'Thunderbolts*' review: Marvel at its finest | The Mary Sue

'Thunderbolts*' is finally here and it is a perfect looked into our flawed anti-heroes and I loved every second of it.

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Marvel movies have a way of bringing you into a character’s story and making you care for them. It is why I love movies like Iron Man 3. But with Thunderbolts*, it is a movie made for those of us who never feel like we are enough.

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Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh) is working cases for Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). But it isn’t what she wants. She wants to have more of a purpose and seeing her struggle to feel important enough in the work she’s doing really hit home in a way. The imposter syndrome comes for us all, even a Widow.

With Thunderbolts*, we get to see a group of anti-heroes struggling with their pasts and trying to be the best versions of themselves. Written by Eric Pearson and Joanna Calo and directed by Jake Schreier, Thunderbolts* really does have everything. It’s a political thriller, it’s funny, there are big action sequences, and it doesn’t sacrifice its characters for any of those things.

Some films, especially in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, will take a genre that the movie is working in and make the characters fit into a mold that they might not otherwise operate in. With Thunderbolts*, it really feels like Pearson and Calo put these characters into that world and didn’t change who they are as people. That’s what I want to see more of! It was a dark character study and exploration of mental health and not once did I feel like these characters were acting differently than they usually do.

We had car chases, shoot outs, and even our team trying to kill one another. But what I love the most about Thunderbolts* is the heart that this movie has. All led by Pugh.

(Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

It is no secret that I love the White Widow. She’s a character who always felt less than because she was the little sister and she’s sarcastic and funny about it all. Even though there is a sadness to her. I related to that aspect of Yelena. Being the younger sister is not easy, you constantly feel like you’re not enough and you have to find your own way to push back and fight. With Thunderbolts*, we got to see how deep Yelena’s sadness went and I love that this movie gave that to me.

There is a moment in the film when Alexei (David Harbour) and Yelena are fighting, as they do, and she relates to him as her father and not just a man the Red Room assigned to her. It’s funny, sweet, and in the midst of a battle, we get to see two characters really understanding one another. To me, that’s what makes the MCU so special. It allows its characters a chance to grow and be emotional.

But this movie wouldn’t be anything without Pugh. As much as I love all these characters and their story, this movie is built on Yelena’s heart. She sees someone struggling as she has and finds her own way to open up to them and help save the world in the process. It’s weirdly inspiring. We can’t all find a way to open up about our mental health struggles and it, in turn, make a big difference but we can learn a lot about Yelena’s journey in this movie.

It helps that Oscar-nominated Florence Pugh is leading the charge but it makes it abduntantly clear that the future of the MCU is on a Widow’s shoulders.

(Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

Lewis Pullman has an affinity for characters named Bob who, in a lot of ways, feel like they need someone to take their hand and walk them through life. But what I loved about Bob in Thunderbolts* is his sweetness that was always there that only Yelena seemed to see. John Walker (Wyatt Russell) is mean to Bob, so rude that even the other members of the Thunderbolts say something to him. But Yelena from the start is calm and sweet to this man.

It says a lot about both Bob and Yelena that they flocked to each other. She protects him, tries to help, and is one of the only people who can get through to him. On the flip, Bob sees Yelena’s sadness when no one else around her does. It’s a beautiful little dynamic that I want to see more of in the MCU at large (maybe with them both being in Doomsday?) but it was a lovely addition to the franchise. And I do think that Bob is going to have a lot of fans.

(Chuck Zlotnick/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

The Avengers always had their faults, but there were members of the team who were “good.” Captain America was a beacon of hope and being the best you can be. Even Tony Stark was a redemption story and showing how you can overcome your past. But with the Thunderbolts as a team, they all have darkness in them. They’re all a bit of a mess. But that’s what makes them imperfect and glorious.

I don’t need to see a team who is perfect. That’s not fun. But watching Yelena come to terms with her own loneliness? Relatable, glorious. Maybe if I hit the gym, I too can jump over shelves flying at me. My point here is that their struggles are relatable. Yes, they’re still fighting a shadow consuming everyone (which is a beautiful metaphor to unpack) but they also are just people trying their best.

Not even three super soldiers are enough and I kind of like that this team figures it all out. Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen) is funny and charming but there are still those darker layers to her that we saw in Ant-Man and the Wasp. We know what John Walker did and then there is Bucky (Sebastian Stan). He’s the one, out of this team, who did the most work on himself and while he would seem like the natural born leader of the group, he is right in stride with Yelena and it all just really builds a beautiful team to explore.

Thunderbolts* is what I’ve always loved about Marvel movies and I can’t wait to watch it ten more times. The latest Marvel adventure hits theaters on May 2, 2025.

(featured image: Chuck Zlotnick/Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures)

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