I’ve mentioned in many reviews of comic book movies that I’ve been a comic book collector for many years. My twin brother currently has the collection that belongs to both of us at his house. I read the first iteration of The Thunderbolts from Kurt Busiek and Mark Bagley in the late 90s. It was a team of villains, led by Baron Zemo,  masquerading as heroes as a ruse to the American public and the heroes of the Marvel Universe at the time. This new version of the team in the film of the same name is based on a later iteration of the team out of convenience and necessity . This rag-tag group of anti-heroes reluctantly comes together to fight a mutual threat to them and mankind.

When this film picks up, we find Yelana (Florence Pugh) doing the dirty work of Valentina Elegra De Fontaine  (Julia (Louis-Dreyfus) . She is trying to clean up all her dirty secrets before an impeachment trial into her company’s wrongdoings and illegal activities as head of the CIA. As part of her clean-up routine, she sends Yelena, the Black Widow, to a special facility buried deep in a mountain. Unbeknownst to Yelana, she wasn’t the only one sent to this location. She gets confronted by John Walker, aka US Agent (Wyatt Russell), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko). They’ve been set up, but they meet someone who they don’t know named Bob (Lewis Pullman) who doesn’t have a memory of who he is. 

Kevin Feige and the writers and directors of the past handful of movies in the current phase have been building towards a moment that happens in this film. It’s not exactly what MCU fans were looking for, but it ends up being a decent movie overall. Director Rob Scherier isn’t exactly the guy that comes to mind when you think of as an MCU director, but he is the type of director Feige has been recruiting since the beginning of the MCU. An indie director with a specific idea. He had a vision for what he wanted to do, and it fit into the plans of what Feige and company needed. After watching the film, I can say there is a distinct look and mindset that is very different from MCU movies in the past. It’s a darker and more depressing film than most of the past movies in the previous three phases. 

Right from the get-go, this version of the Thunderbolts* let’s viewers know it’s something different than past films. As a couple examples, the uniform the characters wear are all variations on darker colors like black.  Except for Red Guardian (David Harbour), who’s returning from his appearance in Black Widow. He has red in his costume, as his character name suggests. Also, there is a dark feel to the story regarding the backstories of some if not all the characters in the cast. They all have rough pasts or things going on in their lives. Whether it’s some domestic issues, alcohol problems, or the most common problem, anxiety, loneliness, and depression. I could relate to some of these issues the characters have. Those scenes were very emotional to me. I’ve been going through these things most of my life.

When it comes to Marvel movies, you know you’re going to get some action scenes. One in particular I can mention is when all the characters are stuck in the facility in the mountain. They all end up fighting each other and using their particular set of skills to defend themselves  and the others. This was a fast-paced and quick response action sequence. With all of these characters being punch, kick and shoot type characters, it’s not a whole lot they can do, so speeding up the action scenes was probably the best way to go with these characters.  I’m glad to see different fight choreography than previous MCU films. Maybe the Winter Soldier would be the closest comparison to this one. And then Black Widow.

Florence Pugh made her first appearance in Black Widow the same as Harbour did. She had a good banter in that movie with Harbour. The duo pick up where they left off in that film in this one.  It is obvious that they have a good relationship with one another. Their banter was quite funny. That’s the feel that the whole film is going for when it’s not dark. Pugh, though, has a lot of dialogue with various members of the cast. She has a lot of moments where she gets to  shine as an actress. It’s one of the best MCU performances to date thus far. The trauma she has to deal with helps accentuate her acting ability. She is the best part of this movie by far. The darkness is what she needs to bring out who this character truly is.

Bill Pullman replaced Steven Youn, who was originally cast as the character of Bob. I think that helped this film in an odd way. Pullman has played characters called Bob before, Top Gun: Maverick. He plays this character with a lot of pain and anguish. His backstory shows who he is, which plays into the darkness this character endures in his head.  Pullman usually plays happy go lucky types of characters, but he taps into the deepest depths of his psyche. He brought something rare out in his sinister performance as Bob and eventually something else. He’s a chip off the old block from his father, Bill Pullman. They’re both good actors in their own right, but I have a feeling the son may turn out to have a better career in the end.

Thunderbolts* is a vastly different and darker MCU film from any that have come before. The darkness refers to the overall look of the movie, which doesn’t look like any previous movies in the franchise. The mental problems characters have dealing with various traumas play into that as well. The director and writer were clearly going for a darker aesthetic all the way around. Pugh and Pullman give performances that are accordingly similar to the feel the movie is going for. Despite the banter between Pugh and a few of the other characters that made me laugh, Harbour, this movie isn’t for the faint of heart. It deals with topics that aren’t for kids. Fiege and company have made a film that isn’t like many if any of the previous movies in the franchise. They made a film specifically dealing with mental trauma and dark times. This is the best MCU movie since Spider Man:  No Way Home and turns a page from a few missteps in the last few films in this phase. This is a great starting off point moving forward.

4 ½ stars

Dan Skip Allen