Thunderbolts* - 4K Digital Review

[Michael Scott]

Thunderbolts*

Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score:


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Movie
I’ve made no bones about the fact that Marvel post 2019 has been in free fall. They’ve jumped from movie to movie, systematically trying to set up another long-form story/villain to get to one day, only to fall victim to the same trap that the DCEU did when they tried to copy Marvel’s initial success. They’ve rushed into it and tried to set up an expanded universe without laying the groundwork. Or more precisely, they’ve been attempting to reignite a flame that has pretty much sputtered out after the initial group of superheroes retired post-Endgame. BUUUUUUUUUUUUUT, I had heard through the grapevine that Thunderbolts* (we don’t really need that asterisk anymore after Marvel spilled the bag a month ago, but whatever) was a step in the right direction. It wasn’t going to focus on the upcoming Avengers: Doomsday setup that we all know is coming, nor was it big and over the top. Instead, it was darker, grittier, and supposedly going back to an enclosed film without acting as filler for something else. So heck, I gave it a watch and came out pleasantly surprised. No, it’s not going to be the savior of Marvel, but Thunderbolts turned out to be very similar to the description I was given above. It was solid, featuring a nice set of heroes and separate from the events unfolding in much of the Marvel universe, except through tangential connections.

In a post-Avengers world, Valentina (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is under congressional investigation for her underhanded dealings, forcing her to tie up some loose ends. Said loose ends turn out to be Black Widow’s sister Yelena (Florence Pugh), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), and Taskmaster (Olga Kurylenko, who shows up for around 45 seconds). Luring them into a gigantic kill vault, the ragtag group of miscreants has to team up to escape Valentina’s little party. While there, they find another victim of Valentina’s purge. A seemingly docile guy named Bob (Lewis Pullman), who seems to be just some medical experiment that Valentina is lumping in with them.

But hey, nothing is as it seems, right? After getting out, they figure out real fast that Bob is a bit more than meets the eye. It seems that he was one of Valentina’s super-secret projects that she was covering up, and actually one of the successes she made by accident in what is known as the “Sentry Project”. But the thing is, Bob is not exactly the ideal candidate for a super-secret, super-powerful military experiment. The Sentry was supposed to be stronger than all the Avengers rolled into one. Stronger than Thanos, and with more powers than any one superhero. But here’s the kicker. Bob is a bit of a mess, suffering from depression, apparent bipolar issues, and well...a LITERAL dark side that can take over when he snaps. So yeah, you can all pretty much guess where this is going.

As I said above, I was pleasantly surprised by Thunderbolts. The story is fast-paced and rather fun, giving us an entirely new antagonist while keeping a fairly self-contained storyline. Honestly, I liked the slightly grittier take as seen through the eyes of a bunch of ragtag misfits. Sure, it’s not going to rival Guardians of the Galaxy, but director Jake Schreier kept things low-key and compact. There isn’t a TON of filler, but in true Marvel fashion, we do get a little. And of course, some of the over-the-top Marvel humor bleeds across in the form of Red Guardian (David Harbour). But overall, I liked the story a lot more than I expected to.

The one factor that is both a benefit and a curse is the Sentry himself. And that’s not really due to Lewis Pullman or anything (he does fantastic as Bob/Void/Sentry), but rather due to the same problems that Sentry suffered in the comics as well. He’s basically a Deus Ex Machina character who was created as a joke in Marvel years ago, then got shoehorned into the regular comics as a main character. Sentry had a fantastic mini-series that highlighted mental illness and the suffering that goes with it, but for some reason, Marvel Central wanted him to be one of the biggest and best superheroes out there, cramming him into the Avengers as well as making him a world breaker character. But it was forced and plagued by plot armor writing to make sure he could fit in. I mean, Sentry is literally as powerful as Superman is, just without all of the moral underpinnings of the man in Blue and Red. So they’re forced to fall back on writing tropes to make it so that Sentry is “having a bad day” when he’s not available to come out and wipe the floor with people. The same thing appears to be on stage here. Sentry is so overpowered that he basically could have wiped the floor with Thanos and not even broken a sweat. So the stakes seem rather ridiculous when you know from the get-go that none of the Thunderbolts can even dent him. It adds a neat little bit of psychology when dealing with talking him down ala Hulk (Yelena’s part in the movie really shines during this portion), but it also acts as a gigantic sinkhole for any real tension or stakes. But hey, overall I had way more good points than negative points, making this the first time in a long time that I’m giving a Marvel movie at least a single thumbs up.




