No, he didn’t feel that as a humiliation, Thor will explain later, when asked about the incident at the court of the supreme god Zeus. Thor, embodied by Chris Hemsworth, has crept into Mount Olympus with two accomplices, disguised in a habit, but Zeus unmasks him – now Thor suddenly stands naked in front of the entire court, as one knows from ancient statues of gods. In rows, the women behind Zeus are blown away by this sight.
Mount Olympus of Zeus is a giant glitzy thing covered in gold leaf all over, as if we weren’t in Thor: Love and Thunder but in a lavish 1940s MGM musical. The old white god of mythology, Zeus, played by Russell Crowe, doesn’t quite want to admit how ridiculous he’s become over time. Thor, on the other hand, absolutely needs his jagged lightning bolt in the fight to save the world and against his own crisis of meaning – his hammer Mjölnir has just been grabbed by a new superhero called Mighty Thor and behind whom is Jane Foster, who left Thor eight years ago, played by Nathalie Portman.
Taika Waititi embraces diversity in a fun, at times absurd way
It becomes clearer from film to film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe from which the film originates. The superheroes who once walked their wanderings and traumas one at a time are now increasingly tripping over each other. The first Thor film, 2011, was yet another dark family tragedy, starring Anthony Hopkins as the father god Odin and directed by Shakespeare fan Kenneth Branagh. The fourth is a big number revue, a bunch of spectacular showpieces, the chronological and causal connection of which is only possible with knowledge of the three previous films – and the last Avengers films, in which Thor was also assigned. In “Love and Thunder” he is now in league with the Guardians of the Galaxy. Their creative father, James Gunn, made sure they were used correctly.
It is the second Thor film after “Decision Day” directed by Taika Waititi, who has had a free hand in Hollywood since his Oscar success “Jojo Rabbit”. He makes sure that diversity is upheld in a cheerful, at times absurd way – the delicate Nathalie Portman wears the same armor as the Mighty Thor as the well-packed Chris Hemsworth. None of this is self-explanatory, not even to the mortals in the film. On a stage they reenact the adventures of Thor, just like the duels of the gunslingers in the Wild West. There now are people playing gods, Matt Damon, Luke Hemsworth and Melissa McCarthy stealing the show.
With all the comedic fun, there is also a tremendous amount of suffering in this film. Jane Foster, Thor’s ex, has breast cancer and needs chemotherapy. The first scene shows a battered father mourning his little daughter – desperate and godforsaken, a figure found in all religions. He curses the gods, this decadent bunch who don’t care about their misery. This is the God Butcher, a sad, bitter, evil character embodied by Christian Bale, who has been a Batman practitioner of radical trauma management for a number of films.
With the God Butcher, he said in an interview, they filmed things that really went a long way – and which were then not included in the film. But they remain noticeably behind the joke of the Götternadel, a night-black ground that suits the film well.
Thor: Love and Thunder, 2022 – Director: Taika Waititi. Book: Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, Taika Waititi. Camera: Barry Baz Idoine. Editing: Peter S. Eliot, Tim Roche, Matthew Schmidt, Jennifer Vecchiarello. Music: Michael Giacchino, Nami Melumad. Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Christian Bale, Nathalie Portman, Tessa Thompson, Taika Waititi, Russell Crowe, Jaimie Alexander, Chris Pratt, Karen Gillan. Disney, 125 minutes.