The God of Thunder is back in Taika Waititi’s 2nd film in the series, and he throws everything he’s got at the action comedy – including screaming goats

Not seen since flying off with the Guardian’s of the Galaxy at the end of Avengers : Endgame, Thor returns to the big screen for his 4th solo film.

When I think about film series that have shifted genre in their films, I often turn to Lethal Weapon as one of the biggest movers. From a dark police thriller, we ended up with a comedic cop mess by the 4th instalment. The Thor films are now a very big contender for the ‘biggest shift in genre during a series’. From Kenneth Branagh’s first film which was almost a modern feeling Shakespearean tale, to the new film which somewhere like a Space Comedy Rock festival.

Chris Hemsworth is back as Thor (I think its his 8th film appearing as him?), and we see the return of Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster who has been away since the 2nd film in the series. Thor teams up with Foster in her new guise as Lady Thor as they battle the ‘God Butcher’ Gorr (Christian Bale) who is trying to kill all Gods in an act of revenge for the death of his daughter.

Thor : Ragnarok really injected new life into the character of Thor and Waititi’s creativity and humour takes a huge amount of credit for this. In this new film, they essentially double down on that approach and the writer / director goes all in. From screaming goats pulling a boat along a rainbow road, to a city full of Gods with Zeus planning an orgy, through to some of the most visually stunning sequences that have ever been in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

And against the target that the film sets itself with zany humour, gigantic visual spectacles but still with heart and laughter, it really hits the mark. It’s got 80’s infused aesthetics, big rock moments, laughs and really light and dark in its story. It won’t be for everyone, but in the genre of comedy spectacle superhero movie, they’ve made a hell of a film.

8/10