Fun, fast and mostly light-hearted

Rating: 8/10 (2 January 2018)

'Thor: Ragnarok' is the best 'Thor' film so far, and one of Marvel's best overall - up there with 'Guardians of the Galaxy' for laughter and excitement. Thor (Hemsworth) has full licence from director Waititi ('Boy', 'Hunt For The Wilderpeople') to unleash all his humour and charm, which starts very early on, but still allowing big action/battle scenes to unfurl. Loki (Hiddleston) & Odin (Hopkins) are back, but so is their sister, Hela (Blanchett), Goddess of Death, intent on unleashing "Ragnarok" on Asgard - the end of days.
It's not all doom and gloom though, as Thor and Loki get trapped on a literal dump-planet, where we meet the Grandmaster (Goldblum) - basically an eccentric Roman emperor, who hosts Gladiator duels. Goldblum gets some great lines and steals almost every scene he's in. This is where Hulk (Ruffalo) comes in and is apparently where he's been since 'Avengers: Age of Ultron'. Some great moments shared between Hulk and Thor, as Thor is trying to escape so he can rescue the people of Asgard from Hela. He's helped by a fallen Valkyrie (Thompson), who eventually comes around.
The score is great, and while 80s-synth-ish, is mostly understated. What does stand out is the colour and vibrancy of almost every set - plenty to catch the eye in every shot. But what sets this film apart is it's humour and pacing. Korg, a rock-monster (voiced by Waititi himself) has some great moments, especially since his Kiwi accent stands out so strongly against the rest of the cast. There's a strong Antipodean slant to proceedings, with Waititi, Hemsworth, Blanchett, Karl Urban, Rachel House and Sam Neill all having an impact. A great fight scene at the end, but still plenty of quips and slapstick thrown in. End credit scene sets up 'Avengers: Infinity War' nicely.