Thunderbolts*

Thunderbolts is a taut thriller sprinkled with wry humour and packs grounded emotional resonance. The latter is a surprise for a film that’s sold as a romp, which it still is, but it is as focused on its characters as it is on explosions

Credit the script for its thoughtful character development and getting deeper just when most will think it never will.

It's silly but still heartening, this idea that by saving each other, we might also be able to save ourselves.

Even amid such familiar mayhem, Schreier finds fresh, vivid angles. The action is clear and coherent; the character dynamics strike the right balance of earnest sincerity and glib humor.

The movie features not only some of the best actors in the MCU, but some of the funniest.

I enjoyed the interaction between the characters, but it is one joke...

A second-rate group of superheroes having a second-rate adventure and guess what? It’s pretty second-rate.

Thunderbolts* doesn’t try to recreate Marvel’s golden era—it moves beyond it. With a tighter lens, deeper emotion, and a cast of flawed, fascinating characters, it marks a turning point: not a return to form, but the start of a new one.


 
“Thunderbolts*” may not be the Avengers’ replacement – just yet.

But Florence Pugh, as the feisty Yelena Belova, could be the first big building block toward such an enterprise.

Florence Pugh is exceptional in leading this story, but I felt like the build up to the ending and message was not as earned as it could have been. I really wanted to love it.