Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)

 

Two great movies are hiding in Thor: Love and Thunder.  The first is a serious look at death and loss, the other is more akin to Taika Waititi's previous Marvel movie, Thor: Ragnarok.  I wish I could say Waititi was able to successfully mix the two.  But unlike peanut butter and chocolate, these two different Thor films never come together, and you'll probably find yourself wanting more of one than the other.

The movie opens on Gorr (Christian Bale) dragging his dying daughter to a temple to pray to his god Rapu to spare her life.  After she dies, Gorr finds his way to an oasis, where Rapu mocks his devotion and Gorr is able to take up the Necrosword, killing Rapu, and declare war on all the other gods.   Hey, we have a multi-verse in in MCU now, get ready to deal with it.

Okay, I've got a bit of a spoiler in the next paragraph, though if you know anything about The Mighty Thor comic series, you know it.  If not, skip the next paragraph (and resume with the next picture).

 

If he spoils anything, I'm putting MY hammer into his face.

After killing several gods, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) finds out about his actions and his next target, New Asgard.  Unknown to him, his ex, Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is heading there as well, looking for a magical cure for her stage four cancer, as medical science has failed to cure her.

He gave them a warning.  It's their fault if they didn't heed his advise.

Okay, it is no spoiler that Jane is deemed worthy by Mjoinir to wield the power of Thor and, as Gorr attacks New Asgard, she joins Thor, Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson) and Korg (Waititi) in battle, displaying some pretty awesome new powers and setting up a jealousy arch with Stormbreaker.

Yeah, I'm not kidding there.  And that's part of the issues I had with the film.  But more later.

Thor, Jane, Valkyrie and Korg head to Olympus Omnipotence City, to implore Zeus (Russell Crowe) to generate an army of gods to attack Gorr.  But Zeus is more interested in hiding, and the four must battle their way out of the city, after stealing Zeus' thunderbolt, and head to the Shadow Realm, where Gorr has imprisoned hostages taken from his attack on New Asgard.  Jane deduces they were lead to the realm so Gorr to take Stormbreaker and use it to summon the Bifrost and enter the realm of Eternity, where his wish to kill all gods could be granted.

As expected, some pretty cool CGI battles ensue.

I have to say, the Shadow Realm looks REALLY cool on film.  And scary as hell.

I liked parts of the film, but the uneven tones just never meshed together.  The scenes in faux Olympus, the jealousy Strombreaker exhibits once Thor sees the reformed Mjoinir, the bleating space goats, all would have work had the film echoed Waititi's first Thor film.  But Jane's story line, as well as Gorr's, belong in a different movie, as both are pretty dark and clash with the 80s rock aesthetics of the previously mentioned scenes.  It feels like Waititi wanted to have the best of both worlds, but couldn't figure out how to mix them together.

Which is too bad, as Gorr is damn scary at times.  Forget Doctor Strange in the Madness of the Multiverse, had the story focused more on Gorr, this would have been Marvel's first horror movie.  Seriously, some of the scenes of him talking to his hostages are pretty chilling.  And, given Bale said more disturbing shots ended up on the cutting room floor, I think Marvel would have struggled to get a PG-13 had Gorr's arc been more fully explored.

Just imagine being locked in a cell and this guy emerges from the shadows.  Hope you're wearing brown pants.

The script also fails to give us a good reason to be concerned over the death of the gods.  With the exception of Thor, the gods we see in the film are just a bunch of a-holes.  Rapu is vile, and Zeus isn't much better, which lead me to side with Gorr.  And it's not a good thing in a superhero film when watching the heroes trying to save the gods isn't as satisfying as watching them die.  Fine for an 80s slasher, not good for a MCU film.   

Making the villain's goals sympathetic worked in Black Panther, but it didn't work here.  Come to think of it, it didn't really work in that film either.

One final point.  I was really annoyed with the space goats, which seem to exist just as marketable figures, like the Ewoks.  Then, after seeing the film, I read online (and everything on the Internet is true, right?) that Waititi actually intended to pass them onto James Gunn in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which really bothered me.  I've read a couple Exquisite Corpse collections, where one author passes the story to another, while saddled them with outrageous endings just to see how the next author writes their way out of it.  And, believe me, the results never end well.  Thankfully, cooler heads must have prevailed here, as I suspect the studio heads nixed that idea.

