Thunder Force Review - The super duo is a missed opportunity.
Thunder Force tries to combine superhero stories and movies of friendships between heroes in a comic format, and all of this culminates in the presentation of two great stars, Oscar-winning Octavia Spencer as Emily Stanton and Oscar nominee Melissa McCarthy as Lydia Berman. Unfortunately, this combination does not succeed in providing the level that viewers would hope for from all these wonderful components, despite the wonderful performance of both stars in addition to the other stars.
The film is written and directed by McCarthy's husband, Ben Falcon, in which he plays a small role as well, as we are used to with all of her films. It also includes their daughter, Vivienne Falcon, who plays Lydia when she was young. Thunder Force tells the story of two friends Lydia and Emily, the first is a chaotic girl who does not bear responsibilities and only cares about having fun, and the second is a very intelligent scientist who tries to avenge the killing of her parents by inventing a supernatural serum that transforms humans into superheroes, so they gain superpowers and try to eliminate the villains called "sinners" (Or Miscreants ). They are converts with superpowers who seek to control the country.
Unfortunately, the story suffers from superficiality, as it tells us very quickly the story of the background of the two heroines Lydia and Emily, how they became friends, and then how they parted. It tries to establish a story of two superheroes without much depth, offering nothing that we have not seen in this genre of films before. Even the moment of the reunion between them was quick and unsatisfactory, giving little room for the scene of reconciliation between them before she throws Lydia into the heart of the laboratory to gain her powers by mistake. The film also introduces some jokes that extend too much, which ultimately makes her lose her sense of humor.
We also do not know much about the "sinners" other than that they are people who have become mutants after exposure to the earth by some rays. We do not realize how the powers of each of them work completely or why all of them are only evil, so you wonder why the world needs to create superheroes to fight them and there is no good person among them? The plot does not present a major climax or escalation of events, even when the main villain is revealed, but rather sporadic confrontations from time to time.
The other unfortunate thing is that the premise of the film opens the way for many wonderful ideas and distinctive action that can be presented with two superheroes such as Lydia and Emily, but the film shortens these scenes that do not exceed two or three battles with a few dangerous moves. We do not actually see our friends using their supernatural powers so much, especially Emily, who barely uses them in the few confrontations in the film without any great benefit, and even Lydia's character does not shine much with her powers except with one scene, perhaps when she throws a large bus to a very far distance without real need. Most encounters start with some laser explosions, and end with a few punches with some comedic stances. These laser attacks come from a character called "Laser" (Boom Clementiv from the Guardians of the Galaxy series ), who unfortunately cannot shine with her static, one-dimensional character.
There are also some unnecessary characters in the story, as they only aim to move the plot forward in a way that the script could have dealt with in a better way, such as Melissa Liu who plays Rob, the former CIA agent who helps Emily create a superhero serum. It doesn't advance much in the story, and the only plot that plays an important role in it was illogical and late in the story. The not-so-deep character of the movie's main villain, election nominee William Stephens (Bobby Canavel), nicknamed King, suffers from gullibility who loves to kill only for the sake of killing, and even when he does, he is devoid of enthusiasm and action.
On the other hand, there is the "crab" character, represented by Jason Bateman. It is aptly named, as he is a semi-mutated "sinner" and has a crab arm as a result of the transformation, and they do nothing but try to give a comic side to the character, but it would have been better if he had any real superpowers to enrich the plot. But the wonderful chemistry between him and McCarthy (who together starred in Identity Thief ) makes the scenes that bring them together some of the best moments in the film.
But that doesn't mean the movie is completely bad, as Thunder Force offers some hilarious scenes from a McCarthy performance that don't always disappoint fans with its funny style. We witness some comedic moments when she begins to acquire superpowers, how she deals with them, and tries to adapt to her new abilities. Although some of the jokes sometimes extend too much, McCarthy's presence and performance can make you want to complete the movie to the end.
Conclusion
The film offers a cast of beloved stars, from Octavia Spencer and Melissa McCarthy to Jason Bateman and Boom Clementiv, in addition to a distinct premise that has a lot of potential, but unfortunately Thunder Force fails to live up to all these wonderful components and presents a normal story that does not contain much action as It is expected of her, with some jokes that sometimes extend too much. But what makes the movie really watchable is the performance of McCarthy, who shines in some very funny scenes that make you want to complete the movie until the end.