MCU Retrospective: Thor: Ragnarok
A lot of people consider Thor: Ragnarok their favorite movie of the MCU. While I can understand why, with its humor, wacky characters, and a more well-written and sympathetic Thor, I’m still not in love with this movie. I certainly like it, but I don’t think I hold the same fervor that most other people seem to have for this movie.
The issue I always had with Thor as a character up until this point is how flat and dull of a character he was. This movie finally corrects that and makes him a much more fun and goofy character which suits him far better. I know that this is also a controversial statement as well, but I prefer Thor with his short hair. I think it suits him far better than the long hair.
One of my favorite aspects of this movie is the embrace of Thor’s God of Thunder side which included the addition of lightning effects coursing on and around Thor and my god was this done so well. Overall the visuals in this movie were ramped up significantly compared to past Thor movies and it's just a gorgeous and colorful movie.
Let me start by saying that the humor in this movie is good. So many sharp lines and witty banter that only gets better when you learn that a large portion of the dialogue was completely improvisation. That being said, I do feel that this movie leans into the humor just a little too much. There are several scenes that actually had weight and a seriousness to them which was immediately undercut by a one-off line that completely ruins the mood of the scene. While I do hope they keep the humor for Thor: Love and Thunder, I also hope that they dial it back just a little and let those scenes have the weight and severity that they deserve.
Overall this is just a fun movie. From the humor, to the goofiness of Thor, to the absurdity that is Jeff Goldblum, this movie is always worth a rewatch. And given how things ended in Endgame, I’m curious to see where Thor goes next.