Because, like the Ewoks, I never want to see these annoying bits of merchandising again.

I'm not saying Thor: Love and Thunder isn't fun.  The film has plenty of amazing battle scenes, the cast does a great job, and some of the jokes do land, despite the uneven tone throughout the film.  Go check it out in a theater if you can, as it looks great on the big screen.  Just be aware, you're going to like one of the two story lines in it, and just end up waiting for the film to come back to the plot thread you want to see.  It's not the worst Marvel movie out there, but Waititi just failed to mix the light and dark story lines.  They went together like oil and water, not peanut butter and chocolate.  Still, it was nice to see someone try something different in the MCU, even if they fail, rather than just remake the same damn plot.

Of course we'll get a sequel.  We're in the MCU, after all. 

 

Well, this edition of the Weekly Update is pretty late, and I'm sorry about that.  I just felt toxic and listless for the past few days, and spent most of my free time on the couch watching movies and binging season two of Daredevil.  Not my most productive week.

 Yeah, the couch and I got real close during my binge watching day.

But now I'm feeling much better and am ready to share all the cool Horror/Sci Fi/Fantasy films and events taking place in the Pacific Northwest this week.  And I have a lot to share, from the new A24 horror film, to ECCC, to retrospectives of directors The Wachowskis and Guillermo del Toro.  And you'll find it all, and much more, just by scrolling down.

As for the Horror/Sci Fi/Fantasy Calendar, I'm a little behind right now, but will have that remedied in the next few days.  After all, the Halloween season is less than two months away, and I want to be ready for all the great stuff that will be taking place in October.

That said, I'm off to keep working on the site.  Take care, and I'll be back next week with another update from The Shadow Over Portland!

If you'd like to support the site, please visit my Ko-fi page.  Thank you!

Happening This Week

 

The A24 black comedy/slasher film Bodies Bodies Bodies is playing at CineMagic (2021 SE Hawthorne Blvd in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 25), the Pickford Film Center (1318 Bay St in Bellingham, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), at the Hollywood Theatre (4122 NE Sandy Blvd in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Laurelhurst Theater (2735 E Burnside St in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), SIFF Cinema Uptown (511 Queen Anne Ave N in Seattle, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), and the Salem Cinema (1127 Broadway NE in Salem, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Broadway Metro (888 Willamette St in Eugene, OR; plays through Thursday, August 18), the Salem Cinema (1127 Broadway NE in Salem, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Pickford Film Center (1318 Bay St in Bellingham, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the 99W Drive-In (3110 Portland Rd in Newberg, OR; scheduled through Sunday, August 14, with John Carpenter's The Thing), Studio One Theaters (3945 SE Powell Blvd in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), and The Grand Cinema (606 Fawcett Ave in Tacoma, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18). The Olympia Film Society is open the film on Friday, August 26, at the Capitol Theater (206 5th Ave SE in Olympia, WA; scheduled through Friday, September 2).  It opens on Thursday, August 18, at the Sandy Cinema (16605 Champion Way in Sandy, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 25).

The Grand Illusion Cinema (1403 NE 50th St in Seattle, WA) will screen the 2022 Brazilian film Medusa through Wednesday, August 17. 

The 1997 giant snake film Anaconda is playing this week at the Academy Theater (7818 SE Stark St in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18).

 

ClayDream, a documentary charting the rise and fall of the "Father of Claymation," Portlander Will Vinton, opens at Cinema 21 (616 NW 21st Ave in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18).

 

The thriller Fall is playing at the Yelm Cinemas (201 Prairie Park Lane SE in Yelm, WA; scheduled through Sunday, August 14) and the Sandy Cinema (16605 Champion Way in Sandy, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18).

 

The animated/live action mockumentary Marcel the Shell with Shoes On opens tonight at the Hollywood Theatre (4122 NE Sandy Blvd in Portland, OR; plays Saturday and Sunday, August 13 and 14), the Laurelhurst Theater (2735 E Burnside St in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Salem Cinema (1127 Broadway NE in Salem, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Broadway Metro (888 Willamette St in Eugene, OR; plays through Thursday, August 18), The Grand Cinema (606 Fawcett Ave in Tacoma, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Darkside Cinema (215 SW 4th St in Corvallis, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), and the Olympia Film Society is showing the film at the Capitol Theater (206 5th Ave SE in Olympia, WA; scheduled through Friday, August 26).

