Thor Review

Thor (2011)

Directed by: Kenneth Branagh

Written by: Ashley Miller, Zach Stentz and Don Payne

Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Alba, Anthony Hopkins, etc.

After two solid(ish) Iroman films, it was time to see yet another first time Marvel hero make their big screen debut in their own film. Sure we got "the Incredible Hulk" right after the first Iroman but even that was a moderate soft reboot of the original Ang Lee directed "Hulk" in 2003.  This time we would see the biggest world building task for the MCU yet with "Thor".  Marvel's own version of Norse mythology's powerful God of Thunder and son of Odin who resides in Asgard, one of 9 realms that go exists with each other thanks to famed rainbow bridge aka the Brifrost connected by the world tree.  How would "Thor" fare with audiences with the MCU now taking a dive into fantasy and legendary myths of Gods???  "Thor" itself is a pretty solid film and manages to make for a very fun, if not mostly straightforward adventure by introducing us to Chris Hemsworth's Thor Odinson, who must go through a life changing journey of humility to truly discover what it means to be a true King and leader.  As the breakout role for Chris Hemsworth, he is utterly the perfect casting for Thor, a powerful young God who only sees joy in war and fighting at the expense of what is right and other peoples' lives.  I think the film does a good job of establishing him at the beginning of the movie as this arrogant, cocky and overzealous warrior who is trying to prove himself, especially on the day his father Odin, played by the ever undeniably brilliant legend that is Anthony Hopkins, appoints him the future Kind of Asgard.  It's hard not to see why Thor would be so self involved and egotistical given how seeming overpowered he seems in battle, especially during that dazzling action sequence in Yodehim where he is all too eager to show the full power of the God of Thunder against an army of Frost Giants, the rivaling realm of Asgard.  I love that sequence not just for the action but in displaying the immense godhood of Thor with flight, summoning lighting from the sky to cause a massive explosion and of course, I can't talk about Thor without mentioning seeing the mythical "Mjolnir" in action for the first time which was just mind blowing the first time I saw it in theaters.

But it's not just Thor's display of godly authority and might, but once he is banished by his father and sent straight to Earth to live among humans as a mortal.  Thanks to being discovered by a trio of scientists studying weather anomalies in New Mexico, Thor undergoes his nice character arc of gaining some serious perspective as well as humility while being on Earth among humans.  Hemsworth does a great job of showing that transition from obnoxious, almighty god to a true hero who knows when to do the right thing for a cause greater and more selfless than he is instead of just war and glory.  I was completely sold on his character in both halves of the film and when he finally makes the ultimate sacrifice at the end to stop his brother Loki from destroying an entire but unable to go back to Earth was so noble yet heartbreaking.  Speaking of Loki, hard to believe after 10 years of seeing such a beloved recurring villain of the MCU that there was a time when Loki was being played by the unknown yet surprisingly electrifying Tom Hiddleston.  It maybe Thor's movie but Loki's story is so moving and gut wrenching, especially thanks to Hiddleston's incredibly vunerable performance that completely justifies Loki's role as a major villain for Odin and the rest of Asgard, not just Thor!  At the beginning of the film, he comes off meek, level headed yet silent while trying to hold Thor back from his usual hoiler than thou personality but man, when his true motives are revealed, he is even more convincing as the malicious, underhanded God of Mischief.  That one scene between him and Odin when he discovers his true origins is some of the best acting of the franchise, with Hiddlestone captivating audiences with such a sadness yet sympathy that almost makes you validate his need for vengeance and sudden genocide toward a entire realm's race of beings.

I have to say my favorite moment has to be the final battle between Thor and Loki as the Bifrost when Loki tricks him with one of his illusions and mocks him with various illusions of him before Thor summons a bolt of lightning to stun him.  Loki was the first villain of the MCU that broke the mold of weak mirror villains to the charismatic, awesome heroes were following during their solo movies.  It's no wonder this was only a taste of greater things to come for bastard son of Odin and Thor's greatest nemesis. :)  As for the supporting cast, they are all all exceptional in their own fight from Thor's core band of warriors from Asgard like Lady Sif and Fandral (played by the very attractive.....ummm anyway! O_0) who come off well defined individually and are enjoyable to watch onscreen.  Even more entertaining of the three scientist that look after Thor in the form of Jane Foster, played by Natalie Portman as well as Stellan Skarsgard as Erik Selving, her father figure fellow scientist and her priceless little sister with the one liners, Kat Dennings as Darcy.  When Darcy isn't delivering some of the best punchlines of the film, we get some sweet moments of Thor bonding with Erik, especially when having to do with Jane.  Both Chris and Jane have nice enough chemistry as you can see why both would fall for each other.  Not to mention, "for a homeless guy, he's pretty cut!" :P 

Then there's Idris Alba's Heimdall, the gate keeper of the Bifrost, who is just as humorous and lively as he is stoic and serious.  I remember there was some immediate controversy with the comic character being cast as a black man but Idris is so wondrously compelling in the small role that he makes every scene he's in nearly scene stealing from the other characters.  I immediately can't wait to see more of him down the line in the MCU. :)  Lastly, I can't talk about amazing supporting characters without bringing up Anthony Hopkins' Odin who's presence is so strong it's even felt when he's not onscreen.  I swear no delivers poetic sternness and commanding verbal lashing like Sir Anthony.  The scene where he banishes Thor is simply a masterwork of acting, featuring apparently an ad-lib moment of Odin growling at Loki before continuing to strip Thor of his honor and godhood. Simply perfect casting there and I couldn't imagine ANYONE else in the role. :)

Being an MCU film prior to Avengers, of course there is more world building aka the return of S.H.E.I.L.D. meddling in the affairs of the bizarre and unexplained when Thor's hammer sets foot in New Mexico; leading a thorough investigation led by Agent Coulson.  We even get a quick cameo from Hawkeye, played by Jeremy Renner, during an extensive fight sequence of Thor fighting his way through S.H.E.I.L.D. agents to get to Mjolnir which leads to that devastating moment where Thor realizes he is unworthy to lift it.  I have to say the fight scenes were well done, both in other realms like Yodenhim and on Earth.  I especially loved the reintroduction of the Destroyer, when Loki sends it down to kill Thor and that tremendous fight scene with Thor using his power to control weather to overpower the unstoppable magic weapon.  I just wish we got more glimpses on Asgard in the first film; establishing Thor's homeworld more.  We got some great sweeping shots of the Asgardian land but not enough scenes showing various locations.  It almost feels like we got more scenes on Earth than in Asgard which is a shame because moments like Thor and his friends riding toward the Bifrost on the rainbow Bridge was marvelous; making me wish we got more stunning sequences of Asgard's various locations.  Sigh.... :(  But this was a good taste of things to come as well as once again teasing more to come during an awesome post credit scene that leads straight into the first Avengers film. :)

"From the ancient legends of the Norse Pantheon to the Marvel comics stands to finally the big screen in the ever growing cinematic universe it spawned from, "Thor" is a good first outing for the God of Thunder and his supporting cast of likable characters, terrorizing villains the likes of the visually memorizing Frost Giants as well as the unforeseen complexity of Loki and great action sequences both on Earth and other fictional realms.  Hemsworth does a fine job in the title role; making you interested enough to want to know what is in store for the mythic Norwegian superhero and Anthony Hopkins as Odin almost feels too good to be true." :)

Final Film Score: B