For some people, the 32 days between Thanksgiving and Christmas are either the happiest time of the year or like entering into Dante’s Nine Circles of Hell. If you tend toward the Dante side and meditation, hikes through the woods or deep breathing do nothing to help, I have a suggestion. Go see a superhero movie. To be specific, go see Thor: Ragnarok, the third Thor film in the series.
This was my first superhero movie in about two decades and, heaven help me, I really liked it.
A quick recap for those not Marvel comics fan. From the Rotten Tomatoes site, Thor who is named after a Norse mythological deity “is imprisoned on the other side of the universe without his mighty hammer and finds himself in a race against time to get back to Asgard to stop Ragnarok--the destruction of his homeworld and the end of Asgardian civilization--at the hands of an all-powerful new threat, the ruthless Hela. But first he must survive a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits him against his former ally and fellow Avenger--the Incredible Hulk!"
This is a funny, action packed, sci-fi fantasy that will take you out of your day-to-day life as soon as you put on your 3-D glasses. The actors are topnotch: Chris Hemsworth, is the mucho-muscled Thor who brings superpowers and human reactions to all situations. The big green angry Hulk is really Bruce Banner, his anxiety ridden friend with too many PhDs, played wonderfully by Mark Ruffalo. I particularly liked Tessa Thompson, the hard drinking, tough and sassy Valkyrie and Jeff Goldblum, the quirky and unreasonable Grandmaster. Add in Cate Blanchett, Anthony Hopkins, Idris Elba and Benedict Cumberbatch to round out a top-notch cast.
If you know anything about Marvel Studios, you know about Marvel comics, and the man behind both, Stan Lee.
He is the creator of Spider-Man, X-Men, Dr. Strange, the Hulk, and Thor. Now in his mid-90’s, Lee is frequently a guest at Marvel Day, a special event held by the San Francisco Giants. Fans come in costume and hang on every word of the comic master, then go out and watch a baseball game.
If you’re interested in box office numbers, Thor: Ragarok has grossed 791.5 M worldwide already. The Top 3 offshore markets so far are: China ($69.8M), the UK ($29.4M), and Korea ($27.1M)
Click on Rotten Tomatoes for the Thor: Raganok movie trailer . This review site gives it a 92% on its Tomatometer.