Cast: Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Cate Blanchett, Tom Hiddleston, Tessa Thompson, Jeff Goldblum, Idris Elba, Karl Urban, Anthony Hopkins, Benedict Cumberbatch
Director: Taika Waititi
When you hit rock bottom, the only way ahead s up. And that will make for a great story. These are the stories that become crowd favourites. Unfortunately, the euphoria over the upward swing often masks the miles that need to be tread before reaching the top. Remember the first movie you read about in this series. It was the worst. The legend of Thor was in danger of dying. Even though Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston were among the most-liked actors in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it didn’t seem like they could headline a movie on their own.
Nobody was looking forward to another Thor movie. The hiring of indie director Taika Waititi raised a few eyebrows, but it seemed he would be a big budget casualty. Then the first trailer landed. Suddenly, Thor Ragnarok was the most awaited movie of the year. For most of us. The film couldn’t come fast enough. Of course, it was a crying shame that Natalie Portman was no longer in the picture. But were we looking at something that would top Guardians of Galaxy in pure fun quotient?
Thor (Hemsworth) finds out that his father Odin (Hopkins) is no longer in Asgard. He catches his brother Loki (Hiddleston) in charge. The two of them seek out Odin. With a little help from Dr Strange (Cumberbatch) they find him in, of all places, Norway. Odin knows his end is near. He also reveals the existence of an elder sister Hela (Blanchett) to them. His death would free her from where she was imprisoned and she would come to lay claim to Asgard. The prophesied Ragnarok or End of Days was coming.
After a brief, shattering battle with Hela where he loses an eye and a hammer, Thor finds himself in the wasteland of Sakaar. He is captured by a drunken slave trader (Thompson) who sells him to the Grandmaster (Goldblum), who, in turn, sends him to fight in an arena. Clearly, the Grandmaster has seen Ridley Scott’s Gladiator. But guess the joy (albeit short-lived) when Thor discovers his opponent is a friend from work!
Meanwhile, in Asgard, Hela enlists Skurge (Urban), an Asgardian version of the Punisher, to take over the planet. Heimdall (Elba) the former gatekeeper of Asgard is now working as a guerrilla warrior, saving as many people from Hela’s wrath. Will Thor return in time to save his people?
Getting Cate Blanchett was a coup on par with getting Robert Redford. Unfortunately the character is so one-dimensional that one of our greatest actresses is reduced to hamming. Idris Elba has a much meatier role and that is definitely a plus. Tessa Thompson is great. A scene during the climactic battle where she swaggers to the enemy with a sword in her hand and fireworks bursting behind her is probably the sexiest in the MCU. The rehabilitation of Loki continues as he moves more to the side of the good guys. Unfortunately, this is lessening what we loved about Tom Hiddleston in the first place.
Ragnarok has a lot going for it. It is funny in most part. It’s not remotely as bleak as the Dark World. I guess not being in London has its benefits! The performances are breezier. The plot has parts lifted from multiple comics storylines. It introduces a few memorable characters, not the least is Korg, an alien version of The Thing from Fantastic Four, voiced hilariously by director Waititi. The bright palette of colours gives a vibrancy that was missing in the earlier movies.
Unfortunately, the story is not as extraordinary as the stylistics are. Ragnarok is good, but it is not as good as the reaction to the movie indicates. The Last World was the worst Marvel movie till date. Anything better than it has a lot of other movies to cross before reaching the top echelons. Ragnarok tries, but it doesn’t quite reach there. It maybe the end of days, but definitely not the end of the list.
Stan Lee cameo: Stan the barber! Breaking a million hearts.
Post-credits scene: The first one is scary. For those who were following the series, this was proof that the real end of days was near. Rarely has a spaceship been this scary. Then they had to spoil the effect by inserting a really useless scene. Marvel is really testing our patience.
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