Film Review: "Thor: Love and Thunder" (2022).

"Not every god has a plan" in Thor: Love and Thunder. This superhero film directed by Taika Waititi, written by Waititi and Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, based on the Marvel Comics character Thor created by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby, and produced by Marvel Studios. It is the sequel to Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and the 29th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). The film finds Thor on a journey unlike anything he’s ever faced - a quest for inner peace. But his retirement is interrupted by a galactic killer known as Gorr the God Butcher, who seeks the extinction of the gods. To combat the threat, Thor enlists the help of King Valkyrie, Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster, who - to Thor’s surprise - inexplicably wields his magical hammer, Mjolnir, as the Mighty Thor. Together, they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.

In November 2017, shortly after the critically and commercially successful release of Thor: Ragnarok, Waititi and Marvel Studios met to discuss ideas for another film, which was ultimately green-lit. In January 2018, Chris Hemsworth indicated in that he was interested in continuing to play Thor in the MCU, despite his contract with Marvel Studios being set to expire after Avengers: Endgame (2019). In July 2019, Waititi officially signed on to write and direct a fourth film. Later that month, at San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige announced the film, with a Thor: Love and Thunder and a November 5, 2021 release date. Hemsworth, Waititi, Tessa Thompson and Natalie Portman were confirmed to be reprising their roles. In February 2020, Robinson was hired to pen the installment with Waititi. In early April, Disney shifted much of their Phase Four slate of films due to the COVID-19 pandemic, moving the film's release date to February 18, 2022. Therefore, pre-production on the film was delayed due to the pandemic, with Waititi unsure when production would continue. At the end of the month, Disney moved the release date up to February 11, 2022. By late January 2021, Christian Bale and Russell Crowe rounded out the film's cast as newcomers, with Jaimie Alexander, Chris Pratt, Pom Klementieff, Dave Bautista, Karen Gillan, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper and Sean Gunn reprising their roles. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in early June. Filming took place at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney, under the working title The Big Salad. Filming was delayed from an initial August 2020 start date due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In October 2021, the film's release date was once again delayed to July 8, 2022.

Hemsworth impressively fleshes out Thor even further, Bale is striking in his role and the rest of the cast are uniformly good.

In a sense, it's sort of the Return of the Jedi of the Thor films: It's solid, it's engaging, but yeah, it's also a kind of a step down from the previous three.

Simon says Thor: Love and Thunder receives:

Also, see my reviews for Thor: Ragnarok and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.