After the Marvel formula, especially up to the phase IV degree with “Avengame” and “Spider-Man: Far From Home”, was almost something like an invitation to print money, the appearance of (financial) infallibility has recently received the first major dents: which since “Iron Man” (2008) established and much-cited mixture of action and humor Genre bonds and numerous cross-connections, apparently it was no longer sufficient to lure the audience into cinemas in the usual crowds. “The Marvels” was even the first full-grown McU flop in the 33rd. And even “Captain America 4: Brave New World”, despite Harrison Ford as a Red Hulk, dragged himself over the $ 400 million mark. So it is high time to turn the established formula upside down – and there comes “Thunderbolts*” precisely.
The 36th film of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was sold very differently in marketing than its predecessors: Among other things, there was a particularly stylish trailer as a bow to the celebrated indie studio A24, in which, for a change, not with the usual blockbuster references, but with comparisons to cult films such as “Midsommar”, “A Different Man” and “EVERYTHING” Everywhere all at Once ”was advertised. Then there was the Tom Cruise Memorial Stunt from Florence Pugh as well as A real tinder profile of the fictional Thunderbolts member Red Guardian. But not only the marketing, but also the film itself stands out clearly from other MCU titles over long distances: “Thunderbolts*”, despite its cheeky-dry humor, is essentially an astonishingly serious and honest examination of difficult topics such as depression and trauma, which, after a few MCU films with sometimes questionable visual effects, offers some really good, because mostly handmade action scenes.
The newly formed Thunderbolts walk to act …
Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) is depressed: Her life is a never-ending circle of ever-running missions for the organization of ex-CIA boss Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). Therefore, she generally spends her evenings alone with too much alcohol and her cell phone. But just when she wants to get out, she is lured into a remote facility by her unscrupulous client, where she meets John Walker alias Us Agent (Wyatt Russell), Ava Starr alias Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and Antonia Dreykov alias Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko). So far, they have done the dirty work for de fontaine – and should now turn off each other.
But with which nobody expected: The anti-hero wrapped up just in time! When fleeing from the facility, which is like a fatal escape room, Yelena and Co. not only grow together to form a team, they also read the enigmatic Bob (Lewis Pullman), which soon turns out to be a visiting object in a (supposedly) failed super soldier program from de fontaine. After Bob has come back again, Yelena, John and Ava merged with Yelena's pull father Alexei Shostakov alias Red Guardian (David Harbor) and the former winter Soldier Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) to finally point the Fontaine …
The opening sequence already specifies the tone
“Thunderbolts*” begins with the iconic Marvel logo and McU fanfare, but the usual triumphal start soon and soon turns into the dark and acoustically into the dark gray-until director Jake Schreier (“Skeleton Crew”) finally onto the depressed face of Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova Secret laboratories with a jump from the second highest building in the world only seems to be half -hearted. With this, Schreier directly sets the dry-laconic tone for “Thunderbolts*”:
The title-giving figures have more together, i.e. only anti-hero from the second row, which, as in the similarly stored DC film “Suicide Squad”, are colored together. They all also carry their package around with them, as is always discussed in dialogues and flashbacks: from Yelena's childhood in the Black-Widow training camp to John Walkers screwed up Captain-America-Atheit to Red Guardian, who now earns his money as a chauffeur and mourned the glorious Soviet past with plenty of alcohol.
Florence Pugh is one of the absolute highlights in “Thunderbolts*”.
In particular, Florence Pugh (“We live in time”) and Lewis Pullman (“Riff Raff”) can be used with really great activity. Pugh embodies her Yelena with a lively mine game between deeply sad and carefully optimistic, while Pullman not only shows the two opposing sides of his figure, but above all skilfully worked out the dazzling facets in between, such as Bobs born out of uncertainty. However, there is also a downside of the medal: Pugh and Pullman are so clearly the focus of the film that the remaining Thunderbolts around them get one or two moments to shine, but otherwise clearly play the second violin.
In addition, a few lengths creep in the trauma word battles of the Thunderbolts in the long run-and Red Guardian even annoys a little here and there with his loud way. But at the latest in the very MCU-atypical and surprisingly low-riot finale, Jake Schreier then completely outeskifts the emotional potential of his figure ensemble. Especially since “Thunderbolts*” can also score with the classic MCU virtues, i.e. action and mostly accurate humor. When about four of the Thunderbolt's back on backs like an eight -legged human spider, upright a elevator shaft and cubble, who now had the very worst childhood, this ensures some extremely successful laughs.
The handmade action in “Thunderbolts*” is really impressive.
In addition, “Thunderbolts*” also comes up with some excellent action scenes, especially in the first half: Yelena beats up directly at the start, for example, through a gear full of guards, which screams captured from a bird's eye view in a nicely beautiful game of light and shadow as well as without visible cuts. The struggle of Yelena, US Agent, Ghost and TaskMaster also scores with a always mobile camera without ever being lost. However, the action highlight is a chase through the Nevada desert, for which Schreier was more than just inspired by the legendary truck flip in Christopher Nolan's “The Dark Knight”-after all, there are two spectacular vehicle overflows in a row.
Anyway, the action in “Thunderbolts*” is best done when it is handmade as in the sequences described here, while in later action scenes the use of visual effects and CGI is quite negative. It is all the better that, as already indicated, as already indicated in the direction of the final, not in a typical blockbuster manner (and how many other MCU films beforehand) relies on the principle of “higher, faster, further”, but stages a thematically suitable, relatively withdrawn final, which also comes up with some exciting visual ideas and flows fluently into the large final turn.
Conclusion: “Thunderbolts*” is a very good and extraordinary MCU film, which convinces with some strong action scenes and a brave finale, but above all a clear thematic focus and a strong cast, from which Florence Pugh and Lewis Pullman stand out again.