  

Michelle Yeoh fighting to save the multiverse?  I'm SOLD!  Also starring the amazing James Hong and Jamie Lee Curtis, Everything Everywhere All At Once continues this week at the Broadway Metro (888 Willamette St in Eugene, OR; the extended cut is scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the McMenamin Kennedy School (5736 NE 33rd Ave in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Central Cinema (1411 21st Ave in Seattle, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), Studio One Theaters (3945 SE Powell Blvd in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), and SIFF Cinema Uptown (511 Queen Anne Ave N in Seattle, WA; scheduled through Tuesday, August 16).

 

Jordan Peele's latest film, Nope, is playing at the Granada 3 Theatre (1311 Adams Ave in La Grande, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the St Johns Twin Cinema (8704 N Lombard St in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), Cinema 21 (616 NW 21st Ave in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Laurelhurst Theater (2735 E Burnside St in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Sandy Cinema (16605 Champion Way in Sandy, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), Studio One Theaters (3945 SE Powell Blvd in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Yelm Cinemas (201 Prairie Park Lane SE in Yelm, WA; scheduled through Sunday, August 14), the Broadway Metro (888 Willamette St in Eugene, OR; plays through Thursday, August 18), SIFF Cinema Uptown (511 Queen Anne Ave N in Seattle, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Darkside Cinema (215 SW 4th St in Corvallis, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Academy Theater (7818 SE Stark St in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), and The Grand Cinema (606 Fawcett Ave in Tacoma, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18).   It is also at the McMenamin locations: the Anderson School (18607 Bothell Way NE in Bothell, WA; scheduled through Sunday, August 14), the Grand Lodge (3505 Pacific Ave in Forest Grove, OR; scheduled through Wednesday, August 17) and the Olympic Club (122 N Tower Ave in Centralia, WA; scheduled through Thursday, August 18).

It's summer, so you know Marvel will put out another movie.  Thor: Love and Thunder is playing at the Yelm Cinemas (201 Prairie Park Lane SE in Yelm, WA; scheduled through Sunday, August 14), the Sandy Cinema (16605 Champion Way in Sandy, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18), the Blue Mouse Theatre (2611 N Proctor St in Tacoma, WA; scheduled Fridays to Sundays through Sunday, August 7) and the Milton-Freewater Drive In (84322 Oregon-Washington Highway, Milton Freewater, OR; scheduled through Wednesday, August 17).

 

Jurassic World: Dominion, the *cough cough* "epic conclusion," is playing at the McMenamin Kennedy School (5736 NE 33rd Ave in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18)

 

The latest Disney/Pixar toy ad animated feature, Lightyear, is showing at the McMenamin Kennedy School (5736 NE 33rd Ave in Portland, OR; scheduled through Thursday, August 18) and the Milton-Freewater Drive In (84322 Oregon-Washington Highway, Milton Freewater, OR; scheduled through Wednesday, August 17).

 

The 14th Annual GuignolFest is taking applications for filmmaker to put together a short horror film in just 72 hours.  If you're up for the challenge, you'll find details on the link. And you can follow the event on Facebook.

 

The Bleedingham Horror Film Festival is taking submissions through September 1, 2022.  The event takes place on Saturday and Sunday, October 22 and 23, in Bellingham, WA.  

The Haunted Taft 2022 Ghosts and Legends Tours start on July 9 and run through September 17.  Tours depart from the Sapphire Center (4840 SE Hwy 101 in Lincoln City, OR), but you need to buy tickets in advance.

Stalker Farms Haunted Attractions (8705 Marsh Rd in Snohomish, WA) is now hiring scareactors, paintball actors, makeup artists and security for the 2022 haunt season.  Click on this link to apply, and you can visit the Red Barn at Stocker Farms on July 20, 27 or August 17, from 6 to 8 pm for more information and details.

