Thor: Raganok. (12A.)
Directed by Taiki Waititi.
Starring Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Mark Ruffalo, Cate Blanchett, Tessa Thompson, Jeff Goldblum, Idris Elba, Karl Urban and Anthony Hopkins. 130 mins.
The thing about Disney's Wonderful World of Marvel movies is that they like a laugh. Right from the start, with Iron Man, there was a certain lightheartedness, an acceptance that these men-in-tights epics needed to be played a little tongue in cheek. They are called comic books after all. Thor 3 is possibly their funniest film yet: it's a marvellous comedy, but maybe not such a marvellous superhero flick.
In choosing the offbeat New Zealand indie director Taiki Waitaki (Hunt for the Wilderpeople, What We Do In The Shadows) Marvel managed to do something that had previously seemed impossible: they made a Thor film anticipated. The previous two had seen a group of engaging characters gradually got lost in the back and forth between the lively fish-out-water fun on Earth and the po-faced Middle Earth theatrics of Asgard. This third instalment is set almost entirely off earth, but Waitiki has been so vigorous in his loosening up of everything that it makes Guardians of the Galaxy look earnest. He has also written himself the best role: a Thing type rock monster who has his distinctive upbeat deadpan comic delivery. "I tried to start a revolution... but I didn't print enough pamphlets.”
Which is all good fun, but Ragnarok (which you should always say in the style of a classic era Yeevining Stannard street vendor) is Norse mythology's book of revelations and the force of this impending apocalypse is considerably lessened if everybody's playing it for laughs. Hiddleston's Loki is more comic sidekick than villain. Hemsworth is very funny as Thor, though at certain times his delivery is eerily reminiscent of David Brent. Even evil baddy Blanchett is always at it with the wisecracks. She is supposed to be a Goddess of Death but she's the life and soul of the party.
Of course, all this is fine by me: it's a Thor film that might bear repeat viewing and that will do for me. But it doesn't have the fantastic balance between fun and reverence that the first Avengers movie had. A lot of the humour is about cutting the characters down to size, pricking the pomposity of their mythology. Here though the characters have been cut down so far they are beginning not to seem worthy of the big stages they are on. In fact, it gets very close to a send-up. On the Batman scale, Thor is now much closer to Adam West than Christian Bale.
Directed by Taiki Waititi.
Starring Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Mark Ruffalo, Cate Blanchett, Tessa Thompson, Jeff Goldblum, Idris Elba, Karl Urban and Anthony Hopkins. 130 mins.
The thing about Disney's Wonderful World of Marvel movies is that they like a laugh. Right from the start, with Iron Man, there was a certain lightheartedness, an acceptance that these men-in-tights epics needed to be played a little tongue in cheek. They are called comic books after all. Thor 3 is possibly their funniest film yet: it's a marvellous comedy, but maybe not such a marvellous superhero flick.
In choosing the offbeat New Zealand indie director Taiki Waitaki (Hunt for the Wilderpeople, What We Do In The Shadows) Marvel managed to do something that had previously seemed impossible: they made a Thor film anticipated. The previous two had seen a group of engaging characters gradually got lost in the back and forth between the lively fish-out-water fun on Earth and the po-faced Middle Earth theatrics of Asgard. This third instalment is set almost entirely off earth, but Waitiki has been so vigorous in his loosening up of everything that it makes Guardians of the Galaxy look earnest. He has also written himself the best role: a Thing type rock monster who has his distinctive upbeat deadpan comic delivery. "I tried to start a revolution... but I didn't print enough pamphlets.”
Which is all good fun, but Ragnarok (which you should always say in the style of a classic era Yeevining Stannard street vendor) is Norse mythology's book of revelations and the force of this impending apocalypse is considerably lessened if everybody's playing it for laughs. Hiddleston's Loki is more comic sidekick than villain. Hemsworth is very funny as Thor, though at certain times his delivery is eerily reminiscent of David Brent. Even evil baddy Blanchett is always at it with the wisecracks. She is supposed to be a Goddess of Death but she's the life and soul of the party.
Of course, all this is fine by me: it's a Thor film that might bear repeat viewing and that will do for me. But it doesn't have the fantastic balance between fun and reverence that the first Avengers movie had. A lot of the humour is about cutting the characters down to size, pricking the pomposity of their mythology. Here though the characters have been cut down so far they are beginning not to seem worthy of the big stages they are on. In fact, it gets very close to a send-up. On the Batman scale, Thor is now much closer to Adam West than Christian Bale.
