Reel Review: Thunderbolts* Stands Out As One of The Best Marvel Movies in a Long Time
After seeing Thunderbolts* for the first time, I already want to go back and see it again. This movie left me walking out of the theater, finally excited for more upcoming Marvel movies. Thunderbolts* reminded me of old Marvel in the best way. It set up the next few movies very well and left me wanting so much more after.
The highlight of this movie was Bob, played by Lewis Pullman. He was absolutely incredible and brought so much emotion and depth to a character that could have easily flown under the radar. In the movie, Bob comes from a testing lab accidentally and it’s discovered that whatever they were doing to him while he was in the lab worked and he gained powers, but it’s then revealed that he has powers of both good and evil. The Sentry (good) and The Void (evil) are portrayed perfectly in the movie and is exciting for the future of the character and the rest of the Thunderbolts* or The New Avengers.
The Void was the most interesting thing about the movie because I have never seen a Marvel superhero villain be portrayed in such a dark light and I even saw after the movie that the shadows in the film are supposed to be similar to the remnants of the Hiroshima bombing in 1945, again very dark but definitely added to the movie and made it more gripping and engaging.
Another highlight of the film is Florence Pugh, who is beyond incredible. She plays Yelena Belova, the younger sister of Scarlett Johansson‘s now-deceased Natasha Romanoff. She was the best person to lead the team and overall gave an incredible performance throughout the movie. It was particularly striking to me because she acknowledged her grief and how Natasha’s death left her alone. This was a big part that I enjoyed about this film, they actually acknowledged that the Avengers are dead and they aren’t coming back, which in a lot of the other films I feel like they would ignore their deaths and move past it as if maybe they were coming back, when we knew they weren’t.
Red Guardian, played by David Harbour, also surprised me. He always flew under the radar for me, but while watching the movie, he added so much humor and emotion. He did incredible and strikes a great balance of seriousness and silliness. Bucky Barnes, played by Sebastian Stan, was another highlight for me. I have always loved The Winter Soldier but the scene when he’s riding his motorcycle towards Red Guardian’s car was amazing and reminded me of old Marvel.
John Walker, played by Wyatt Russell, was one that took me by the most surprise. When they first said that he was going to be in this movie, I wasn’t that excited for it. He got on my nerves in the Falcon and The Winter Soldier tv show. I wasn’t sure what he could add to the plot, but once we got more of his backstory and got to see the things that he had been through; I found myself really liking the character.
The conflict in the movie was so interesting and original. It touched on a topic that a lot of movies and people are afraid to talk about. The Void is where people would go and experience some of their most traumatizing memories. It was dark, and they did an incredible job of showing the loneliness and the trauma that both Yelena and Bob feel. I think this was an important show of how your own feelings can truly be your worst enemy.
The post-credit scene, a debate about their group’s name, cleverly sets the stage for the Fantastic Four film. Overall, this movie did a good job of setting up the next installment of several movies.
The end of the movie showed how important belonging and human connection are. This ragtag team of misfits wouldn’t have ever been able to accomplish what they did without bonding together and relying on each other. It just shows that what you say matters, what you do matters and the things you say and do for others also matters.
Thunderbolts* is now in theaters.
