3/5 stars
Marvel needs a new team-up. Ever since the hugely successful Avengers movies Infinity War and Endgame, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has struggled to replace the superhero collective that included Thor, Hulk and Iron Man.
We had Chloé Zhao’s 2021 film Eternals, but that proved to be a non-starter. A promising-looking reboot of The Fantastic Four is coming, but before that we have Thunderbolts* – and no, the asterisk is not a misprint.
Behind it is Jake Schreier, who has trodden the typical MCU path by directing indies – Robot & Frank and Paper Towns – before launching into his first blockbuster.
Clearly, he and his screenwriters are conscious of the post-Endgame malaise. “The Avengers are not walking through that door,” we’re told. “We have no relatable heroes.”
The trouble is, the Thunderbolts are about as reluctant a team-up as you are likely to find in the MCU. Dubbed “defective losers”, this ragtag bunch of misfits is far from harmonious.