ScareGrounds PDX (7805 SE Oaks Park Way in Portland, OR) is now hiring for the building crew, walkaround actors and management positions, with other jobs to be announced in the future.  Visit the link above for all the details.

 

August, 2022

Saturday, August 13

The Pickford Film Center (1318 Bay St in Bellingham, WA) will show the horror classic Don't Look Now tonight only at 10 pm.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail will be showing at the Egyptian Theatre (229 S Broadway in Coos Bay, OR) today only.

Werner Herzog's Nosferatu the Vampyre will play at 8 pm tonight only at The Beacon (4405 Rainier Ave S in Seattle, WA).

The SIFF Cinema Egyptian (805 E Pine St in Seattle, WA) opens the theater's celebration of the work of The Wachowskis with screenings of The Matrix tonight.

 

The celebration of the work of The Wachowskis continues at the SIFF Cinema Egyptian (805 E Pine St in Seattle, WA) with a screening of The Matrix Reloaded today only at 2 pm, The Matrix Revolutions today at 5 pm, and The Matrix Resurrections today at 8 pm..

The Clinton Street Theater (2522 SE Clinton St in Portland, OR) presents a screening of The Rocky Horror Picture designed for virgins tonight at midnight.  Doors open at 11 pm.

 

Sunday, August 14

The Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway in Vancouver, BC) will screen an English subtitled version of Studio Ghibli's Castle in the Sky today at 2:45 pm.

The Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway in Vancouver, BC) will screen Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey today at 5:30 pm.

The Church of Film will show Morbo, a mix of "Bunuel-inspired surrealist experimentation with psychological horror, and shadings of giallo," around 8 pm at the Red Fox (5128 N Albina Ave in Portland, OR).  The screening will be outdoors.

The celebration of the work of The Wachowskis continues at the SIFF Cinema Egyptian (805 E Pine St in Seattle, WA) with Speed Racer at 3:30 pm and on Wednesday, August 17, at 6:30 pm, and Jupiter Ascending tonight at 6:30 pm.

 

Monday, August 15

 

What a lovely day to catch Mad Max: Fury Road at the Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway in Vancouver, BC) today at 8:30 pm.

 

Tuesday, August 16

 

The Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway in Vancouver, BC) will show James Cameron's sci fi classic The Abyss tonight at 9 pm.

 

The Pickford Film Center (1318 Bay St in Bellingham, WA) will show the sci fi film Starship Troopers tonight only at 7:30 pm.

 

The Scifi Extravaganza at the Darkside Cinema (215 SW 4th St in Corvallis, OR) is The Lucifer Complex, with Robert Vaughn and Keenan Wynn.  The movie starts at 7 pm.

 

"It's your one way ticket to midnight, call it HEAVY METAL!  The animated cult classic plays at 7:30 pm tonight only at the Hollywood Theatre (4122 NE Sandy Blvd in Portland, OR).

Wednesday, August 17

BECU Drive-In Movies at Marymoor Park will show Spider-Man: No Way Home at Marymoor Park (6046 W Lake Sammamish Parkway NE in Redmond, WA) tonight at 8:30 pm.  For more details and to buy tickets, visit the link above.

Seattle filmmaker Tim Lightell's absurd sci fi comedy Manbaby, about a man's plan to convince his wife to have a child backfires on him in an unexpected fashion, has its world premiere at Central Cinema (1411 21st Ave in Seattle, WA) tonight only at 7 pm. Lightell and members of the cast and crew will be in attendance.

Thursday, August 18

Emerald City Comic Con takes place through Sunday at the Washington State Convention Center (705 Pike St in Seattle, WA).  You can follow the event on Facebook to get updates.

 

UPDATE: Brendan Fraser (1999's The Mummy, Doom Patrol) and Harvey Guillen (What We Do in the Shadows, The Magicians) are scheduled to appear. 

 

Writer/Director Greg Sestero will be at the Central Cinema (1411 21st Ave in Seattle, WA) tonight only for a screening of his new film Miracle Valley.  Regular screenings are scheduled for Friday, August 19, through Thursday, August 25.

The celebration of the work of The Wachowskis concludes at the SIFF Cinema Egyptian (805 E Pine St in Seattle, WA) tonight with a screening of Cloud Atlas at 6:30 pm.

