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Thunder Force

kdk April 9, 2021
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Read Time:2 Minute, 18 Second

During a normal, pre-COVID summer, nearly every weekend seemed to mark the release of a new superhero movie—the flashy, action-packed stories of young, daring, and impossibly good-looking people saving the world. But Netflix’s superhero comedy Thunder Force leaves the world-saving to a different kind of hero.



Thunder Force is set in a world where, decades ago, cosmic rays genetically transformed sociopaths into supervillains known as Miscreants. As a child, Emily Stanton (Octavia Spencer) lost her parents to Miscreants—so she’s devoted her life to bringing them to justice. After years of hard work and research, she’s finally figured out how to give powers to normal people. But then her childhood friend, Lydia (Melissa McCarthy), accidentally gets a dose of the treatment meant for Emily, and the pair ends up working together to train their powers and take on the city’s bad guys.



As it turns out, being a superhero isn’t easy. As the women continue their treatments, they need to hone their skills while preparing themselves for battle. While most films may have skipped over this part or showed it using inspirational music and a montage of clips, writer/director Ben Falcone chooses to focus an extended period of time on the character’s preparation and training—much more time than necessary.



Still, the concept is refreshing: a lighthearted superhero movie with a twist. These aren’t the typical young, fit heroes. They’re determined middle-aged women: a brilliant scientist and her outspoken friend. And, really, if anyone could handle the pressures and responsibilities of taking on bad guys and saving the world, it’s middle-aged women. It’s a story that holds a whole lot of potential for action, drama, and laughs.



Unfortunately, though, the comedy falls flat. Falcone fills the film with gags that just aren’t funny—and that go on much longer than they should. And instead of giving the costars the opportunity to be strong and smart and funny, he simply falls back on wife McCarthy’s awkward mugging for laughs. We’ve seen that these two stars have the ability to be show strength and intellect—and depth, too—while still keeping things light. But while these two talented women could have been used to tell a story about strong older women working together to save the world, they end up resorting to lengthy impressions of Jodie Foster and awkward jokes about shellfish romance instead.



The idea behind Thunder Force is a great one: strong 40-something women stepping up to take on the bad guys. But instead of a fun and maybe even inspiring action movie, it’s mostly just an awkward comedy.





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About Post Author

kdk

Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it. Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course. As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com). Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.
kdk@nightsandweekends.com
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kdk

Kristin Dreyer Kramer has been writing in some form or another (usually when she was supposed to be doing something else) since the ripe old age of ten—when she, her cousin, and their two Cabbage Patch Dolls formed the Poo Authors’ Club. After a short career in advertising, Kristin got sick of always saying nice things about stuff that didn’t deserve it—so now she spends her days criticizing things, and she’s much happier for it.

Since creating NightsAndWeekends.com in February of 2002, Kristin has spent her life surrounded by piles and piles of books and movies—so many that her office has become a kind of entertainment obstacle course.

As if her writing and editing responsibilities for N&W.com weren’t enough to keep her out of trouble, Kristin also hosts a number of weekly radio shows: Reel Discovery, Shelf Discovery, and On the Marquee. She’s also a proud member of the Broadcast Film Critics Association (CriticsChoice.com), the Central Ohio Film Critics Association (COFCA.org), the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS.org), and the Women Film Critics Circle (WFCC.Wordpress.com).

Kristin lives in Columbus, Ohio, with her husband, Paul, and their daughter, Anna. She welcomes questions, comments, and fan mail at kdk@nightsandweekends.com.

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