Movie Review – Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

It’s quite fitting that the immortal space Viking (Chris Hemsworth) is the first MCU hero to have more than a trilogy for his story. Given the radical changes to Thor introduced in 2017’s Thor: Ragnarök, Taika Waititi has returned to take the God of Thunder on another adventure. And this time we’ve got more Thor’s than ever before as Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) has taken up Thor’s hammer as the Mighty Thor. But with two Thor’s means more danger than ever, as Gorr the God Butcher (Christian Bale) has begun a killing spree across the cosmos, one that can only be stopped by the might of Thor.

Love and Thunder is an interesting film for the Thor series, as it is absolutely the next part of the Ragnarök story. Taika Waititi’s version of Thor is on full display here with all the silliness and sincerity that Hemsworth can bring, and he continues to make this role completely his own. From the fact that Thor now has two giant goats that fly him through space, to the fact that Thor is in a form of a love triangle with his current weapon Stormbreaker and his old hammer Mjolnir, Hemsworth runs with this material, making what would be utterly absurd ideas workable. For my money, that’s this film’s real strength. Yes, it’s absurd at times, but it knows it and runs with it.

This frequently silly tone ends up contrasting nicely against Gorr the God Butcher. Christian Bale provides a wonderful performance for our antagonist. Genuinely creepy, whilst at points being funny and moving, Gorr works wonders in this film, giving Thor and The Mighty Thor an antagonist that is both their physical equal but is also able to get under their skin. In a film that shifts tone often and doesn’t always succeed, Gorr is a clear highlight.

The other new addition to this film, or should I say return, is Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) finally becoming The Mighty Thor. This change to the status quo, while key to the film, isn’t the most developed section, unfortunately. Jane’s multi-series saga as the mighty Thor is summed up in a two-hour film, which ends up leaves it feeling rather short-changed. It’s not the actor’s fault, but a two hour run time at points hurts such a vital story.

Ultimately, Thor: Love and Thunder is filled with so many fun and engaging ideas that you’re almost guaranteed to find one you enjoy. The jokes are a mile a minute and the story keeps adding twists and other fun ideas, such as Russell Crowe, who makes a hilarious addition to the cast as Zeus, and so much more. It’s not perfect, but if you want fun, you’ll definitely find it here.

Rating 4/5.

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The writer of this piece was: Jonathan Mullen
Jonathan Tweets from @JonathanDMullen ‏

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