We enjoy such divine weather. However, soon the sunshine is replaced by mighty thunder. Because Chris Hemsworth returns as the god from the far north in Thor: Love and Thunder.
And this time, our beloved Norse god not only meets his counterpart from Greek mythology. Moreover, he meets a really nasty opponent from the shadow world, Gorr, the slayer of the gods! But one after another.
THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER – THE STORY
After Thor initially got stuck in Avengers: End Game due to the many personal losses and his own failure to defeat Thanos, he, fortunately, found his old strength back in the course of the events. Now he is trying to find his inner self even further through meditation. But just meditating is, of course, much too boring for a god. Thus, Thor is still with the Guardians of the Galaxy. He feels comfortable with them. However, Star-Lord and his team see things differently. To put it mildly. Because they are getting annoyed with the invincible god who considers himself the team’s boss.
So, it suits everyone well that Thor is drawn back to New Asgard. This is the place on earth where his people settled after the ancient kingdom was destroyed by Thor’s sister Hela and the evil fire demon Surtur. King Valkyrie rules New Asgard today. She loves her people and is aware of her responsibility. But, she too is bored with her tasks. After all, she is the last survivor of her kind.
For those interested… The none valr refers to the slain on the battlefield, and the verb kjósa means “to choose”. So, the Valkyries chose the warriors who died honorably in a battle to bring them to the sacred halls of Valhalla, where, like in Paradise, they may spend the rest of eternity.
Valkyrie misses her sisters. More than that, she misses the fight. That changes with Thor’s return, as Gorr and his shadowy creatures invade New Asgard and kidnap the city’s children. In the fray, Thor meets his ex, the scientist Jane Foster, whom he hardly recognizes.
Because Jane has mysteriously turned into Mighty Thor. She now commands Thor’s old pal, his beloved hammer Mjölnir. This was once destroyed by his sister Hela. Well, reunited, two old loves kindle while there’s a mighty thunder.
TAIKA WAITITI CREATES A REAL GENRE MIX
Thor: Love and Thunder is totally insane but in the most positive way. Taika Waititi and his team play with the extremes. This doesn’t just mean the countless effects and action sequences. No, much more, Thor: Love and Thunder simply moves on an incredible number of levels.
On the one hand, it is a homage to cinema and music. Right from the start, the Marvel theme comes as a hard-rock version. A few songs by Guns N’ Roses follow. Then, they are replaced very “harmonically”, i.e. abruptly, by Enya’s Celtic sounds and ABBA’s pop ballads. This funny music mix alone puts a smile on the faces of lovers of wacky action films.
In addition, of course, film enthusiasts will also be more than happy. Actually, competitions could be announced, who finds the most Easter eggs in Thor: Love and Thunder. One of the many hidden references to other films can be revealed in advance without spoilers. There is a cocktail bar on the Viking ship, which is pulled by the film’s actual shooting – or better thunder – stars, the funny goats. The “Cocktails & Dreams” logo on the bar comes from the Tom Cruise film “Cocktail” from 1989. And such absurd, and therefore ultra-funny, links run through the entire movie.
Furthermore, Thor: Love and Thunder is a real romance film, and that too on many levels. On the one hand, it’s about real friendship. It’s about trust and letting go if you have to. Especially regarding the latter, it gets very emotional. So emotional that we are not used to experiencing it from an action blockbuster. The feelings go really deep, and, most of all, they are authentic. However, you should at least have seen Thor and Thor: The Dark World. So, you can better understand and empathize with the connection between the god and Jane. And so, we come to…
THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER GOES DEEP
It’s no secret that Thor’s great love, Jane, is suffering from cancer. The question the film indirectly asks is, how far should I go to resist my fate. Or should I submit to it as long as I have my own powers? Certainly, this is a very complex, extremely difficult, and individual issue. Still, it’s very interesting what kind of romantic response Thor: Love and Thunder finds to that question.
The film also plays with the empowerment of the youth. Because the new generation is our all future. Therefore, we must do our utmost to help the youth worldwide develop their potential. We must give them trust and strength to save our one world, the real one. Thor: Love and Thunder shows how this can be achieved in a super emotional and haunting way.
Furthermore, as in many Marvel films, the villain in Thor: Love and Thunder is not actually evil. Actually, Gorr was a good person. However, he is hurt because he lost the person, he loved the most. He thinks that the gods are very selfish. Moreover, instead of caring for their people, the gods abandon them to their fate or even sacrifice them at will.
