By Chris Snellgrove
| Published
When Thor: Love and Thunder came out, I was as disappointed as most Marvel fans who wanted more of the impeccably weird, impeccably cozy vibes of Thor: Ragnarok. Certainly, director Taika Waititi’s sophomore superhero effort isn’t quite as good as Ragnarok, but it’s not nearly as bad as the haters make it out to be. And as I have been re-reading old Thor comics, it occurred to me that this movie is much better than its reputation and far better than other MCU films which haven’t garnered nearly as much heat from the fans.
Following Ragnarok
First, let’s start with the hard truth: critics almost universally agree that Thor: Love and Thunder was a disappointing follow-up film. On Rotten Tomatoes, Love and Thunder has a 63 percent rating, meaning that it’s perilously close to being…well, rotten. Meanwhile, Ragnarok is riding high on the Asgardian throne with a 93 percent critical score. If these two movies were precocious young gods attending school in Asgard, Ragnarok would be the prize student while Love and Thunder would be the class clown that barely passes the class, let alone the assignment.
I’m ripping the Band-Aid off right now because I don’t want any of you to think I am saying Love and Thunder is better than Ragnarok, which effortlessly combined humor and action while leaning heavily on the comedic chops of Chris Hemsworth (it turns out they are just as developed as the rest of his muscles). However, this fourth Thor film is infinitely better than Thor 2, a movie that simultaneously managed to squander the talents of both Chris Eccleston and Natalie Portman. For that matter, Taika Waititi deserves full credit for getting Portman back into the MCU in a significant way via Love and Thunder.
Compared To Iron Man 3
Additionally, while I personally love the film (Shane Black can do no wrong in my eyes), Iron Man 3 is considered an early MCU dud, one that many fans revile for (among other things) squandering the reveal of the Mandarin. Common criticisms of Thor: Love and Thunder include that it’s a bit too goofy, but ask yourself: are a few too many jokes in this film really more cringeworthy than Ben Kingsley’s terrorist mastermind being revealed as a junkie actor? Plus, even I have to admit that Love and Thunder has a straightforward plot (albeit an uneven tone) while Iron Man 3’s plot is a convoluted mess.
Plus, while this is obviously completely subjective, I can’t help but feel like Waititi’s big, creative swings in Thor: Love and Thunder led to more memorable moments than we have had with most modern Marvel movies. Like, the screaming goats are annoying and the whole “Jane has cancer” plot was bracing, but almost every frame of this Asgardian adventure is more memorable than anything I saw in Black Widow or Shang-Chi. And this Thor movie is likely to leave you smiling and cheering…just compare that to movies like Quantumania that leave you confused or Eternals that just put you to sleep.
Not Perfect But Not Bad
Again, none of this is to say Thor: Love and Thunder is a flawless film…it really is a tonal mess, and things like Jane dying and Gorr’s tragic backstory seem insane next to scenes of Chris Hemsworth getting his clothing zapped off. But I can’t help but grade films on the entirety of their merits (it’s literally my job!), and it turns out that a collection of tonally mixed but memorable scenes adds up to a memorable and (most importantly) enjoyable movie. The fact that I didn’t have to watch anything on Disney+ for “homework” before tuning in is just the Frost Giant icing on the cake.
If you decide to revisit Thor: Love and Thunder, you might just find it a refreshing respite from the endless slew of holiday programming. Plus, if you’ve been disillusioned by modern Marvel outside of Deadpool & Wolverine, it’s great to return to a comic book classic that’s better than you remember. If we can accept Tony Stark being flawed but brilliant, then it’s certainly time to accept that about Thor’s most-maligned cinematic outing.
Thor: Love and Thunder is available to stream on Disney+.
