Twilight of the Gods brings the Norse gods to the screen, but it does so with little spirit and research.
Zack Snyder is known for his ability, whether conscious or innate, to divide audiences. Some consider him a master of epic action and visual stylization, while others see him as a director who tends to overdo it, sacrificing substance for spectacularity. Twilight of the Gods, his latest animated project for Netflix based on Norse mythology, is no exception: it promises great emotions and divine battles but ends up getting lost in a sea of confusion and predictable moments.
Twilight of the Gods, a wasted (but engaging) opportunity
The plot of Twilight of the Gods revolves around Sigrid, a proud half-giant warrior, whose wedding to Leif, king of the Völsung, is brutally interrupted by the sudden appearance of Thor.
The God of Thunder, suspecting that his brother Loki is hiding among the villagers, demands that the villagers hand him over. When the villagers refuse, Thor, in a fit of rage, slaughters almost everyone. Sigrid and Leif survive, but the young woman vows revenge, promising that hers will be the last face Thor will see before he dies.
With this premise, one would expect an epic and well-crafted adventure, but Twilight of the Gods resorts to too many familiar elements. If you've ever watched Game of Thrones, the feeling of déjà vu will be inevitable: there is betrayal, gratuitous violence, and a forced use of female nudity that seems aimed at appealing to a younger audience rather than giving depth to the characters or the plot.
The series also suffers on the visual front. The animation looks outdated, with a dull color palette and animation that seems to have come from a ten-year-old series. This would be less of an issue if the writing were up to par, but sadly it isn't. The dialogues often seem like filler, and the secondary characters, although well-voiced by actors such as Kristofer Hivju and Rahul Kohli, fail to arouse empathy or interest. Their role is reduced to simple executors of a mission, without the depth necessary to make us really care about their fate.
One of the few strengths of the series is precisely the voice cast, with Paterson Joseph standing out in the role of Loki, bringing a sense of mystery and melancholy that the script fails to convey so well. However, this talent is wasted in a narrative that never seems to find a real balance.
Also from a musical point of view, the collaboration of Hans Zimmer promised a lot, but the results were disappointing. The compositions, generally powerful in his previous works, here take a back seat, mixed with bizarre moments of modern music that do nothing but further disorient the viewer.
The narrative, stylistic, and sound combination is not exceptional, despite the series managing to entertain a young and not too demanding audience.
Twilight of the Gods: Rating and Conclusion
Twilight of the Gods is a wasted opportunity. Zack Snyder had in his hands a rich and powerful material like Norse mythology, but the end result is an animated series that lacks coherence, emotion, and a real sense of novelty. If you are a fan of Snyder's typical aesthetic, perhaps you will find something to appreciate. Otherwise, this "twilight" will not leave its mark.