Review: "Thor: Ragnarok"


Why would a god take himself seriously?

Thor has been around for thousands of years. He's battled legions of monsters, aliens and super-villains and he's come out of it with bruises and scratches, but really no worse for wear. If not impossible to kill, he's near to it.

So, when the Thunder God finds himself in a scrap, he's light-hearted about it, and that's the overall tone of "Thor: Ragnarok." While titled after the Norse apocalypse, a foreseen time when all gods will die, this movie is a near-farce, and a very funny one. Though violent and full of action, the quips fly faster than the punches. After all, figures Thor, is his number's up, he's had a good ride and he might as well exit laughing.

Some fans may think it's too much, that the film is too silly and verges on parody and misses the gravity of the Thor comic books, but I think Marvel and director Taika David Waititi took the right approach. Adding in the humor allows the film to go completely over the top. Things are moving too fast, and the lines are too funny, for you to pause, reflect and realize how ridiculous it all is.

This is the first Thor film set almost entirely away from Earth, or Midgard, as Thor and his pals call our little blue marble. Thor is also apart from his prior love interest, Jane Foster.

When Jane, or another normally powered mortal is present, there's a real risk or harm and death, and Thor must be protective. Here, he can let the other characters fend for themselves. While there are battles and some Asgardians do get injured and, I guess, die, there's little sense of real peril without any regular humans around. It's another reason why the comedic approach works so well.

Chris Hemsworth, as we've seen in the previous Marvel movies and in his funny performance in the recent "Ghost Busters" film,  is gifted with a nice comic touch in addition to his super-heroic physique and good looks. It's a blast watching Thor interact with Doctor Strange, the Hulk, Valkyrie (played by the engaging Tess Thompson) and pretty much everyone else in the film.

While still not entirely convincing the CGI Hulk here has personality and the sense in which he and Thor argue over who is the strongest Avenger are a lot of fun. Even more so, however, are the scenes in which the Hulk transforms back into Bruce Banner, and we see Hemsworth goofing with Mark Ruffalo, who's shell-shocked to find himself on a weird alien world and, later, in Asgard itself.

Cate Blanchett, who is nigh unrecognizable in her huge Jack Kirby-styled headdress (crown? whatever), has fun in her role as Thor's bad big sister, Hela, slinking around and purring her nasty lines like a noveau Julie Newmar. And Tom Hiddleston is back again as Thor's other troublesome sibling, Loki.

And, even if they don't cotton to the humorous tone, Marvelmaniacs should still find a few things to love here. Along with Hela's headgear, there are lots of visual touches that come director from the Kirby and Walt Simonson Thor comics, along with numerous "in" reference to past storylines, such as Thor recounting the time when Loki turned him into a frog.

Other Easter eggs include cameos by Matt Damon, Hemsworth's brother Luke, and Sam Neill, along with, natch, Stan Lee in perhaps his best and funniest appearance in a Marvel film yet.

Lots of fun. I'm going again this weekend.

New on Video: Westworld Season 1; Doctor Who Season 10; The Godfather Trilogy: Omertà Edition; The Crown Season 1; Philadelphia Story: Criterion Edition

New and notable this week. Click the links to order discounted items from Amazon.





Coming Up: "More of the Monkees" Deluxe Edition

Out Dec. 15 from Rhino:
 Who's ready for even more of MORE? In honor of 50th anniversary this year, we've super-sized MORE OF THE MONKEES with a staggering 91 tracks including 55 previously-unreleased alternate takes, remixes, and newly discovered concert recordings from 1967, the band's earliest-known live tracks, as well as a bonus 7” of “I’m A Believer” (Remix)/”(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone” (Vocals Only).

"This is the most exciting archival dig through The Monkees' vault since 2009's THE BIRDS, THE BEES AND THE MONKEES DELUXE EDITION. Every track is newly mastered for this set; the live material is the most historically significant of their career," says Andrew Sandoval, who produced the set and wrote a new essay for its expansive booklet.

