Thor: Ragnarok is undoubtedly the best of the three Thor films. Director Taika Waititi was given free reign to indulge in his very particular command over storytelling and humor, whilst maintaining a vibrant homage to the works of Jack Kirby in the visuals. Waititi did an admirable job, as did the cast, yet I found myself leaving the theatre underwhelmed.
A solo Thor movie should be a no brainer. The Son of Asgard is a character birthed from Norse mythology, with tales rich in pathos and epic splendor. However, Ragnarok casts doubt on whether Thor can sustain a film on his own. While I enjoyed Ragnarok , my favorite moments from the film, barring a truly exhilarating opening scene that features the God of Thunder kicking the living shit out of Surtur and his demonic goons set to Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song, they almost exclusively centered around either Hulk, Valkyrie or Heimdall (I know?).
Chris Hemsworth is great as Thor and the character is written well, that’s not the problem. But Thor’s role among The Avengers ensemble cast is the resident funny badass. When it’s time for Thor to star in his own movie, the challenge for who ever is writting it is to make the comedic, albeit one-dimensional, hammer-wielding hero feel complex. The first film was a commendable attempt to make Thor a three-dimensional character, but he ended up unlearning most of the lessons he garnered from that adventure. Waititi knows enough not to bog Ragnarok down in arcs and sentiment. Ragnarok is an unabashed monster mashup comedy, not the Planet Hulk film fans had speculated it was in the months prior its release.
Between Hulk, Hela taking over Asgard, Loki’s antics, Jeff Goldblum as The Grandmaster, Heimdall's exodus with the Asgardians and Valkyrie, the movie seems to distract you from Thor’s story. That aspect of the film felt sort of perfunctory.
Thor Ragnarok is a fine film, but it made me wonder about Thor’s place in the MCU. The first two Captain America films, two thirds of the Iron Man films and Doctor Strange all felt so focused. Fans know exactly what these heroes want and they're invested in them achieving it. On the other hand, I don’t want to see Thor self-reflect. I just want to see him crack wise, bicker with Loki and clobber stuff. As far as that is concerned, Ragnarok certainly delivers.
