2 min to read
Thunderbolts
How good is Marvel's newest movie?
Review: The Thunderbolts is a wonderful and unique Marvel movie that differentiates itself from other superhero movies by being simple, personal, and extremely intentional.
Florence Pugh’s Yelena Belova is the main character, and the movie is focused on stopping Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s Valentina Allegra de Fontaine from continuing project Sentry. Project Sentry was an attempt to recreate the super soldier serum, but having it where the results would be all the powers of the avengers wrapped up in one. If released, it could either cause complete chaos if the wrong person gets the serum, or it could be the next step for having heroes in the Marvel universe.
What makes this movie so simple is the basis of the plot. Yelena and a bunch of other misfits are trying to stop Valentina, and that’s basically the entire plot. It was very refreshing to watch a superhero movie that wasn’t trying to be overly complex or complicated. For how much I love superhero movies, movies in this genre the last few years have felt overly complicated/complex for no reason, muddling the story, and leaving the audience let down.
What makes this movie so personal is it is focused on giving each character a specific moment to discuss and show their individual struggles in life, how their jobs don’t fulfill them, or how lonely they are. Topics like this have rarely been the focus for movies in the superhero genre, and seeing the topics maturely talked about and respected enabled viewers (including myself) to connect with and have these larger-than-life characters feel so real and personal. The writers knew the message they wanted in the film, and they were able to execute on it near flawlessly.
(This paragraph may have slight spoilers) Where I find my struggles with the film all stem from these great aspects of the movie. As a superhero movie that has an Avengers-like team in it, I’m always wanting the grandeur of action and superhero powers. The Thunderbolts is a team with no crazy super powers, just 3 super soldiers and assassins, and as they eventually have to team up to stop Project Sentry you absolutely know there is know way they can actually do it. Because of this, I never really had the satisfaction of “defeating the bad guy” or “overcoming evil,” but that also wasn’t the purpose of the finale of the movie. The finale was more about togetherness, overcoming the past, pulling through despair, and finding joy with friends and family, all of which is a much better message than just simply “defeating the bad guy.” This makes me torn between loving what was shown but also having a part of me feel disappointed I didn’t get something else (even if it would have made the movie worse).
I know I need to watch this again so I can better form a more cohesive and complete opinion about what was offered, but so many people will enjoy this movie when compared to other Marvel movies as it tonally offers a movie that people will connect with. I really enjoyed what I saw, and I’d recommend it to everyone to watch.
Rating: 4.5/5
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