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I was pleasantly surprised by Branagh's THOR given that, the previous time he'd been given a big-budget IP to handle (MARY SHELLEY'S FRANKENSTEIN), he kind of face-planted.

Sir Chuckles (UK film show hosts Kermode and Mayo's affectionate nickname for Branagh) often struggles with big-budget IP movies unless the IP is Willam Shakespeare: JACK RYAN: SHADOW RECRUIT made just enough to break even globally; and while ARTEMIS FOWL's nonexistent box office is clearly thanks to COVID-19, the reviews were uniformly savage. CINDERELLA made bank, and is one of the few Disney live-action "reimaginings" of their animated classics that doesn't make you want to smash your nice expensive UHD TV with a baseball bat, but a significant part of its success is undoubtedly due to The Mighty Mouse Marketing Machine.

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