That’s why Gorr wants revenge on all the gods. A magical sword helps him on his revenge campaign against which even Thor and his Stormbreaker are powerless. The next question that Thor: Love and Thunder raises is whether revenge is really evil and reprehensible. Many of us would act similarly if our hearts were cut out of our loaf – symbolically, of course. Lately, we have been experiencing this in reality since February 24, 2022. Hence, if you have a heart and a close connection to those people in Ukraine, who got into such a terrible situation through no fault of their own, it’s difficult to resist a certain resentment and desire for revenge.
In addition, each of us has probably already had the experience of getting lost and following the wrong path. Realizing, no matter how early or how late it may be, that we were wrong is what makes us human. Nobody is perfect! So Gorr’s actual intention is quite understandable. And yet he is one of those villains that will stay in our memories for a long time. Because hardly anyone before him is as dark and at the same time as human as he is. And so we come to the cast.
THE CHARCTER(S) OF THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER
GORR THE GOD BUTCHER AKA CHRISTIAN BALE
Bale plays the sinister Gorr in such an impressive way. As Natalie Portman confirmed in an interview, even the crew on the set got goosebumps at Bale’s performance. Bale is totally immersed in the role. And, even more extreme, we don’t recognize that it’s Christian Bale.
The brilliant actor amazed us with his outstanding talent for the first time at the age of thirteen in “Empire of the Sun”. Later, he impressed us with film highlights such as “American Psycho”, American Hustle, Equilibrium, and, of course, Batman. In Thor: Love and Thunder, Bale manages to humanize a villain so much that, despite his actions, we really can’t be angry with him.
Christian Bale and Marvel master this balancing act perfectly. Because even Thanos wasn’t just evil. His views were understandable, and his naivety was human in a way.
THOR AKA CHRIS HEMSWORTH
The lovable thunder god had already undergone an image change in Thor: Ragnarok. Then, he changed from Super Man to a somewhat naïve, heart-driven boy. Thor exudes so much sympathy that, as soon as he appears on screen, you can’t stop smiling. Up to those moments when he opens his heart and, contrary to a god, shows a lot of humanity. Thor takes us on an emotional rollercoaster as he naively assumes that all, human and god, must work together to defeat evil. What a beautiful message, which is probably addressed to all of us.
And, of course, Chris Hemsworth literally hammers us off our chairs. It was fortunate that he and Taika met. Because the New Zealand director also gets the best out of the Australian actor in Thor: Love and Thunder. And this also on many levels.
On the one hand, Chris is, of course, super sexy. Even men recognize this without envy.
Hemsworth exudes a charm that is second to none. This is because Taika took his mask off at the beginning of Thor: Ragnarok. He doesn’t let Chris play Thor. Rather, he merges Thor and Chris together. That’s why the god of thunder seems so human, approachable, funny, and adorable.
The result is an authentic hero who often makes mistakes and never takes himself too seriously. A cheeky boy with a big heart in the body of a mighty giant. It doesn’t get any better than that. When this giant gets naked, it’s not just Zeus’ muses who faint. That much is certain.
Chris Hemsworth is quite simply Thor. He grows more and more into this role with every new adventure. This is how he establishes himself as the most powerful Avenger of all time. Because no one before him has had 4 of his own films produced by Marvel. Well, Spider-Man now has eight, but always with a different cast. Chris’ charm and humor should definitely be good for many more Thor adventures until he goes to Valhalla forever.
JANE FOSTER AKA NATALIE PORTMAN
Thor’s ex, Jane, not only fights against Gorr but, above all, cancer. She hopes Thor’s former hammer, Mjölnir, can stop the disease. As Mighty Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder, she also gets an impression of what it feels like to be a superhero. Therefore, she recognizes the responsibility that comes with this power. Even if she doesn’t want to see it herself, her greatest wish is to be able to spend a few more moments with her beloved Asgard boy.
We know Natalie Portman from Léon: The Professional, Black Swan, Star Wars, and many other films. In the first two Thor films, she played the clever but somewhat one-dimensional scientist Jane Foster. As such, she allowed Thor to overwhelm her with his power at the time. Now she overpowers him and even defies him. Moreover, she controls Thor’s hammer Mjölnir.
