Thunderbolts* 2025 Film Spoiler Review

 Main Topic  – Thunderbolts Film – 5/2/25 | Blog # 5

Directed by: Jake Schreier
Review Written by: James B. Wreh
Screening Dates: May 2, 2025, and May 9, 2025

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Overall Impression

• Movie: The second MCU film of 2025, Thunderbolts.
• Reception: Excellent and thoroughly enjoyable, with strong character development for the main cast.
• Engagement: Captured my attention from the very beginning.

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Performances

• Florence Pugh: Delivered a standout performance, especially in the opening voiceover scene where her character speaks to someone she has tied up. Her arc—and the emotional journey that came with it—was one of the film’s strongest points
• Lewis Pullman: His character arc felt earned, particularly the way it concluded. Both the writing and Pullman’s execution made Bob/Century’s journey compelling.
• Supporting Cast: Fun and engaging, with each character uniquely contributing to the story.

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Tone and Comedy

• Tone: Established effectively from the start, balancing action, heartfelt moments, and serious beats.
• Comedy: Well-timed and placed appropriately, adding to the experience without overtaking any scene.

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Action and Storytelling

• Action Sequences: Executed well, adding excitement with a clear purpose, the action consistently moved the story forward rather than feeling like a spectacle for its own sake.
• Story Flow: Smooth pacing, with no slow moments for me; the rhythm kept the audience engaged throughout.
• Interconnectedness: Integrated seamlessly into the broader MCU narrative, referencing past events and character arcs. This worked for hardcore fans like me, who’ve seen every MCU film and Disney+ show, while also catching casual viewers up so they weren’t lost in the story.

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Music and Score

• Thunderbolts Theme: A memorable main theme that elevated the film; the score overall was a major strength.
• Score Variety: The music shifted effectively between moments, enhancing the story. A favorite moment for me was near the end when the Thunderbolts theme played after Yelena says to Valentina, “We own you now,” and the composer(s) Son Lux slid in the original Avengers theme just before the credits rolled. Seeing it a second time only made me appreciate it more.

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Character Development and MCU Connections

• Character Arcs: Strong introductions and growth, particularly for the Thunderbolts–New Avengers team. Century’s journey from start to finish was a highlight, with his development feeling well-earned by the end.
• MCU Integration:
• Yelena: References to her sister’s death.
• Bucky/Winter Soldier: Ties to his past storylines.
• Ghost: Further acknowledgment of events from Ant-Man and the Wasp.
• Red Guardian: His integration sets up his presence in future MCU projects.

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Post-Credit Scenes

• First Scene: A humorous grocery store moment with Red Guardian out of costume. Also something I noticed in the Thunderbolts Trailer before the  film released on Disney Plus, the “Red Guardian character” foreshadowed the 1^st post credit scene we  the audience didn’t know at the time check out this short in this link here:

Thunderbolts | We Missed This Mid-Credit Thunderbolts Hint 🤯 https://youtu.be/Vv-74tzu2ZU

• Second Scene: Set up a potential conflict between Sam Wilson as Captain America and the formation of the new Avengers (highlighted by Yelena’s tense and combative phone conversation with him), tying into upcoming Avengers: Doomsday and or and Secret Wars.
• Future Connections:
• Fantastic Four Tease: The final shot showed the Fantastic Four arriving on Earth, with their theme playing as they entered the MCU’s 616 timeline. It raises questions for me as a fan—will the New Avengers (or at least some of them) cross paths with the Fantastic Four in Fantastic Four: First Steps, or will Marvel save that meeting for later MCU projects?
• Upcoming MCU Movies: Fantastic Four: First Steps (July 2025) seem likely to connect to Doomsday or Secret Wars.

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Final Thoughts

• Anticipation: I’m excited to buy the Blu-ray, watch it again, and explore the production features—especially behind-the-scenes looks at filming locations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and U.S.-based sets. I also hope to see how the Thunderbolts theme was created, as well as the process of developing the score, hopefully included in the production features.
• Overall Rating: I truly enjoyed this film, with very little to criticize. I didn’t know I wanted a Thunderbolts film, but I’m glad we got one—especially for Yelena’s progression, which Florence Pugh portrayed brilliantly.

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Additional Notes

• Release Date Mentioned: Fantastic Four set to release July 25, 2025.
• Timeline Integration: Suggests the Fantastic Four will shift from the 1960s into the MCU’s current timeline, setting up major crossovers.

