Written by: Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle, Christopher L. Yost
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Idris Elba, Jeff Goldblum
Rating: [4/5]
Sometimes to make a significant change for the positive, things need to get completely leveled and rebuilt. A radical approach but one when handled well can yield incredible results, which happens both on and off-screen in Thor: Ragnarok. A feature seeking to completely recontextualize such a stuffy set of films and bring something quite hilarious with the introduction of a new voice into the superhero scene and for the better.
After escaping capture from Surter, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) returns to Asgard to learn his brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) has been impersonating their father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins). When their long-lost sister, Hela (Cate Blanchett) arrives to try and take over Asgard, Thor finds himself on a garbage planet named Sakaar, where he meets up again with Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) still in Hulked-up mode.
Falling far into the depths of mediocrity with Thor: The Dark World, there was no direction but up which this film not only provides but also far exceeds any sort of expectation that could have existed for this feature. This occurs by bringing someone with such personality in direction with Taika Waititi to bring his very own flair into the story and fully accepting the inherent silliness that exists with Thor as a character. Stripping away all of the self-seriousness of the previous film allows for much more fun to be had but then in return also takes a more critical look at the history of Asgard in a manner I would have never thought would occur.
Hela’s presence as a villain not only stands as a remarkable improvement from the dreaded Dark Elves of the previous feature, but she also comes in with the gravitas of Cate Blanchett and explores some hidden truths about this supposed utopian society. Her very existence and lack of acknowledgment prior to this feature set just this with the stories Odin tells about the great battles Asgardians fought versus the reality of what occurred from a less sanitized point of view. Obvious parallels can be taken from the way we can examine our American history and the horrors that served as the foundation and formation of our civilization. It makes Hela a somewhat sympathetic character as she returns with her side of the story. It also does not hurt to have Cate Blanchett in the role bringing her eternal greatness with her. She enters the cinematic universe and very quickly reaches the top of the rankings of the greatest villains the franchise has to offer.
Much of the time in this feature gets spent in Sakaar where Thor interacts with Hulk and new characters like Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum), and the wonderful Korg voiced by Taika Waititi himself. Korg instantly became a favorite because of Waititi lending his voice and landing his comedic delivery with perfection. To this day I still randomly quote “Piss off, Ghost” as everything this character does in this feature lands incredibly well. On Sakaar, we get exposure to a different planet and how it operates compared to Asgard allowing for an expansion of these worlds in a fun manner. We get the fight between Thor and Hulk along with the establishment of the tone this feature wants to operate within its fun-loving manner.
On top of everything this feature does on a narrative level, the team behind this movie decided they wanted to ditch the very drab visuals of the previous film and go all-out with the colors. Just comparing the posters alone shows the major shift and we get some wonderful shots in this feature whether it be from the Valkyrie attacking Hela or pretty much everything else Hela tries to do in this feature, it all feels like quite the step up for this trilogy and the entire franchise as a whole. It comes in as if the creative team decided to switch the knob on the television to allow for more color to enter the frame.
For as much criticism gets levied against Taika Waititi once he fully entered the Hollywood playground, he does a stellar job in completely resurrecting this trilogy with Thor: Ragnarok. Such a bold move away from what we know about Thor fully goes all in with acknowledging not only the inherent silliness of its characters but also allowing for a darker exploration of the supposedly perfect Asgard. All of this comes together through Hela who makes her introduction to this franchise in style and leaves quite the impression in representing the black sheep of this family and quite the threat to Asgard specifically and not some universe-ending cataclysmic event. The film raises the stakes in a more meaningful manner. To get to something better this feature completely breaks everything we’ve seen about these self-serious characters and their surroundings stripped down and allows for something refreshingly new and unequivocally more entertaining as a whole.
Films with Josh 
