Thunderbolts Review- Antiheroes Rise for Redemption with Raw Power

Superheroes aren’t perfect. They have mental health problems too, especially heroes like Yelena, Bob (Sentry), and John Walker (US Agent). This remains the story’s main theme, where being alone is not the solution. 

The imperfects becoming a team is a vision to behold. Here is our version of the Thunderbolts review, which contains characters with unique backstories.

Plot details of Thunderbolts*

What the trailer showed stood true in the movie. In our previous article, we gave an overview of the plot of Thunderbolts*. Still, for revisiting purposes, a bunch of misfit anti-heroes get together accidentally to save their own lives, but form a team to fulfill the purpose. The CIA director, Valentina Allegra de Fontaine (played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus), sends Yelena Belova (portrayed by Florence Pugh), John Walker (Wyatt Russell), Ava Starr (Hannah John-Kamen), and a mysterious man, Bob (Sentry portrayed by Lewis Pullman) to her OXE base.

The mission remains secret until they meet and realize that it is a death trap for all of them. Each one of them covertly works for Valentina. They were brought together in one place to be eliminated by her. At that very place, they confront their pasts and work together to get out of there, to stop Valentina with a dangerous mission, the Sentry project. 

Watch the trailer here for a recap:

Actors’ performances in Thunderbolts*

Florence Pugh, Lewis Pullman, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus performed daringly in the film. The last action sequence where Sentry’s dark side wanted Bob to subjugate to him and started making everything and everyone ‘void’, and Pugh’s Yelena coming to save him was outstanding.

She told Bob that he was not alone. All his childhood, Bob had been facing verbal thrashing by his family and didn’t feel included. It was the weakness that his darkness wanted to take advantage of and wanted him to feel angrier than ever.

Yelena knew what the dark Sentry was doing and didn’t let him win over Bob. She went into the darkness of the void herself, to face her own dark past as well. Both of them fought their fears and loneliness together- even the rest of the team joined them. It was wonderfully emotional. 

Moreover, why did Julia Louis-Dreyfus stand out as a villain? Since she stood strong in front of Sentry. It was astounding to see her react when she asked Sentry to do what she said, but Sentry questioned her. She was instantly taken aback, and that is when Sentry slammed her into the wall, but she audaciously said, “I’m not afraid of you!” Loved it!

What do critics add to the Thunderbolts review?

The critics’ consensus on Rotten Tomatoes gave a positive review of the film. It said, 

“Assembling a ragtag band of underdogs with Florence Pugh as their magnetic standout, Thunderbolts* refreshingly returns to the tried-and-true blueprint of the MCU’s best adventures.” [Source]

The critics agreed that as the name suggests, the film did not overpower with excessive action, rather it weaved an emotional story that clicked well with the audience. It reinvented the superhero genre with “more human” and deeper character development, which wasn’t expected at all. It is a fresh take by MCU, which came out pretty entertaining. 

Fans reaction

The fans also loved the idea that there could be psychological disturbances with the superheroes and that the plot contained a decent climax with a sprinkle of humor here and there. The fans were of the view that Sentry’s villain was “absolutely terrifying” and the MCU did a great job by making a groundbreaking entry with a story about aloneness and personal struggles. 

Is it worth watching?

For sure, it is! The film has the ability to create a serene balance between serious themes like life, death, and mental health. It delightfully takes it to the other side, eventually transforming into the endless human willpower that can change the fate of the person himself. 

Thunderbolts* broke the stereotypical superhero beliefs and made us believe that you can laugh at times when you feel like crying. The mental health topic has been touched on in other MCU flicks too, like Iron Man, where Tony Stark was seen struggling with PTSD, and Thor dealing with his depression. Why did Thunderbolts* serve as a fresh breeze?

The raw and unfiltered approach to psychological trauma is demonstrated openly in this feature. It might appear as side effects of being a superhero, but these humans did not shy away from facing them. Thunderbolts* set this notion upfront and centrally took the stage for it, and making it a conspicuous part of the plot. A clever yet humble take on being a superhero, being grounded about their mistakes, and beautiful redemption was a glossy MCU filter that we loved watching in Thunderbolts*.  

The most threatening yet fascinating part of the film was the shadow-turning power of Sentry that changed the game right away. It was Sentry’s own transformation into his shadow self that built tension, conflict, and gray morality. It showed how gripping it can be at times, proving to be a psychological rupture. However, it was interesting to see Bob break his shell out of the dark Sentry, despite a fractured identity. 

The best scene was the grandiloquent entry of Bucky Barnes (played by Sebastian Stan). It was powerful as well as impactful. It came at the most unexpected part of the movie, where we kept thinking that Barnes might be on Mel’s side, Valentina’s secretary. But we were pleasantly shocked that he later teamed up with the newly formed “Thunderbolts”, consequently known as “The New Avengers” at the end of the film. Now we know what the mysterious asterisk was about.

 

 

 

 

 

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Besides, the two post-credits scenes were fabulous! One was funny, where Alexei Shostakov was seen messing with a lady about to buy the Thunderbolts-branded cereal. The other was 14 months later at HQ14, where Thunderbolts were residing, likely to face a conflict with Sam Wilson’s (Captain America) own Avengers team. 

Our rating: 7.5/10

Is Thunderbolts* available for streaming? 

Thunderbolts* (PG-13) is currently playing in theatres only, via Marvel Studios, a subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios.  

Genre: Superhero action, adventure, political drama, crime, fantasy, sci-fi

IMDb rating: 7.6

Rotten Tomatoes: 88 percent on Tomatometer (critics’ score) and 93 percent on Popcornmeter 

Cast: Florence Pugh, Lewis Pullman, David Harbour, Sebastian Stan, Wyatt Russell, Hannah John-Kamen

Director: Jake Schreier

Writers: Eric Pearson, Joanna Calo

Producer: Kevin Feige

Release date: May 2, 2025

Movie runtime: 2 hours 6 minutes

Do you agree with the review here? How did you find Thunderbolts*? Let us know in the comments below.