Turning the fun factor up to 11 for some heavy metal-flanked heroics, Taika Waititi teams big-haired ‘space Viking’ Thor with Gun N’ Roses guitar riffs in the 29^th entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It’s the Kiwi director’s second time helming a Thor film after 2017’s triumphant Ragnarok, which reinvented the Norse god in wonderfully preposterous fashion, revealing star Chris Hemsworth’s flair for comedy in the process. Tonally Thor: Love And Thunder delivers more of the same, but with Natalie Portman getting to wield Thor’s old weapon it manages to mix things up nicely.

Channelling Gollum and Nosferatu’s Count Orlok to bring us Gorr the God Butcher, Christian Bale is on bad guy duties here (he has spoken about how he took inspiration from the terrifying 1997 Aphex Twin video for ‘Come To Daddy’ too). Embittered, scarred and fiery-eyed, Gorr is a villain born from suffering who gleans his power from a Necrosword. As his full title suggests, he poses a threat not only to Thor but all those like him.

After parting from his less-than-impressed buddies the Guardians Of The Galaxy, the endearingly oblivious Thor and his right-hand rock guy Korg (voiced by Waititi) team up with Tessa Thompson’s King Valkyrie to go after Gorr. Also in their corner is Thor’s ace scientist ex Jane (Portman), who is transformed into the Mighty Thor after Thor’s shattered hammer calls to her.

It’s satisfying seeing the Oscar-winning Portman gaining her own superpowers and rocking the Thor look with some fabulously muscly arms and dramatic blond locks. She slots back into what is now a very appealing ensemble, getting stuck into some female solidarity with Thompson’s bitchin' monarch, whose boredom with her more mundane obligations is very amusing. Meanwhile, the director himself is great value as the puppyishly devoted and slightly dim-witted Korg and Hemsworth continues to revel in a role that’s a great fit for his physical and comedic gifts. There’s also a fantastically game performance from Russell Crowe, sporting a very dodgy, globe-crossing Greek accent and a cute little skirt as Zeus.

The film might hasten through or fudge some of its plot points but Waititi knows how to make an explanatory montage pop and invariably skips to the good stuff. The visuals are a riot of winningly eclectic influences, from New Asgard’s Celtic-esque fishing village to the rainbow bright sci-fi and kooky creatures (Thor scraps with owl men at the outset, destroying a sacred temple in the process). Taken in combination with its askew, pomposity-pricking humour, Thor: Love And Thunder always feels as much a Waititi film as it does straight out of the pages of a kitschy comic book. It’s a surprisingly snappy, defiantly odd and thoroughly enjoyable adventure.

Thor: Love And Thunder is in cinemas from Thursday 7 July.