Marvel’s Thunderbolts* earns 3.5 out of 4 stars from Us Weekly associate editor Nicole Massabrook.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe is so back. Thunderbolts* is exactly the jolt Marvel Studios movies needed.
The movie, which hit theaters on Friday, May 2, follows Yelena Belvova (Florence Pugh), Black Widow’s little sister, as she struggles to find a place in the world. She was a child soldier, trained to be an assassin, and now she’s a mercenary for hire. She admits to her latest victim that she feels alone, like she’s in a dark void.
When Yelena and several other hired hands (Wyatt Russell‘s John Walker/U.S. Agent and Hannah John-Kamen‘s Ava Starr/Ghost) realize they’ve been sent to kill each other to cover up the wrongdoing of Valentina (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), their boss, Yelena suddenly isn’t alone. She has to figure out how to lead a team so they can stay alive.
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Thunderbolts* isn’t full of a-list superheroes, but any Guardians of the Galaxy fan can tell you that name-recognition isn’t what makes these movies good. Scroll down to find out why the Thunderbolts* just became the most interesting group of heroes Marvel has had in years:
Laugh-Out-Loud Funny
Thunderbolts* is genuinely funny, and it’s not just the standard sarcastic quips that Marvel has become known for. Since these aren’t necessarily typical heroes, they don’t get typical jokes. John Walker is so annoying that viewers will want to punch him in the face (which is a real compliment to Russell), and Yelena’s bluntness always hits the mark. The dynamic quickly becomes that of bickering siblings as they begrudgingly agree to work together.
However, it’s David Harbour’s Alexei Shastakov/Red Guardian who shines by being the most embarrassing dad to Yelena. He messes up everything in the best way, delivering hilariously cringey moments for the badass super spy.
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The Emotional Core
The belly laughs are kind of a trojan horse for the emotional gut-punches of Thunderbolts*.
Marvel finally nailed what made movies like Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy so good — the human connections. In Thunderbolts*, Yelena is searching for some sort of tether, and she connects with this team of people who are equally messy and traumatized. She works through her own struggles with depression by reaching out to Bob (Lewis Pullman), who struggles deeply with mental illness and addiction.
The message about depression and fighting through loneliness and isolation isn’t anything terribly surprising, but it’s always relevant. It makes these characters, who do not have typically relatable circumstances, feel familiar and worth saving.
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Thunderbolts* doesn’t require you to remember everything that came before nor does it feel like a two-hour advertisement for the next MCU movie. Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) is a good guy, and Yelena Belova is Black Widow’s little sister. The Avengers have not been replaced since the death of Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame. That’s it. That’s all the knowledge the average viewer needs to enjoy Thunderbolts*.
There’s definitely stuff for us nerds — the post-credits scene will make the MCU fans kick their feet with excitement — but no one misses anything by not watching past projects. The movie is actually a great jumping in point for anyone who hasn’t seen these films in a while.
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That isn’t to say the movie is perfect. Bucky fans will no doubt wish his arc was a little stronger (or at least explained how he decided to become a congressman). It could be argued that all of the Thunderbolts* members should’ve gotten childhood flashbacks rather than just two of them. It also embraces that bleak, faded color palette that should’ve been left in the 2010s.
But still, the movie has so much more to enjoy than to complain about. We haven’t even mentioned grounded and believable fight scenes, reasonable two-hour run time, the minimal use of CGI (we’re still salty about that final Captain America: Brave New World sequence) and Sebastian Stan’s glorious hair. There’s plenty that makes Marvel’s Thunderbolts* absolutely worth watching.
