flawless fun

Rating: 8/10 (8 April 2018)

Thor (Chris Hemsworth) returns home to find Loki (Tom Hiddleston) ruling Asgard disguised as their father Odin (Anthony Hopkins). Before dying, Odin reveals a previously unknown elder daughter Hela (Cate Blanchett) and warns against an impending Asgardian doomsday prophesy called Ragnarok. With Odin's death, Hela is released and Loki's carelessness allows her to return to Asgard. She destroys Thor's hammer and relegates the brothers to the planet Sakaar. Scrapper 142 (Tessa Thompson) takes Thor prisoner and sells him to the Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) for his gladiatorial contests. Thor is surprised to find the Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) as the champion.
This is fun. In fact, it's flawless fun. It's light, funny, action-packed, and fun-fun-fun. The Asgardian brothers continue to have good chemistry but the best bromance has to be Hulk and Thor. That is Hulk in both Hulk form and Banner form. These two are the new buddy comedy duo of Marvel. They are hilarious together and has the best section of the movie. I only wish for more Hulk Thor pairing. Tessa Thompson is a great addition. Jeff Goldblum does his Jeff Goldblumiest. Hela is the only one who may need more dimensions. She's a bit of a cardboard cut out villain and Blanchett does her best with what she's allowed to do. She needs a scene by herself to add some dimension and lay down some Shakespear on her father's spirit. That's often the case for Marvel villains. Director Taika Waititi really let his unique skills loose on this franchise.