A Very Blunt Thunderbolts* Review

[General warning: this review comes with some very mild spoilers.]

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has had a lot of ups and downs ever since the masterpiece that is Endgame was released, so much so that no one but the most optimistic and devoted fans have stopped watching, so just to recap:

Recent downs of the MCU:

• Captain America: Brave New World

• The Marvels

• Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quatamania

• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law

• Eternals

Recent ups of the MCU:

• Guardians of the Galaxy, Volume 3

• Spider-Man: No Way Home

• Deadpool and Wolverine

• Loki

The evolution of Marvel right now is so inconsistent that one has to consider if some of these were written by AI. Currently the question on everyone’s mind is whether or not the studio is back or dead. So to which of the two categories does the Thunderbolts* fall in?

(Spoiler alert: the MCU is way back.)

If we start with the good stuff, there is quite a lot to choose from. The trademark directed-at-children humor and one-liners such as the classic ‘he’s standing right behind me, isn’t he?’ are completely snuffed out and there is actually quite a lot of real comedy. The dynamic between the characters is so natural and not forced in the least and you can tell the actors know what they’re doing. The plot, though the structure had been used before, is an incredibly refreshing take. The cinematography is incredible, the writing is really wonderful, and just the general vibe of the movie screams ‘we know what we’re doing’.

Every character has a well-crafted background and reasonable goals, and though there are some roles that could have had a lot more going for them, the relationships and genuine bonds make it so much more fun to see the protagonists.

Another thing that is strikingly different from several superhero movies right now - including some of the better ones - is that this film falls back onto the saving aspect of being a hero. Look at the Marvels, Captain America, Eternals - the basic plot is good guy fights bad guy and wins. It’s missing what the MCU did so well, which is the part where the flawed, emotionally unstable, traumatised, can’t-figure-out-their-own-life humans risked their lives to try to prevent people whom they’ve never met from dying. 

Look at Iron Man. Who in the world would think a selfish billionaire–who would rather spend his time talking to a robot he designed rather than having to encounter another human soul–would sacrifice their life to save half the world?

Who would expect a power-hungry villain with daddy issues and imposter syndrome who had a terrible family and lived in his brother’s shadow all his life–going so far as to even try to level New York because of it–would willingly spend the rest of his eternal life holding together the multiverse with nothing to do except watch others be happy without him?

If you’re going to see a superhero movie, the expectation is always going to be good guy vs. bad guy and eventually the heroes will triumph, etc, etc. But isn’t being a hero synonymous with helping people? 

Thunderbolts*, consistently, was all about a group of anti-heros who have all done horrible things in the past trying to get over that darkness so they can prevent ordinary people from being hurt by some truly terrible individual.

And it also managed to tackle mental health, which is a very touchy subject for a lot of people. But it also added to the theme of saving - the Thunderbolts* didn’t so much as defeat Sentry as they did drag Bob out of his own self-hate.

The casting is also a high point - Florence Pugh absolutely nailed it as Yelena, Lewis Pullman practically stole the show as Bob, David Harbour was probably the funniest character on the screen, Sebastian Stan once again led Bucky into our hearts, Wyatt Russell was wonderful as U.S. Agent, and Hannah John-Kamen definitely delivered in her role as Ghost.

But unfortunately, all movies do have downsides to them.

There are a few plot holes here and there, several character arcs seemed either fleshed out or forgotten, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ performance as Valentina Allegra de Fontaine received mixed reviews.

But in the long run, disregarding the very small blips, Thunderbolts* turned out to be a really solid movie. Great casting, great dynamics, great writing. 

(Cross your fingers. Spider-Man approaches.)

The verdict: 8/10