Thor: Ragnarok (2017) Review

Director: Taika Waititi

Screenwriters: Eric Pearson, Craig Kyle, and Christopher Yost

Producer: Kevin Feige

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett, Mark Ruffalo, and Tessa Thompson

Composer: Mark Mothersbaugh

Cinematographer:Javier Aguirresarobe

Editor: Joel Negron and Zene Baker

Production Company: Marvel Studios

Part I: Introduction

I wasn't all that excited for the next Thor movie since the movies before it weren't good. However, I was hoping that this one would happen to top out all of them and maybe be a good movie this time. It was certainly interesting how they changed the style to mirror Guardians of the Galaxy to this Thor iteration. So, is it good? Well, yes.....and no.  

Part II: Plot Synopsis

Thor must save Asgard from Hela, the Goddess of Death, from the devastating event known as Ragnarok with the help of Loki, Hulk, and Valkyrie.

Part III: Direction & Style

Direction
Direction is fairly decent here. Taika Waititi did a fine job delivering a fun and exciting Thor movie.

Style
It's interesting they adopted a Guardians of the Galaxy type style in this entry. It's not a bad choice. It's just not unique. It's just the same comical, colorful action thriller style that Marvel movies are known for.

Part IV: Visual Presentation

Cinematography & Framing
The cinematography isn't anything to snuff at but it's nothing to awe at either. It's a competent looking film, but there's nothing special about the film visually other than the fact that it has a bright and energetic color palette. But these bright colors, in my opinion, don't add any substantial weight to the film stylistically nor visually.

Camerawork
The camerawork here is pretty good as usual. If there's something that I think Marvel movies have been mostly doing consistently well is doing a good job facilitating the action through the camera. I think Marvel movies have been doing a good job doing that and this movie stays true to that tradition.

Acting
There were some solid performances. Tom Hiddleston is perfect as Loki as usual. What mostly surprised me was Chris Hemsworth's performance. I mean, it wasn't an Oscar-worthy performance or anything, but I felt that Chris Hemsworth gave a little bit more emotion than other movies as Thor, which gave the character slightly more power.

Visual Effects
Visual effects were okay. In my opinion, some effects that were used looked awful for a Marvel movie. A lot of this movie relies on CGI. So, it's inevitable you were going to find a few rough edges. Some CGI character models don't look good. Certain effects look terrible.

Part V: Sound Design and Musical Composition

Sound Design 

Sound design was okay. There was nothing that I heard that was anything special other than Thor's hammer. I just like the way Thor's hammer sounds. But, the sound effects they use whenever Thor uses lightning sounds terrible to me. So, sound design is a bit of mixed bag for me.

Score

The score is actually one of the more interesting aspects of this movie. I actually think the score is quite decent this time. Usually, MCU films don't have good scores. The score fits into the style really well and I liked it.

Part VI: Screenwriting & Character Composition

Script & Screenwriting

The script is okay. My issue with the script is that it relies way too much on beats and quips and this is a problem that more recent MCU movies face. A beat is basically like a punchline in a joke. My problem with the script is that there's a lack of urgency. The plot relies on this sense of urgency and it's not there. Ragnarok is coming, which is basically like Doomsday. And for some reason, it feels like no one is taking it seriously aside from Thor on a few occasions. 

Character Composition

Character composition isn't very good here. While there is some character development here, it's not well-written. It's okay. Some character decisions are just somewhat out-of-nowhere. You don't really care for some of the characters really. Like I said earlier, there's a lack of urgency emitted from the characters because it's like they have to replace their motivations due to the stakes of the situation for cheap gags and quips. 

Pacing

Pacing is alright. I think the plot was dragging and not getting to the point until about the second act. And once the second act kicks in, the pacing goes into overdrive and goes too fast in my opinion.

Part VII: Verdict & Conclusion

My problem with Thor: Ragnarok is that it's not a bad film. It was an enjoyable film. I'm not going to lie. I had fun watching this movie. It's just that it's the same tired old Marvel movie I've seen a dozen times already for the past few years. It doesn't bring anything new to the table to the superhero genre. All they did essentially was take Thor and paste a fresh coat of Guardians of the Galaxy paint on it. However, it does have funny moments. I'll give the movie credit for that. If you enjoy Marvel movies, then you most likely will like this one since it's more of the same. However, if you're kinda getting tired of the same old MCU formula, then this may not entirely amaze you in any way. 

Score: B-