Mild Enjoyment and Thunder

Some time after the first two dull-to-dreadful Thor movies, Marvel executives figured out that Chris Hemsworth is actually really funny. Taiki Waititi was put in charge of the third movie, Ragnarok, and just like that, we finally got a good Thor movie. With the return of Waititi, I was generally excited to see what he'd do with the latest, Thor: Love and Thunder -- particular given that he officially co-wrote this installment.

I guess lightning doesn't strike twice. In fairness, the new fourth Thor movie is still markedly better than the first or second movies. But it's a noticeable step down from the third.

In the plus column, humor still rules the roost in Love and Thunder. Much of the movie is played for laughs. Chris Hemsworth is put front and center for most of the comedy, and he continues to do great with it. This movie has a commitment to running gags that's commendable -- one in particular, surrounding a "gift" Thor receives in the opening scenes, keeps coming back again and again and again throughout the movie. It runs the course that all great running gags do, ceasing to be funny before circling back around and being hilarious.

Another plus is that the movie is generally not just funny, but fun. It's no secret that Natalie Portman returns to the MCU after having previously stepped away. It's also no secret that Christian Bale is in the cast -- though you might well have imagined he'd put comic book movies behind him after the Dark Knight trilogy. This almost anarchic sense of "wait, what are you doing here?" runs through the movie's entire two hours, with surprisingly cast minor characters and cameos aplenty.

But honestly, not much else about the movie truly works. Character motivations are tissue-thin, and while there are emotional stakes at play in the narrative, they don't integrate particularly well with the action so much as step out of the way when it's time to fight. And all of those fights are typical, visually noisy CG. Yes, all the MCU films have that, but occasionally one rises above the obligatory to actually make you feel like what you're seeing matters. This isn't one of those cases.

Perhaps it's a case of familiarity breeding some contempt? I say that because the plot of this movie is shockingly similar to the MCU movie we just got, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Both movies feature superheroes whose powers are fundamentally "magic." Both feature a villain motivated by the loss of a child. Both feature a central hero pining for a love interest who has moved on from him. Both revolve around threats to children as a major element of jeopardy. I'd actually say Thor: Love and Thunder has the stronger emotional climax, but after sitting through so many similar plot beats to get there, I wasn't truly that impressed.

Ultimately, whether you'll like this movie may come down to your willingness to be charmed. Because this movie is certainly an all-out charm offensive. Chris Hemsworth, Tessa Thompson, and Natalie Portman all do their best to win you over despite a middling script. And I'd say I was won over enough to put this on just the up side of a recommendation: I'd call it a B-. But I would say if you didn't rush out to see it already, this is one you could (even should) wait to catch upon its inevitable arrival on Disney+.