Following the release of “Thor: Love and Thunder” last week, fans are vocalising their issues with the film. From the objectification of Thor to the rise of the female Thor to the trashy accent of Zeus, there isn’t much about the film that fans are happy about.
Love Conquers All – or does it? While this may have been the take-away for some, this is definitely not the message most audiences are receiving after watching Marvel’s latest release. And according to Rotten Tomatoes, which gives the film a rating of 66%, it seems critics aren’t too impressed with the most recent addition to the Thor series either.
As the fourth-lowest ranking film in the Marvel cinematic universe, critics are complaining about the number of jokes featured in the film. Also, how they work against the plot. But this isn’t what Marvel fans are most upset about.
Objectifying Thor?
Never could we imagine objectifying someone as powerful and loved as the God of Thunder. But in the recent Thor film, Taika Waititi does just that. The film initially started receiving backlash on the issue after the first official trailer drop in May. It reveals Hemsworth’s Thor, tied down and stripped naked by the God Zeus, purely for entertainment. Those who stand for Men’s Rights were the first to recognise this scene as the objectification of Thor. He is in a vulnerable position and humiliated on the basis of physical appearance. The main argument here is this could never be done to a woman? So why is it okay for Waititi to script this scene in? Well, the Men’s Rights types would argue it’s not okay because if it can’t be done to a woman, it shouldn’t be done to a man.
But at the end of the day, is this scene really that deep? I mean, if Chris Hemsworth was okay with it, maybe we should be too.
Gender Politics In The Film And The Rise of Mighty Thor
The introduction of Portman’s Mighty Thor is also a topic of controversy. Is it progressive that Thor is humble in the way he let the woman he loves take the spotlight? As we see Thor lose his iconic hammer to Mighty Thor, essentially forcing him into a supporting role as she takes on most of the action, it is easy to assume Waititi is trying to weaken Thor’s image. Or maybe she is just giving us the opportunity to sympathise with Jane and accept her as the new Thor because of the way Waititi worked it into the plot.
As we find out early on that Foster has terminal cancer, by the end of the film we see that she is being slowly weakened every time she transforms into the Mighty Thor. Her final sacrifice seems to be joining Thor in battle – because love conquers, right? Here we see true heroism as Mighty Thor enters just as Thor begins to succumb to Gorr. But don’t worry, just as Waititi promised, there is no sign that she will be taking over from Thor for good.
Loving Gorr and Hating Zeus
In the opinion of Waititi, Christian Bale as Gorr has the potential to be the greatest villain in the Marvel Comic Universe – and understandably so. It is clear that Bale put everything into this role, recreating the villain as a splitting image. According to Portman, Bale was terrifying to talk to because his costuming was so real.
“It was terrifying whenever he was in character,” Portman said in an interview with Total Film, adding, “The children would run screaming.”
“He has a very, very, very scary look, in addition to, of course, his excellent acting. But, on this one, in between, he’d be like, ‘Hey, what’s up?’ It was just a normal conversation, which was jarring, because he looked terrifying,” Portman said of Bale as Gorr.
However, an actor that didn’t play his part so well, was Russell Crowe. Assuming the role of Greek God and Thor’s idol, Zeus, the accent that Crowe put on has caused a lot of hate towards the film. The Guardian describes it as “preposterous.” But the question everyone is asking is was Zeus’ accent Greek, Italian, Turkish, or perhaps Russian?
Korg As Narrator and Gay Superheroes
Finally, what did you think of the narration at the beginning of the film? Korg was a bit of a random choice for narrator, but personally, I think the narration framed the film and caught people who are unfamiliar with the franchise.
However, Marvel seemed to redeem itself with the diversity amongst the characters. As per the Guardian, “Marvel won further points for diversity after the perky rock monster officially came out as gay, with Tessa Thompson’s Valkyrie adding to the LGBT-positive picture.”
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