humour, as though sending up his public persona as Hollywood heartthrob, mimbo of the moment. Jeff Goldblum’s performance as Grandmaster, the blue-eye-liner wearing DJ and megalomaniacal ruler of the planet Sakaar (basically an intergalactic waste dump), is comically delirious. Mark Ruffalo is equally a pleasure to watch as Bruce Banner (aka the Incredible Hulk), even if his stint in the film in human form feels short.

Jeff Goldblum as Grandmaster: comically delicious. Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Pictures

I will be eternally suspicious of Cate Blanchett playing a super-villain after her painfully hammy turn as Irina Spalko in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008), but she is surprisingly restrained, here, as the malevolent Goddess, keeping the character grounded with her superb physical presence.

Cate Blanchett as Hela is surprisingly restrained. Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Pictures

None of the actors offer poor performances – an incredible feat in itself, given how much of the film would have been shot in front of green screen. Tessa Thompson is appealing as a Valkyrie warrior, Hiddleston is fine reprising his role as Loki, and Anthony Hopkins as Odin, playing the sage, greybeard type he seems destined to repeat for the rest of his career, thankfully, only appears in a couple of scenes. Perhaps Idris Elba is wasted. As Heimdall, a warrior-guide on Asgard, Elba has a thankless, inconspicuous part for an actor of his stature and magnetism.

Idris Elba as Heimdall has a thankless part. Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Pictures

In contrast to Blade Runner 2049, the other mega blockbuster recently released, the cast and crew here look like they’re having fun. This is, after all, one of the primary motivations for these ritual stagings we call cinema – and it lends an infectious vitality to material that could otherwise seem tawdry and trite, demanding that viewers, too, participate in the party.

The brilliance of the film, indeed, resides in its audiovisual qualities. Its look is magnificent, especially the segment on Sakaar, and the brilliant synth score by Mark Mothersbaugh is alternately spritely and hypnotic, a perfect homage to the scores of the electro-infused, smoky-neon-lit VHS fare upon which the film’s makers clearly grew up.

The look of the film is magnificent. Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Pictures

Astonishingly, Thor: Ragnarok does not shy away from a thoughtful, though conventional, depiction of what are probably the two biggest political crises of our time. In the depiction of the planet Sakaar, the film cleverly situates problems of waste management within the broader ecological discourse of global warming – isn’t it the ultimate dream of the big polluters to have another planet on which to dump Earth’s waste?

And it has a few things to say on the ways in which forced migration and asylum seekers act upon, test and strengthen the tenacity of identity, culture and kinship.

The whole thing is perhaps a little opportunistic in its trashy, post-Stranger Things retro-nostalgia trip. And perhaps this is more evidence of the cynicism of Hollywood producers, willing to modify their output to fit whatever is “trending”. But it is just so well done that I challenge any viewer who came of age as a cinema-goer in the 1980s not to embrace it. This is like the live-action Masters of the Universe film that never got made (including teleportation design that recalls the saturated prismatic colours of MOTU).

In addition, this is one of the best comedies I’ve seen recently – it is a comedy in superhero guise – but its humour is far from the sentimental, saccharine gags of other films from Marvel, like Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) or The Avengers (2012).

The well-conceived situational humour of Eric Pearson’s sharply written screenplay is brought to life by brilliant comedic performances from the actors, including Waititi himself, who plays Korg, a Kiwi-bro made of rock. His first line to Thor is: “I’m made of rock – you don’t need to be afraid, unless you’re made of scissors.”

Taika Waititi as a Kiwi bro made of rock. Marvel Entertainment, Marvel Studios, Walt Disney Pictures

Thor: Ragnarok is one of the best films I’ve seen this year – which is something I never thought I’d say about a Marvel film. We can put this down, I suspect, largely to the direction of Waititi, a master of low-key humour, who shot to fame with his second feature film, Boy (2010) and followed it up with New Zealand hits What We Do in the Shadows (2014) and Hunt for the Wilderpeople (2016). If this one is anything to go by, Waititi will be making Hollywood films for a long time to come.

Ari Mattes is a Lecturer in Media Studies at the University of Notre Dame Australia.

This article was originally published on The Conversation.

