It’s safe to safe that the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been on fairly shaky ground since the heady heights of Avengers: Endgame way back in 2019. Don’t get me wrong, there have been some undeniably strong offerings in the last six years, but the vast majority have fallen into the “just okay” category, with more than a few being just plain awful.

Enter Thunderbolts*, which sees director Jake Schreier adopting the time-tested formula of having likeable characters doing interesting and exciting things in a logical and relatable way. Shocker, right? Blending action and comedy effectively, Schreier wisely shies away from bloated CGI and convoluted multiversal nonsense, delivering a thoroughly enjoyable conclusion to the MCU’s Phase Five that is way more than the sum of its individual parts.

The cast is solid, if perhaps a little underwhelming on paper, but the undeniable chemistry between the ensemble offering does a great job of reeling the audience in and making them become rapidly invested in this loveable band of misfits. Florence Pugh (Yelena Belova) does the bulk of the heavy lifting in terms of the acting, and continues to show an impressive knack for deadpan comedic delivery. Her Belova has been immensely likeable since her first MCU appearance, and serves a brilliant centrepiece for the new “team”.

David Harbour (Alexi Shostakov/Red Guardian) provides most of the big laughs along the way, but also shows some nuanced acting chops himself, particularly during one emotional exchange late in the film with Pugh. Wyatt Russell’s John Walker/U.S. Agent is way more entertaining here than he was in The Falcon & The Winter Soldier (which admittedly isn’t saying much), with a nice blend of dry humour and pathos. Surprisingly, Sebastian Stan isn’t given a huge amount to do other than look pretty and beat people up, which seems like a bit of a waste for the Best Actor Academy Award nominee, but hey, at least he does both of those things very well. Hannah John-Kamen’s Ava Starr/Ghost is about as interesting as she was back in Ant-Man & The Wasp, which is a bit of a shame. However, it’s MCU newcomer Lewis Pullman who pretty much steals the show (outside of Hugh) with a blistering turn as Robert “Bob” Reynolds, blending bipolar depression with everyman likeability in an unexpectedly captivating performance.

The action is top notch throughout, particularly the close-quarters combat sequences where Schreier really shines, making things feel suitably claustrophobic while maintaining the kind of fluidity you’d expect from trained killers and soldiers. The “Sentry” sequence in particular is absolutely stunning, and is easily the standout for the entire movie. Oh, and outside of some falling rubble I’m happy to report that we managed to avoid the classic “massive CGI thing falling from the sky in the third act” trope. Progress!

Thunderbolts* isn’t without it’s flaws, though. Like a lot of MCU offerings over the years, it does presuppose a significant amount of prior knowledge from previous movies and TV shows. In this case, Black Widow and The Falcon & The Winter Soldier should be considered fairly essential, which could be viewed as a bit of a challenge given how poorly received both were. It’s also worth noting that, as good as she is in the role, Julia-Louise Dreyfuss’ Valentina Allegra de Fontaine is a fairly paper-thin antagonist without anything in the way of nuance or depth.

Overall though, this feels like a massive breath of fresh air for the MCU as a whole, and both Schreier and the entire cast should be commended for taking a collection of, let’s be honest, C-list characters and moulding them into such a likeable and captivating team. Hell, even the post credit scenes (well, the second one anyway) feel like a throwback to the good ol’ days, giving us a brilliant “ooooooh” moment that, vitally, WE KNOW WILL ACTUALLY BE PAID OFF!! Ahem. If this is going to be the new direction of the MCU heading into Phase 6 – a phase which features the long-awaited arrival of both the Fantastic Four and the X-Men, not to mention RDJ’s headline-grabbing appointment as Doctor Doom – then you can 100% count me in.  More of this, please.

Rating: 4/5.

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The writer of this piece was: Craig Neilson-Adams (aka Ceej)
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