Marvel is back with another movie, The Thunderbolts and it’s already a hit! Starring returning MCU actors such as Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, David Harbour, and Laurence Fishburne, as well as many actors and actresses making their debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The movie follows a team of antiheros such as Yelena Belova, Bucky Barnes, Red Guardian, and Ghost, who have complicated pasts, but get an opportunity to change their reputation when they are recruited to work together on a dangerous mission. However the mission they were sent on was not what they signed up for and they must put aside their past and hate for each other amidst trying to escape the trap. The movie is a high energy action film, filled with crime, drama, but also feelings.
While being an action movie, it explores themes of mental health, extreme loneliness, and the struggle to find redemption. It explores topics like suicidal thoughts, alcoholism, depression, PTSD, and bipolar disorder. (Baulch, n.d.) The way that marvel incorporates important current topics in the film with the fantasy and action is very smart, and shows that the company has larger goals than just making action movies.
The movie has not been out long, but reviews are already singing its praises. With an 88% on Rotton Tomatoes, with reviews like “It’s silly but still heartening, this idea that by saving each other, we might also be able to save ourselves.” And “Even amid such familiar mayhem, Schreier finds fresh, vivid angles. The action is clear and coherent; the character dynamics strike the right balance of earnest sincerity and glib humor.” After a few Marvel films that did not hit the mark after Endgame, it is said that this movie, “refreshingly returns to the tried-and-true blueprint of the MCU’s best adventures.”
As an avid Marvel fan, I am very excited to see this movie. I really enjoyed all the previous movies that these actors have been in from the MCU, so I am looking forward to see how they all work together in this film. The film was released in theaters on May 2nd, 2025, and can be seen in cinemas nearby such as Flagship in Churchville, and Horizon in Fallston/Aberdeen. Click here to access the trailer and see below for the links to tickets!
