If you could live inside Taika Waititi's head, you'd see what we mean. Waititi's bright, boisterous, hilarious, and completely changed the film interpretation of the character, is what fans think of when they hear the name Waititi. He won an Oscar for writing the World War II set Jojo Rabbit and co-created the comedy What We Do in the Shadows. There is a lot going on in his brain, most of it is very good, but it must be a little bit disorganized. What could it not be?
Waititi and Robinson wrote Love and Thunder after the events of the movie. Chris Hemsworth is the god of thunder and he doesn't know what he wants to do. He finds that purpose in the pursuit of a cursed being who wants to kill all Gods in the universe. The quest leads him back to Earth and New Asgard, where he learns that his old hammer, Mjolnir, has chosen a new one. Foster, a.k.a., is one of the three characters in the movie "Thrones". The mighty thor set off on an adventure to win the war.
There is a lot of moving parts in Love and Thunder. Waititi tries to keep the story focused while he starts the film with Gorr. It isn't that successful at the beginning. Action scenes serve to entertain and not necessarily drive the story but, by their nature, step away from the narrative. There are some scenes that feel like they came from a different movie. I was worried that everything would go off the rails because of the cameos.
The opposite occurs for most of the time. A clear path is given to the movie by the evil actions of Gorr. There are still a few scenes that are more about fun than the story, such as the one featuring RussellCrowe as Zeus. Having Foster, as well as Korg, played by Waititi, together on an adventure is a great way to end the movie. The film takes its best pivot when the characters get interesting interactions with each other. After a lot of stops and stalls, we finally get a good look at the relationship between Jane andThor. The interactions have a brutal, awkward honesty that makes them both lovable. The adventure road trip becomes a touching love story because of this.
Most of the film's success is due to the cast, who do a masterful job of balancing the bullseye Waititi is after Bale's Gorr went from terrifying to hilarious in a matter of seconds. Portman's Foster is exciting and sad at the same time. Even though he is happy-go-lucky and has enough tension in the performance that he could burst into sad tears at any point, he has to be more than happy-go-lucky and have enough tension in the performance that he can break into sad tears at any point. The anchor for the group is Thompson's Valkyrie, she has her shit together the most, and Waititi's Korg is, well, Korg.
Waititi has a wide range of directorial choices as the characters move along. A late-second act scene can be confusing for some fans. The film has one, not two, not three, but four Guns N' Roses songs, all of which work, but can also become repetitive and obvious. There are some off-the-wall choices in the film that add to it. It's obvious that Waititi went all out here and a bit more restraint could have given the film a welcome sprinkle of focus.
The film's third act really delivers on all fronts, the best of which is how emotional and powerful it is. The ending makes us forget the film's earlier issues in a satisfying way. The ending is great and leaves us feeling great.
It is not as cohesive or propulsive as the other one, but it is more ambitious and emotional. Even when parts of the film don't line up with the others, the cast is always entertaining to watch. There are times where you will think, times when you will cheer, and times when you will cry. The destination is well worth the ride at times.
On July 8th, there will be a movie called THOR: LOVE AND THUD.
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