It’s fairly obvious that this Marvel fan has been dying to set her eyes on this fourth installment of Thor. Being shot in Australia and talks of it being a family affair, excitement isn’t enough to describe the anticipation. And so finally it’s here, and I’m not sure if it was an episode of Seinfeld, or if I was watching a bad over-dramatic soap opera, but my love for the story, triumph over the eye rolling moments.

Thor: Love and Thunder starts off by allowing the audience an update of its three main characters. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is in the middle of chemo for stage four cancer. Gorr (Christian Bale) finds himself disappointed by the God he worships, only to renounce him and come into possession of the necro sword to fulfill the calling of “all gods will die”. And Thor (Chris hemsworth) well, he’s in the middle of a bit of an identity crisis, but finds himself back in action when Gorr’s intentions are revealed, and together with his trusted allies, Korg (Taika Waititi) and Val (Tessa Thompson), all their storylines come together to stop the God butcher, Gorr from getting the key that opens up the possibility of killing all Gods at once.

Allow me to elaborate on the Seinfield/soap opera thing I mentioned. A lot of the first half of the film felt like nothing. Though a lot is brought to the surface and much of it is important to the plot, the constant soap opera style, dramatic and eye rolling moments of hilariousness, that drips of Waititi’s sarcastic and dry sense of humour (which I do love) made me giggle, but also made me not take it seriously. And boy, did I really want to take it seriously. It felt as though, he still could have infused the film with all those dumb jokes, but toned it down enough so that Bale wasn’t the only one that took his job seriously. But please, don’t get me wrong. I still laughed a shit-load.

You know what else made me laugh and also very surprisingly impressed me? Russell Crowes great attempt at a Greek/English accent, as he portrayed the mightiest God of them all, Zeus. It needs to be heard to be believed. And you need to be Australian to understand this reference but, I’m sure Crowe used Con the Fruiterer as inspiration to perfect that voice. Not going to lie, Zeus might have been my favourite thing about this film. But very close behind are the kids. Not going to spoil but the kids are the heroes in this one. It’s what gives the movie so much heart.

Furthermore, I was under the impression that the Guardians of the Galaxy would play a much bigger role here, but they’re barely in it. Not a problem, just something I noticed.

I hate to love it, but I do. Thor: Love and Thunder does end up being a beautiful tale worth telling. It also helped soothe a dramatic week for me. Would recommend for those looking for an escape, too.

Rating: 3/5