MORE OF THE MONKEES: SUPER DELUXE EDITION significantly expands the special edition of MORE OF THE MONKEES released in 2006. Along with mono and stereo mixes of the original album, the SUPER DELUXE EDITION takes listeners into the studio for the making of the album through extensive studio outtakes. Many make their debut here, including the first recorded versions of: "Words," "Valleri," "Hold On Girl" and more. Backing tracks for early version of "Sometime In The Morning," "I'm A Believer" and "Look Out (Here Comes Tomorrow)" offer a behind-the-scenes perspective on the creative process.

However, the set's most historic aspect is the inclusion of newly discovered unreleased live music. Recorded in Arizona in 1967, these 10 tracks are The Monkees' earliest-known live recordings. The performance highlights songs from the band's 1966 self-titled debut ("I Wanna Be Free" and "Papa Gene's Blues"), along with covers of Ray Charles' "I Got A Woman" and Willie Dixon's "You Can't Judge A Book By The Cover."

Limited to just 4,500 numbered copies and housed in a hardbound 7"x7" box, the collection is available exclusively from monkees.com and rhino.com.

Video find: Jim Henson's "Wizard of Id" pilot

Video teaser: Big Star Live at Lafayette's Music Room

Out on CD/LP/Download Jan. 12. Pre-order from Amazon now.

"Asterix and the Chariot Race" - out today

The third Asterix album by Jean Yves Ferri and Didier Conrad is out today. You can order it now from Amazon.

Details:

And they're off! The action-packed chariot race is off to a flying start in all the best bookshops, with 48 pages of adventures, jokes and scrapes right across the Italian peninsula.

To reinforce Rome's prestige and the unity of the people of the Italian peninsula, Julius Caesar authorises a race open to all the peoples of the Known World, with the aim of demonstrating the excellence of Roman roads in spectacular fashion.

Caesar gives the event organisers a sine qua non condition: the Roman chariot MUST cross the finish line in first position (it would seem that even in those days, sports, politics and showbiz were already closely intertwined...)!

Unfortunately for Caesar, he hadn't counted on our two Gaul champions signing up for the race and threatening to shatter his dreams of grandeur... Especially Obelix, who is determined to become a great charioteer (chariot driver) and finally be a star!






Video Find: 1970s documentary short about Marvel Comics artist Herb Trimpe

Details:

This is a 25 minute documentary film about the Marvel Comic book artist Herb Trimpe.

This was a film project produced at New York University's Graduate Institute of film & TV in 1970-71 and was directed by Jon Michael Riley and Doro Bachrach. Sound was by Don Cirillo and cinematography by Eric Reiner. Polly Hacker was production assistant.

Herb Trimpe was a young star among comic book artists in the late 60's (he began at Marvel in April of 1968) and early 1970s. Herb was one of the first, perhaps the first to do the Incredible Hulk comic, as well as a host of other titles for Stan Lee and Marvel.

This film highlights Herb's attitudes about life and work as a comic book artist and is shown with his Peekskill, NY friend, Bob Barthelmes with whom he attended school since kindergarten.

Also featured is Flo Steinberg and some footage of the Marvel "bullpen" with other notable comic book artists. This may be the only film footage shot at Marvel at that time. Herb's family has given me permission to upload this film to make it easier for people interested in Herb and his beautiful comic book art. Note: This video was made from an aged and partially damaged 16 mm B/W print that was transferred to DVD. A key word ("anonymity") is missing from the opening voice over lines.

Video: "Justice League" Wonder Woman Comic Book Origins

Vintage Movie Poster: "The Creature Walks Among Us"


Pop Culture Roundup

Via Rip Jagger's Dojo: Francesco Francavilla's awesome covers for Marvel's Monsters Unleashed.

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Via The Bristol Board: Wally Wood's original art for Mad Magazine's "They Built Their Dreamhouse Singhanded."

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Via The Beat: Red Sonja pint glasses.