‘Thunderbolts*’ Movie Review: The New MCU Hero Team Runs Middle-of-the-Road
Photo from Chuck Zlotnick/Marvel
From Jeff Nelson
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has hit an unfortunate slump in its silver screen adventures since Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 closed the door on its rag-tag team of unlikely heroes. The Marvels, Deadpool & Wolverine, and Captain America: Brave New World aren’t quite the disaster known as Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, but they hardly restore faith in the MCU’s future. Thunderbolts* is a middle-of-the-road franchise installment. It’s a far cry from a series high, although it’s an entertaining stop along the way.
A group of anti-heroes find themselves ensnared in a physical and political trap that will force them to work together. Their lives and the fate of shifting world powers are on the table, showing these solo combatants the importance of teamwork. They’ll need it to conquer the darkest corners of their pasts.
Heroes such as Bucky Barnes/The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) and Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian (David Harbour) previously played their parts as secondary characters. Thunderbolts* is all about giving the limelight to the lesser-known characters, including Ava Starr/Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) and John Walker (Wyatt Russell). This story belongs to Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) and the newly introduced Robert Reynolds/Sentry (Lewis Pullman).
Yelena chooses to bury herself in her high-octane work to run from the grief of her sister, Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson). However, all the action in the world isn’t enough to pull her from the empty void growing inside her lonely soul. Depression and isolation are central themes that draw these anti-heroes together, but they also create the story’s imposing antagonist with power that would best The Avengers at their strongest.
CIA Director Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is the puppeteer behind the scenes. Her looming impeachment trial forces her hand to act quickly, putting Earth’s safety at risk. Louis-Dreyfus plays Valentina with her effortless comedy, making her more snarky than particularly threatening. However, this fits the character.
The action is less fantastical than the cosmic entires, rooted in the hand-to-hand combat we’re more accustomed to seeing in the Marvel television shows on Disney+. The choreography keeps to its small-scale world, sidelining much of the studio’s patchy CGI work until the third act. Even at its flashiest, it’s pleasant to see something different than a laser light show.
Some of the MCU’s most satisfying moments have more to do with major character stakes worth investing in than big explosions or superpowers. Thunderbolts* infuses depression and its all-consuming pain into the narrative and character arcs. It really isn’t saying or doing anything inventive, but there are glimpses of genuine heart that Pugh embraces with her compelling performance. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the entire cast. Stan feels like he’s coasting with a phoned-in portrayal.
Thunderbolts* leans on long-established anti-hero tropes, but it comes to life when it wears its heart on its sleeve. The action and comedy are average MCU material, recycling elements from previous installments while taking another step in establishing this new era of heroes. It’s still difficult to imagine what the future will look like. Let’s just hope it doesn’t lose the characters and their motivations along the way.
Rating: 3/5
Thunderbolts* hits theaters on May 2nd, 2025.