 

The apocolyptic Miracle Mile, starring Anthony Edwards, Mare Winningham and f'ing JOHN AGAR (he rules) will play at 7:30 pm tonight only at The Beacon (4405 Rainier Ave S in Seattle, WA).

 

Fathom Events lets Rifftrax Live to deliver the pain upon Return of Swamp Thing in theaters nationwide tonight only.  Visit the link to find a theater near you.

 

Friday, August 19

 

In honor of Olivia Newton-John, who passed away last week, the Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway in Vancouver, BC) will screen the musical fantasy Xanadu tonight at 8:45 pm. 

The Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway in Vancouver, BC) will screen the 40th anniversary restoration of Tobe Hooper's horror classic, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre tonight at 11 pm.

 

The Beacon (4405 Rainier Ave S in Seattle, WA) will screen Tobe Hooper's Eaten Alive tonight only at 9:30 pm.

 

ClayDream, a documentary charting the rise and fall of the "Father of Claymation," Portlander Will Vinton, opens today at the Kiggins Theatre (1011 Main St in Vancouver, WA; showtimes to be announced).

 

The SIFF Cinema Egyptian (805 E Pine St in Seattle, WA) opens the theater's celebration of the work of Guillermo del Toro with a screening of Cronos tonight at 6 pm, and The Devil's Backbone tonight at 8:30 pm.

 

Queer Horror, hosted by Portland's premier drag clown Carla Rossi, will screen a new restoration of the horror classic Psycho, with 13 seconds of excised footage unavailable for 60 years, at the Hollywood Theatre (4122 NE Sandy Blvd in Portland, OR) tonight at 8:30 pm.  The event opens with a preshow starring Pepper Pepper and Matthew Leavitt as Toonces.

 

Friday Night Frights, brings one of the best 1990s monster movies back to the big screen at the Blue Mouse Theater (2611 N Proctor st in Tacoma, WA).  Check out Tremors, with great practical effects and a solid cast lead by Kevin Bacon and Fred Ward, tonight at 10 pm.  If you've only seen it on home vidoe or cable, do not miss this chance to see it on the big screen! 

The 1993 fantasy film The Secret Garden will play at the 5th Avenue Cinema (510 SW Hall St in Portland, OR).  Be aware, this is a cash only venue.

 

Saturday, August 20 

The Portland Celtic Fantasy Faire takes place from 10 am to 6 pm today at Shute Park (953 SE Maple St in Hillsboro, OR).  The event is FREE, but donations are accepted and encouraged, so don't be stingy with your coin, or a dragon might smite you.  Follow the event on Facebook.

 

The Clinton Street Theater (2522 SE Clinton St in Portland, OR) presents a free screening of Serenity today at 4 pm.

 

The celebration of the work of Guillermo del Toro continues at the SIFF Cinema Egyptian (805 E Pine St in Seattle, WA) with screenings of Nightmare Alley at 2 pm, Hellboy at 5:15 pm, and Hellboy II: The Golden Army at 8 pm.

The Family Film series at the Hollywood Theatre (4122 NE Sandy Blvd in Portland, OR) will screen the Ray Harryhausen classic The Seventh Voyage of Sinbad today and tomorrow at 3 pm.  Harryhausen on the big screen will be AWESOME!  Don't miss it!!

Hey you guys!  Fairhaven Outdoor Cinema at the Fairhaven Village Green (1207 10 St in Bellingham, WA) will show The Goonies tonight after sundown.

The Whiteside Theatre (361 SW Madison Ave in Corvallis, OR) will show the Robin Williams fantasy  Jumanji today only at 3 pm. Doors open at 2 pm.

 

The Clinton Street Theater (2522 SE Clinton St in Portland, OR) presents a screening of The Rocky Horror Picture at midnight with the Clinton Street Cabaret.  Doors open at 11 pm.

 

Sunday, August 21 

The celebration of the work of Guillermo del Toro continues at the SIFF Cinema Egyptian (805 E Pine St in Seattle, WA) with screenings of the director's cut of Mimic at 2 pm, Nightmare Alley in GLORIOUS black and white at 4:45 pm, Blade II at 8 pm.