#movies #Marvel #Science Fiction and Fantasy #thor ragnarok

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fandomreviews · 7 years ago

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THOR: RAGNAROK - REVIEW!

THE GOD OF THUNDER RETURNS!

*****

Directed by - Taika Waititi

Starring - Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Tessa Thompson, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum, Mark Ruffalo, Karl Urban with Anthony Hopkins & Benedict Cumberbatch

Thor returns in the next instalment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and this is by far the most hilarious film the studio has ever released, even surpassing the comedy of Guardians of the Galaxy.

This film sees the god of thunder and his sinister brother Loki face off against their sister, Hela, the Goddess of Death. Hela is a great villain, played brilliantly by Cate Blanchett, who manages to hit right notes when moments of comedy and villainy are called for.

Hemsworth and Hiddleston create an almighty double act in the film, particularly in the scene featuring Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange. Thor and Loki find themselves on a planet controlled by the brilliant Jeff Goldblum who played the Grandmaster who takes Loki as a best friend and forces Thor to battle his “Champion”.

You would wonder who the Champion was if it hadn’t been heavily advertised that the Incredible Hulk, played by Mark Ruffalo would be returning in this film. This is the longest time we have actually spent with the Hulk since his solo film back in Phase One. Ruffalo is perfect and shows that he can play an incredible Hulk as well as an incredible Bruce Banner.

Tessa Thompson joins the cast as Valkyrie, a goddess from Asgard who serves not only as Thor’s new love interest, after the disappearance of Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster but as a heroine in her own right. Valkyrie’s mission of revenge is every bit as important as Thor and Loki’s vendetta. Valkyrie also serves as Marvel’s first LGBT hero.

One of the standout characters of Ragnarok is, of course, Korg, the lovable rock warrior who befriends Thor. Korg is voiced by director Taika Waititi who is a comedian in his own right and provides a stellar comedic performance especially in the closing battle which is the most doom and gloom part of the entire film but with Korg’s one-liner separates it from every other superhero battle.

With Waititi at the helm, it is clear to see why some fans favour the colourful and vibrant films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to that of the failing DCEU. Each film in the MCU has been different with series spanning across different genres with the action-packed war movie of “Captain America: The First Avenger”, Sci-Fi spectacular of “Guardians of the Galaxy”, Spy flick “The Winter Soldier” and now verging into comedy with Ragnarok. Waititi provides a new voice and vision for the MCU, one I hope will continue to be heard as the series heads to a new beginning after the highly anticipated “Infinity War” next year.

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filmsisnice · 7 years ago

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Thor: Ragnarok review.

It’s amid meadows of scrap metal, rusted relics both dated and defunct where we shortly find our God of Thunder. Left stranded on a cosmic junkyard in Thor: Ragnarok this butterscotch prince now seems a forgotten action-figure destined to spend eternity buried in an attic box among chipped stationary and childhood clutter. After two films of Shakespearean sludge Thor is in need of a makeover and thats exactly what director Taika Waititi has in mind as he plucks him from the lost-n-found shards of Sakaar. Armed with his signature kiwi wit and a box of Crayola, Waititi blows off the dust and clears cob webs making Thor: Ragnarok a refreshing take on a tired formula.

The plot mainly adheres to that same formula where this time Thor is faced with a prophesied apocalypse known as Ragnarok threatening to destroy his homeland. If things couldn't get worse, Hela, (Cate Blanchet) a returning sister claiming the Asgard throne banishes Thor to a galactic dump known as Sakaar. Hammerless and imprisoned he must scheme an escape in order to save the Asgardian civilization.

Intentions are clear from the outset as Led Zeppelin’s battlecry splinters the soundtrack. “The hammer of the gods, we’ll drive our ships to new lands” Plant howls, echoing the director’s quest to set sail toward the unknown. The most notable diversion is in the film’s tone, striking a delightful harmony of sublime silliness and bold design. Waititi looks to undermine the loftiness of the previous films with a smattering of camp sensibility throughout. At one point we’re even shown a small stage play taking place in Asgard, a shot for shot mirroring of Loki’s death in The Dark World (2013) which draws a subtle line in the sand, a full stop to what was. Waititi’s ticklish intent manages to smuggle countless chuckles through the Bifröst Bridge and although comedy is a key element, the unfolding action never yields to a gag. Instead the film adopts an impromptu levity which neatly threads each chortle and grin ‘tween handsome heroics.