MJÖLNIR & STORMBREAKER
By Thor’s Hammer. Since the dwarf Eitri developed the Stormbreaker in Avengers: End Game, this powerful ax has not left Thor’s side. In Thor: Love and Thunder, not only Thor’s ex, Jane, comes back into play. But also his beloved hammer, Mjölnir, returns. Let yourself be surprised if this leads to jealousy between the two superweapons.
KORG AKA TAIKA WAITITI
The mighty Kronan is still Thor’s most loyal friend. In Thor: Love and Thunder, he also plays the storyteller who keeps confusing Jane’s name with stars from our real universe.
Korg is a colossus and – at the same time – a good creature. He is willing to sacrifice himself for his friends. The humor that makes Korg so endearing, among other things, is no accident. After all, director and writer Taika plays Korg himself. Therefore, it’s going to be funny and a little crazy.
VALKYRIE AKA TESSA THOMPSON
As previously mentioned, Valkyrie longs for the good old days, when she could fulfill her destiny of leading heroes who died in battle to Valhalla. Well, as Queen of New Asgard, she advertises, opens malls, etc. Not quite what a warrior wants to do. So, the threat of Gorr comes at just the right time for her. Besides, Valkyrie is queer. Authentically, without following a trend, the MCU expands to include fictional yet realistic characters that reflect our real lives.
ZEUS AKA RUSSEL CROWE
Thor’s Greek counterpart is Zeus. However, Zeus sees himself as the ruler of lightning rather than thunder. He performs a few tricks with his lightning bolt to impress his underlings. Zeus enjoys the divine life in the hidden kingdom of the gods in the lap of luxury. With all the luxuries and beautiful muses that surround him, if he’s excited about his biggest fan’s idea of fighting Gorr together, you’ll see in Thor: Love and Thunder.
Russel Crowe had his breakthrough role as Maximus in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator 22 years ago. In a similar costume, he now embodies the Greek god Zeus with great devotion. Russel Crowe shows that he’s not just a master of drama and action. In addition, he also masters the fine art of comedy. The Muses, Dionysus, and the other Greek gods will be happy.
GORR’S DAUGHTER AKA INDIA ROSE HEMSWORTH
A particular highlight is that in Thor: Love and Thunder, the MCU introduces a new heroine, Gorr’s daughter. None other than the sweet India Rose Hemsworth, Chri’s daughter, stars in this role. Therefore, the final scene, in particular, is a film highlight. If that’s the way the Hemsworths are at home, we’d love to play mouse to follow the hustle and bustle of the Hemsworths at home.
THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER REVIEW
Thor: Love and Thunder is simply awesome. It’s not a movie. It’s epic. A masterpiece that doesn’t play with Norse mythology but is a respectful and humorous homage to the Nordic world of gods. The film starts, and as if in a trance, we wake up again after about two hours. During this time, we dive into a fascinating world that is second to none. We travel through the universe and meet funny giant goats and all sorts of lovable or bizarre characters.
We experience a powerful and fascinating science-fiction world that has a very strong connection to reality. Thus, it plays with issues that affect all of our lives. That’s why Thor: Love and Thunder inspires not only with its cool story and humor but also with its authenticity.
Admittedly, the first two Thor films were quite good. But they certainly haven’t brought any special innovative moments to the MCU. However, since Taika Waititi literally picked up the hammer, there has been real thunder.
With Thor: Love and Thunder, the New Zealander shows how to do it right. Taika and Chris Hemsworth, who now also is one of the producers, unite a wide variety of genres into a perfect mix of romance, action, science fiction, mythology, some horror, and lots of comedy.
Thor, aka Chris Hemsworth, is the hero of the new generation. Because he’s not perfect and a bit naive. Besides, he believes in goodness. Furthermore, Thor makes mistakes and wrong decisions here and there. That makes him human.
In addition, Thor: Love and Thunder shows that even a superhero is nothing without strong women. Even more. The film shows that even gods need the help of children and young people to save the world. All this, as well as the ingenious soundtrack and the powerful pictures, make Thor: Love and Thunder likable yet absolutely worth seeing. Therefore, there are divine 9 points for this thundering spectacle, which surprisingly comes to our cinemas on Wednesday but not Thursday, which is the actual historical day of Thor.
Test & Layout: Marco Kokkot
Pictures: Marvel Studios 2022. All Rights Reserved.
