The newest Marvel Studios film arrived in theaters tonight and took a risk. It featured a group of b-list characters from other films and TV shows and put them front and center. And it was glorious.

Yelena (Florence Pugh) was feeling alone and depressed with the state of her life. She was tired of just receiving another mission from Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (Julia Louis-Dreyfus). When Yelena accepted one final mission for Valentina, things go astray. She met up with a group of ragtag mercs including John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko) who all had missions to eliminate the others.

However, while they were there, they also met Bob (Lewis Pullman), a mysterious figure that did not remember why he was there.

Add Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) and Red Guardian (David Harbour) and the Thunderbolts are together.

This was great. It felt like a different style of Marvel movie. Sure there was action, and it was great, but the writing and the story was rich and complex. We saw details behind these characters that you do not usually see in the MCU. These people were broken and they were going through the motions trying to find a purpose.

The allegory for mental health is clear as several of these characters could be considered depressed from the way their lives have gone. It really is a well balanced story, with character development, humor, action, and some of the best chemistry the MCU has seen in awhile.

This cast is just tremendous with the material they were given. Florence Pugh is a movie star. She is such an amazing actor and this is an amazing performance. I understood everything that she was feeling and Pugh was able to show the whole range of emotions for the sister of the Black Widow. Lewis Pullman is exceptional as Bob, aka Sentry. He is one of the most original characters in the MCU and I think the future is really bright for him.

David Harbour is unbelievable in this film. He provides some of the best comedic lines of the film, but there is an argument to be made that he is also the heart of the Thunderbolts. He is not just a buffoon. He is more than that.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus got some very meaty stuff to do in this film. This is easily the best she has done since entering the MCU in The Falcon and Winter Soldier on Disney +. I would also say that Wyatt Russell’s work as John Walker really built on the job he did on that TV show.

It was over a two-hour movie, but, for me, it flew by. I could not believe that we were arriving in the final scenes of the movie as it just did not feel like that much time had passes. It was wonderfully directed and paced by Jake Schreier, who directed the Netflix series Beef.

The final act of the film was considerably different than the normal MCU film and I found it to be extremely emotional. I loved how they wrapped up this story.

There are two post credit scenes that you must not skip. The first one was a fun scene but the second one elicited applause from my audience.

I love the Thunderbolts* (and the meaning of the asterisk is revealed) and this was such a great film. These characters are nowhere near the peak Marvel characters, but it goes to show you that if you have good writing and a great cast, you can accomplish anything. This is a fabulous film that I am excited to see again.

5 stars

By the way, the IMAX theater I was in had a countdown before the movie like it always did, except this one was all about the Fantastic Four, including the music from the trailer. I literally had goosebumps when the countdown finished and all it included was the numbers 10 to 1. It was special.