Thor has been ransacked and refurbished in Ragnarok. Just as he redefines his own identity within the narrative arc, audiences too are forced to abandon symbols of the chiseled crusader so to reimagine a caricature stripped of familiarity. Waititi erases defining features, looting hair and hammers in an effort to chip away at the stiff and statuesque savior we've come to know. Hemsworth even brings a surprisingly relatable quality to the cape clad God. Through charmed buffoonery his performance chirps a casual comfort which has always eluded the role up to now.

Along with its whimsical wanderings what sets Ragnarok apart from the Marvel masses and DC deluge is its playful art design. The film borrows and bestows from the kitsch sci-fi films of the 80’s a candy coloured cosmos blushing across every frame. This is at its most vibrant after we plunge into the makeshift metropolis of Sakaar, an elastic hive humming with flexed colours contorting from every angle. Touches of Jack Kirby’s artwork can even be found slipping between backgrounds, peppered along jagged skylines and soaking into walls evoking comic book panels. Even costumes blare with shimmering finesse and delicate detail, stark contrast to the leeched palettes trending previous superhero films.

A wicked endeavor lacquered in leather with looks that strut between Siouxsie Sioux and Maleficent, Blanchett’s Hela prowls with seething menace. it’s clear the actress relishes playing The Goddess of Death in all its genocidal glee. Though once the story splits in two, flipping between Asgard and Sakaar, we find our interest may lie with the latter. Moments spent with Hela on Asgard soon become exhausted routines of evil where as Sakaar’s bright and bizarre locals keep steady grip on our funny-bones. Goldblum is in full bloom playing The Grandmaster, detached and petty, his bebop patter slinks through scenes like a jazz band out of tune. Waititi himself lends his voice to Korg, a mild mannered mound of rocks whose childlike witticisms undercut simmering drama with polite panache. And as Valkyrie, the Han Solo of the group, Tessa Thompson shines, both surly and resourceful she acts as the perfect straight-woman to the quibbling riffs of Hemsworth and Ruffalo.

It’s fitting that narrative concerns play with concepts of destruction and rebirth because with Ragnarok, Taika Waititi brings us just that, an apocalypse, a supernova of galactic grandeur ripening to each corner of the screen. The film detonates a franchise, shredding a stale system in its wake. Its sly talent is how it lampoons genre without becoming a total spoof itself, using a light sense of humor skimming through the dippy and daft, Thor’s latest instalment serves a cosmic cocktail that leaves you giddy and wanting more.

#thor ragnarok #ragnarok #taika waititi #film #cinema #review #film review #marvel #superhero #avengers #chris hemsworth #jeff goldblum

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agentnico · 7 years ago

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Thor: Ragnarok (2017) Review

This film RagnaROCKED!!!

Plot: Imprisoned, the mighty Thor finds himself in a lethal gladiatorial contest against the Hulk, his former ally. Thor must fight for survival and race against time to prevent the all-powerful Hela from destroying his home and the Asgardian civilisation. So as you can see, stakes are medium!!

For the past few years I’ve been getting quite strong superhero fatigue. As in, I just don’t get that excited for superhero flicks anymore as most of them play on by the same formula over and over again that it has simply gotten boring and uninteresting. There are exceptions here and there though where good superhero films do show up, like with FOX which did quite well this year and last year with ‘Logan’ and ‘Deadpool’. However I feel like Marvel and it’s Cinematic Universe are especially guilty of doing the same thing endlessly. I haven’t properly liked an MCU film since probably the first ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ film (by the way, I hate the second ‘Guardians’ film that came out this year with passion, just saying), as it did something new and different with the familiar formula. However now ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ hits our cinema screens and it is a total blast and breath of fresh air. And there’s one main reason for it: Taika Waititi! If you do not know, Waititi is the director of this film, who is known for his previous movies like ‘What We Do In The Shadows’ and ‘Hunt for the Wilderpeople’ and his dead-pan style of humour, and so what he did was make a very self-aware comedic superhero film that reinvents the Thor franchise in which he insisted that in most of the scenes actors improvised their lines which for one made the film funnier, but also was also a result for some great character work. Even Chris Hemsworth said before the production of ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ to Marvel executive Kevin Feige that he was getting bored with the Thor character and that he wished to take the franchise into a new and different direction. Which through Taika Waititi they managed to do and succeed!

