"Thunder Force" Film Review

"Thunder Force" Film Review

Rating: 3/5

By: Nathaniel Simpson

    Octavia Spencer and Melissa McCarthy's newest film, "Thunder Force" shows us middle-aged superheroes in action. Following an accidental injection, former best friends are forced to reunite after gaining superpowers. They try to take down super-villain beings named "Miscreants", that are terrorizing the city. 

    The chemistry between McCarthy and Spencer is electric and hilarious. They do an excellent job bouncing jokes off of each other and do a good job of showcasing their emotional connection as characters. However, they are two polar opposites. Spencer relies on subtle, dry humor while McCarthy is over-the-top. This works in some of the scenes in the film, but flops numerous times as well. 

    Even though McCarthy is funny in this film, she is incredibly exaggerated and tries too hard, like she does in most of her films. A lot of the jokes in the film have the potential of being funny, but she delivers them in a fashion way too extreme. For example, let's look at the scene where she compares Emily's (Spencer) daughter to Steve Urkel. She repeats his famous catchphrase over and over again, trying to be funnier every time. However, I was left feeling annoyed and wondering when she is going to stop the joke, realizing it's not funny anymore. 

    I thoroughly enjoyed the scenes with Jason Bateman, who plays a half-human, half-lobster Miscreant. He is evil at first, before falling in love with Lydia (McCarthy) and joining their side. He is very good at being subtle, but still providing lots of laughs. Look at the scene where he freaks out after "The King" (Bobby Cannavale) throws a tantrum and starts killing off some of his henchmen. Bateman's reaction is hilarious, and the other actors in the scene use that to their advantage. It doesn't feel scripted; it seems like the actor's are having a genuine interaction in front of our very eyes. 

    The complaint I have with Bateman however is he radiates the same energy as McCarthy when they share the screen together. The dinner scene, for example, is just atrocious and hard to watch, thanks to the awkward, sexual interaction and the horribly written dialogue. He seems like a completely different actor when he has a scene with her, which is unfortunate. 

    The movie honestly just seems too long, and they could've wrapped it up way sooner. There are certain scenes in the film that have no reason to be included, yet are. I honestly started feeling annoyed by McCarthy towards the end of the film. I honestly don't understand why she is a megastar in the comedy genre. This is one of the few movies with her I didn't turn off after an hour.