Movie Review: Thor

FINALLY!

Thank you Marvel. Thank you oh so much. This could have been bad. I'm not talking Fantastic Four bad. I'm talking Ghost Rider/Daredevil/X-Men Origins: Wolverine bad. It could have been so easy to mess this whole Thor project up. He's one of least likable/identifiable characters in the Marvel universe. He speaks in old timey English riddles half the time and is so powerful, an action movie about Thor could have been the equivalent of watching Michael Jordan play basketball against kids from the Special Olympics. But no! Marvel and director Kenneth Branagh did the impossible, they made an awesome Thor movie and did my favorite superhero justice on the big screen!

So yes. I'm a little biased. But my love for The Silver Surfer and Venom and didn't stop me from cringing at their appearances in big budget abortions either. Unabashed love for a character does not a good film make. Now onto the movie:

Thor (Chis Hemsworth) is the big man on campus in his native Asgard. He's all set to inherit the throne from his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) when he royally screws things up (haha, get it?). Odin casts Thor down to Earth, stripping him of his powers, in order to teach the arrogant Thunder God some humility. Of course there's some shady back door conspiracy stuff going on and before long Thor is needed to lay the smack down with his mighty hammer Mjolnir and save the day.

First, the film is visually stunning. Yes, a large portion of the movie takes place in a boring ass desert, but all the Asgard sequences inter cut throughout the film are flat out amazing. I loathe this current 3D trend in Hollywood, so I can only speak for the regular 2D version I saw, but yes, I was pleasantly surprised at how awesome the visuals for the film came together. From the costumes, to the CGI baddies to the rainbow fucking bridge! I mean, how easy would it have been to make the rainbow bridge look like a complete joke? Thank you Marvel. Thank You Kenneth.

like the comic come to life!

Loki- MVP

Kudos again to Mr. Branagh for assembling such a wonderful cast. Known for his dramatic/Shakespearean films, Branagh easily handles the grandiose aspects of Thor that might have crippled a lesser director, while bringing out impassioned performances from his actors, even when they're wearing eye patches, capes and standing amidst an obvious CGI overload. I honestly think Tom Hiddleston steals the entire movie with his twisted portrayal of Loki, Thor's devious brother aka, the God of Mischief.

I only have two real gripes with the film. My lovely Natalie Portman does her best playing Thor's love interest, but even an Academy Award winner like herself can't save a barely written role like this. Lastly, I wished they showed the full extent of Thor's powers! Yeah we saw him kicking some Frost Giant ass and eventually summoning up a nice little thunder storm, but the dude has Superman level strength and is capable of tossing tanks around like baseballs. I really hope we get to see Thor unleash his full potential in the Avengers movie.

TLDR:
Thor rules. Best comic book movie since Spider-Man 2.