For one this is probably the most visually colourful Marvel film. That’s right, even more so than ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’, since a lot of the action in the film transpires on this planet called Sakaar where Jeff Goldblum’s The Grandmaster reigns supreme, where there is this 80′s style vibe to everything with colourful costumes, retro techy music, and just colour, lots and lots of colour! By the way, on the note of the music, this film might have the best score a Marvel film has ever had. MCU films are known to have very generic and unmemorable music scores, however composer Mark Mothersbaugh finally makes a change on that front. It’s, on the one hand, undeniably a superhero movie soundtrack, full of expertly crafted sweeping string arrangements and as much sonic drama as you can pack into a two hour film. But it has more than that, too, a sort of wild, quirky energy roaming through the sounds. Synths building playful, nervous rhythms, a John Williams score-style turned more disco-like, this music score is infused with energy like no other Marvel score had before it. And the playfulness of the script works perfectly with the quirkiness of the film. Also, talking about the film, I was actually invested in the story for once. With Marvel film I tend to just watch them and be like “eh, 2 hours wasted, who cares??” whilst with this I was properly interested in where the plot was going to go next and the way the whole thing wraps up was done very nicely. I mean, yes, there is, again, a huge CGI monster at the end of the film, but the way they use him actually worked well, not going to lie. All the action scenes were good too, as they were fairly well choreographed and more importantly they were very close-up fight scenes, so it felt more real and thus more effective.

Performances are all great here. Chris Hemsworth finally gets to have proper fun as the God of Thunder himself, being given ample room to showcase his comedic talents that were majorly ignored in previous films. Tom Hiddleston is mischievous as ever, and his banterous interactions with his brother still holds up, and its nice to have seen the progression of their relationship through all these films. We also finally have another properly good Marvel villain in the shape of Hela, the Goddess of Death, played by Cate Blanchett, as her character motivations actually made sense, and she was ruthless and evil and has just enough wit also for you as an audience member to actually enjoy her on-screen presence. Karl Urban plays her right-hand man Skurge, and even though he is fairly under-used, his story arc was actually fairly good and it was nice to once again see Urban in a big-budget film. Unlike in previous ‘Thor’ films, Idris Elba finally got to kick some ass as Heimdall in this film, which showed how badly Marvel has been with their characters previously. Tessa Thompson was a great addition as Valkyrie, she was badass but also funny, and I hope she stays around for a while. Jeff Goldblum was the most Jeff Goldbloomy I have seen in a long long time! Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner was great, and his interactions with Thor are some of the best parts of the film, however its his other side, the Hulk, that takes all the applause, as for one, Hulk now speaks, and so he acts like a 5 year old kid where if things don’t go his way he gets annoyed, secondly, this is the best CGI’d version of the character in all the Marvel films he has been in, and thirdly, he added a lot to the action sequences. Anthony Hopkins did good too, however in this film especially it emphasised how useless of a character Odin was throughout the series. Like in this film when Thor comes across Odin, the latter tells him that Hela is coming to cause havoc and chaos and then ditches Thor to do all the hard work whilst he just buggers off. Benedict Cumberbatch was probably the only proper forced character who honestly speaking didn’t need to be in the film and was only there because Marvel is focused on showing their cinematic universe reference into all their films. That’s not to say that Cumberbatch was bad, he was simply unnecessary. And I have to mention Taika Waititi’s character, who as director allowed himself to also have a part in this film as this rock-guy named Korg, who wanted to start a revolution but didn’t print enough pamphlets. Yes, Taika definitely gave himself the best lines, and hey, I don’t care as it was a cause for some comedy gold!

As a whole, ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ is one of the best MCU films I have seen. It was just a lot of fun. There are post credits scenes in the film also, two of them actually, one that progresses the MCU and one that is just a final gag from Taika Waititi. But do check out this film as its a blast and easily one of the best superhero films this year.

Overall score: 8/10

TOP MOVIE QUOTE: “What’s the matter with you? You’re embarrassing me, I told them we were friends!”

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