Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Director: Taika Waititi
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, Cate Blanchett

Synopsis:
Hela the goddess of death usurps the throne of Asgard and Thor is stranded on a world where he is forced to participate in gladiator games for the amusement of an eccentric tyrant known as the Grandmaster.

Impressions:
I enjoyed the previous two Thor films. Neither was an amazing piece of cinema, but they were solid, enjoyable romps. This film, however, really knocks it out of the park. I think one key element is that Cate Blanchett's Hela makes for a much more effective villain than Laufey or Malekith from the previous two films. I like how Thor's character arc continues to develop and his dynamic with the Hulk and Bruce. Also, Jeff Goldblum was quite amusing as the Grandmaster. There's some good worldbuilding for Asgard's history as well, so if you're invested in that, I think you'll find there's some good payoff. Another thing I greatly appreciated was the 80s-esque soundtrack. If you've seen the Infinity War trailer, you know about Thor encountering the Guardians of the Galaxy and I would say the tone of this film certainly bridges the Thor and GotG films. If that's something that sounds good to you, I think you'll be satisfied with what you get. I certainly think it's the best of the series so far and recommend adding it to your collection.

Rating:
Own It