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Thor Ragnarok: Review

Not only my film of the year, but Marvel's best film to date.

By The One True GeekologyPublished 6 years ago 3 min read
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When the trailer first hit for the third in the Thor trilogy, the internet was set alight with excitement and anticipation. Taking potential cues from Guardians of the Galaxy, Thor's moved into a more light-hearted and cosmic setting for what will likely be his final solo outing.

I wasn't overly familiar with Taika Waititi's work prior to this. I had enjoyed the dry humour of What We Do In The Shadows, but I could hardly be called a big fan of his, simply due to my lack of familiarity with his work. That being said, this has roped me in as a believer in both his directorial abilities and his comic genius.

The story focuses around the Norse prophecy of Ragnarok, the end of all things, or in the MCU, the fall of Asgard. Hela, the Goddess of Death, played fantastically by Cate Blanchett, appears to bring Asgard down and rain death and destruction upon all of the Nine Realms. Asgard is left virtually defenceless, however, as the Lord of Thunder finds himself stranded on an alien planet called Sakaar, forced into gladiatorial combat with his former work colleague, The Hulk.

Powerless and trapped, Thor must find his way off the planet and back to Asgard before it's too late. All he needs is a little help from his friends: The Revengers.

The marketing for the film from the offset was always quite quirky, colourful and just promoted a feeling of fun that got people pumped. This wasn't just clever marketing though, as that quirkiness, that colour, and the fun resonates throughout the film's two-plus hour runtime. The jokes come thick and fast and the chemistry between all involved works tremendously well. Giving Thor an 80s sci-fi vibe was probably one of the more enjoyable aspects of the film, although my own personal favourite moment was a nice little homage to Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.

Chris Hemsworth has played the Thor character for six years, and each time I see him on screen I find him to appear more and more comfortable in the role of this character. Perhaps initially he may have just been cast for fitting the Thor "look," but he has made the character his own. Developing his own charm and charisma, Ragnarok potentially presents Thor at his most likable.

Fan favourite, Tom Hiddleston also makes his return to the series as the God of Mischief, Loki. There's a sinister, but charming arrogance brought to the Loki character that makes you both loath and root for him. I would argue too that only Hiddleston really could have ever done this type of character real justice. I mean, he has one of those faces, you know?

One of the biggest selling points of the series though is the return of Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner/Hulk. Not seen since the end of Age of Ultron, it was wonderful to see the return of this character in all his green rage glory. Breaking into the gladiatorial dome, Hulk is let loose to smash anyone in his path, and Thor is first reunited with his old friend de-powered and still pretty shook by his first encounter with Hela.

While an important character in driving the story forward, Jeff Goldblum's Grandmaster doesn't bare much significance to the overarching story of the MCU that Ragnarok is moving toward, yet he still makes a fine addition to the ever-growing roster of MCU characters. If anything, such a character was made for Goldblum, the ridiculous eccentricities are what have made Goldblum such a popular actor over the years, and he simply falls into this role perfectly.

This is fundamentally a Marvel comics film through and through. Over the years of the MCU we have seen a gradual acceptance of the more cosmic and comic book absurdity that made Marvel so popular. Ragnarok is a love-letter to the fans of the cinematic universe and the comic books alike. It embraces the geekier aspects of a film with such cosmic scope and outrageousness. An incredible film that had me laughing out loud throughout, but also managed to have me invested in the journeys of the individual characters.

Score: 9/10

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About the Creator

The One True Geekology

"Strange women lying in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a system of government." - Dennis the Peasant

Come find us at itsgeekology.com/collective and www.facebook.com/itsgeekology/

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