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Conclusion

In my opinion, Thunderbolts stands out as one of the MCU’s stronger entries, with compelling performances—particularly Florence Pugh’s—balanced tone, well-placed humor, engaging action, and seamless MCU integration. It effectively sets up future storylines, especially with the Fantastic Four tease, keeping excitement high for what’s next, though opinions may vary among viewers.

Review Written by: James B. Wreh

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Companion Podcast & Video

Full episode #62- Thunderbolts* Spoiler Review is available to watch and listen to on YouTube and Spotify 🎧🎬

https://youtu.be/hTW_038kahw

https://spotifycreators-web.app.link/e/OeMm6UVvKWb

Screenings  Attended on: May 2^nd  & May 9^th, 2025
Written and recorded by James B. Wreh, creator, host, and producer of The Silly, Nerdy & Wordy Podcast.

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Sarah’s Oil Trailer Review: Acting, Writing, and a Remarkable Young Lead

 

Main Topic – Sarah’s Oil Trailer (2:37) from Amazon MGM Studios | Blog # 2

Directed by: Cyrus Nowrasteh

Review Written by: James B. Wreh

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Introduction

The new Sarah’s Oil trailer from Amazon MGM puts its young lead, Naya Desir-Johnson, in the spotlight — and it’s a reminder of the unique challenges child actors face. I’ve discussed this before on my podcast, from learning lines and blocking to keeping up with school while filming — see link to Episode 1 (2023): https://youtu.be/7Tr_yyehvjg  (specifically at the 24:45 mark, where I start talking about casting kids/teens).

Nerdy note: At a very young age, Naya Desir-Johnson already has an executive producer credit to her name — for the 2023 short film All the Gaps. Whether she was hands-on or more behind the scenes, that’s a rare accomplishment before even headlining a feature film, and it’s something she can carry with her as her career grows.

While I’m not a production insider, I know enough about what happens on set to appreciate the skill here. In this trailer, the writing, the dialogue, and the lead performance — especially from the young actress — work together to deliver something memorable.

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Overall Impressions

This trailer came across my feed a few days ago after its initial release. This isn’t a big tentpole or blockbuster film, but I still believe it’s an important film and an important story — one that probably should have already been out for the world to see, but I’m glad the story will be available for everyone to see and learn about now.

With this trailer and the upcoming November 7th release date (release dates may shift, as is common in the industry), I was intrigued. Once I started watching this 2:37 trailer, it was the young lead, portraying Sarah Richter, who held my attention the entire time — though I also enjoyed Zachary Levi’s presence in the footage, and his accent — I enjoyed that too.

Let me point out that this is only the trailer, and my thoughts are based solely on what I’ve seen in this short preview. From the footage presented, I liked what I saw — but my opinion could change in either direction once I see the full film and its complete story play out.

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Writing & Performance

The standout for me is the combination of the writing by Tonya Bolden, Betsy Giffen Nowrasteh, and Cyrus Nowrasteh (who is also the director) — and the execution of the acting by the young actress, Naya Desir-Johnson. No one knows (except the director, cast, and crew) how the full film will play, but in my personal, outside opinion as a fan of film and the arts, it appears that a good portion of this story will be heavy on dialogue, with some small action set pieces.

Of course, I could be wrong — the movie hasn’t been released yet and won’t until November 2025 — but that’s my takeaway from this trailer. For a young actress to bring this script to life with such nuance is, to me, amazing.

Considering what I mentioned earlier in my introduction, this is high-level acting in my opinion. We’ll all have to wait until the film releases to see how it plays in terms of pacing, her screen time, and her interactions with the other actors — as well as how the dialogue works in those moments, some of which we’ve already seen glimpses of in the trailer.

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Conclusion

Lastly, I will say that this film looks like it will have heart, and even within 2:37 of footage, it seems likely that I’ll enjoy the relationship that develops between Zachary Levi’s character and Naya Desir-Johnson’s.

This is only the trailer, but to me, that relationship might be an essential part of the film — maybe even the heart of it. Of course, we’ll have to wait until November to see. My thoughts now are based solely on this preview, and as always, they’re subject to change after seeing the complete film.

November 2025 is shaping up to be a great month of films with variety — for me, it will include Sarah’s Oil, The Running Man, and Wicked Part 2: Wicked for Good.