The upcoming Marvel release Thor: Ragnarok is loosely based on the Ragnarok comic book by Jack Kirby which showed that Asgard was destroyed and it was rebuilt from its ashes. It was about how Thor tried to prevent the death goddess from turning his home planet into ruins. Taika Waititi’s direction and the fun things incorporated in the film have been tremendously praised by the critics. The audience has given great initial reactions and right from the special effects to the narration, it all has turned out to be flawless. The film has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes as of now.
Other than the typical Thor cast which includes (Thor, God of Thunder), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Anthony Hopkins (Odin) and Idris Elba (Heimdall), the film also stars the double Oscar winner Cate Blanchett (Queen Elizabeth, Blue Jasmine, Carol) as the new almighty villain Hela who is the ruler of Doomeo aka Asgard Hell, Jeff Goldblum (Independence Day, Jurassic Park) as a senile grandmaster who happens to be a universal elder, who is generally referred to as “Inter-galactic Cosmic Pleasure-seeker” and was in possession of the mind-gem before Thanos snatched it from him, Tessa Thomson (Creed, Selma) playing Valkyrie who might be seen as the lady love of Thor, Karl Urban (Lord of the Rings, Return of the King, Star Trek trilogy) as a powerful warrior Skurge, and of course Mark Ruffalo(Avengers, Foxcatcher, Spotlight) as The Hulk.
In the global poster for Thor: Ragnarok, Hela is depicted as a towering figure looming large over Thor’s head, and she is such a major threat that Thor needs a mighty team to battle her. The poster was originally a Japanese artwork with bright and dynamic color palette, and it is extremely opposite to the typical dark posters that we generally see for Marvel films. Since Thor needed to assemble a team of cosmic guys such as Valkyrie, Loki, Hulk, etc. is a fair indication of how powerful Hela is. The latest audio clip has been released in which we can hear Mark Ruffalo say, “Cate Blanchett’s character is the worst of the worst, totally evil.”
It is already clear that Thor and Hulk will have a Gladiator battle in an arena and both will not only survive but, will go on a galactic road trip. However, they are likely to suffer major damage in their bid to protect Asgard from the Queen of Hell as the planet will be destroyed during the deadly battle. The comics showed Hela getting the possession of Twilight sword and threatening that she would destroy all nine realms. This prompted King Odin to banish her from Asgard.
The movie’s official trailer has been released by Marvel, and it shows Hela holding Mjolnir. The story synopsis has already suggested that Thor and his hammer will be separated before Thor is dispatched to Planet Sakaar. Therefore, it remains to be seen whether Hela proves to be worthy of the mightiest thing in the realm or she is just the ruler of the hell who doesn’t deserve greatness.
Taika Waititi had a chat with Digitalspy, and he said that the sequence featuring Hela’s destruction of Mjolnir was supposed to be entirely different. The first trailer had suggested that the hammer will be destroyed in a New York alleyway where Odin had been staying as a homeless being. However, the latest TV ads show us that the sequence has been shot in an open field resembling the Iceland Coast. This is what the director said:
“We wanted to go somewhere peaceful and actually like chill out with those characters, and be with Odin while he imparts his wisdom and stuff and not have to hear like stupid yellow cabs honking out the back. It just felt like a terrible environment to have a scene which could be very emotional for what happens with Odin and the boys.”
Have a look at the official synopsis of the movie:
“Imprisoned on the other side of the universe, the mighty Thor finds himself in a deadly gladiatorial contest that pits him against the Hulk, his former ally, and fellow Avenger. Thor’s quest for survival leads him in a race against time to prevent the all-powerful Hela from destroying his home world and the Asgardian civilization”.
Taika seems to have rejigged the script on the move and let’s see whether it turns out to be a good thing or not. Thor: Ragnarok releases on November 3rd.