Rating:

Rated PG-13 for strong violence, language, thematic elements, and some suggestive and drug references.




Video:

The 4K UHD stream looks quite impressive, as it was captured from Arri Alexa digital cameras and given a native 4K UHD master. The final product is a bit yellowed and wheat colored, with dimmed primary shades and a slightly muted color palette. Fine details look quite nice, though, where you can see every line and stitched seam on U.S. Agent’s uniform, or the CGI covering for Ghost’s armor. Black levels are nice and inky, with great shadow detail even in the gigantic shaft that they have to escape from in the beginning. I didn’t see any major artifacting outside of the normal banding you see on digital stream, but overall, this is quite a nice-looking film, visually speaking.








Audio:

Thunderbolts features a solid Dolby Atmos track, but like usual, I’m going to refrain from giving a star rating due to bandwidth limitations affecting streaming quality per individual’s internet abilities. That being said, said Atmos track is pretty solid, offering some good use of surrounds and discrete overhead bits during all of the action, ESPECIALLY that final confrontation with the Void near the end. Dialog is solid overall, and the action makes for some very encompassing sonic elements. Most notably during the battle in the incinerator, or the “swoosh” as void just shadows people. My only complaint was that the LFE channel was distinctly soft in this stream. It certainly makes itself known, but this wasn’t a bass bomb by any stretch of the imagination, and I felt there was a pretty noticeable sub-20Hz filter in place as well.







Extras:

• Director's Audio Commentary
• Deleted Scenes – Check out the scenes that didn't make the final cut
-- Door is Unliftable
-- Gary Announcement
• Assembling a Team to Remember – Spend a bit of quality time with the cast and crew of Thunderbolts* as they divulge how the film's fictional team of superpowered mavericks, misfits, and antiheroes was assembled.
• Around the World and Back Again – Discover the eclectic locations and astounding production design that helped make Thunderbolts* a rousing reality, including a visit to the sprawling sets in Kuala Lumpur, where we join Florence Pugh performing stunts atop one of planet Earth's tallest buildings and blowing up buildings on the streets.
• All About Bob, Sentry & The Void – Deep dive into the making of three different characters: Bob, Sentry, and The Void – all performed by Lewis Pullman.
• Gag Reel – Enjoy fun outtakes on set with the cast and crew of Thunderbolts*

Final Score: ​

I’m going to begrudgingly admit that I actually like Thunderbolts. After the absolute debacle that has been stages 4 and 5, Thunderbolts surprised me. It wasn’t the best Marvel movie to date, but it certainly took a step away from the constant slide to the bottom that Marvel has been undergoing the last 5 or 6 years, and gave us a rather enjoyable film. It takes a much more enclosed look at the Marvel universe, with a simple plot and a rather solid array of heroes and villains. I’m not going to herald it as the savior of Marvel or anything, but Thunderbolts was pretty solid if I do say so myself. The 4K stream that Marvel/Disney gave to review looks and sounds pretty good, and from what I’ve seen of the 4K UHD and Blu-ray reviews, you’re not gonna be disappointed with the physical tech specs. Fun watch is my final decree.


Technical Specifications:

Starring: Florence Pugh, Sebastian Stan, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lewis Pullman, David Harbour, Wyatt Russell
Directed by: Jake Schreier
Written by: Eric Pearson, Joanna Calo, Kurt Busiek
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos
Subtitles: English
Studio: Marvel
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 127 Minutes
Digital Release Date: July 1st, 2025

Recommendation: Decent Watch

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