MOVIE REVIEW: THOR

Directed by: Kenneth Branagh

Release date: 2011

Length: 114 minutes

Rating: PG-13

With school finally over and the summer movie crowd hungry for thrills, the floodgates of slam-bang action flicks have been released for everyone’s viewing pleasure. One of the first of the wave, Thor, is the next superhero picture by Marvel, created in preparation for next year’s planned Avengers movie involving all of the comics’ characters. It’s certainly not a great movie, but there’s enough good fun and eye candy here to be worth it for fans of the genre.

Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is the Norse god of thunder. He lives in the realm of Asgard with his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins), and brother, Loki, the trickster god (Tom Hiddleson).  In line to become the new king of Asgard, the headstrong Thor makes an unprovoked attack on Asgard’s enemies, the Frost Giants, and nearly begins a war. In punishment, Odin banishes his son to Earth and takes away his godly powers. His goal is to teach Thor a little something about humility and selflessness so he can return home and stop a looming threat capable of destroying his world.

What surprised me most about this film are the excellent casting choices. Hopkins and Natalie Portman, both Oscar winners, round out an ensemble that features Hemsworth, suitably heroic and charming as Thor, and Hiddleson, who brings a quiet confidence to his admittedly over-the-top portrayal of Loki. The romance between Hemsworth and Portman is quickly pieced together and, though not entirely convincing, gets an “E” for effort — clearly, the filmmakers were intent on including a love story, no matter how little time it had to develop.

The tone of the film is something of a mixed bag.  At first, viewers may find the ridiculous scenario a little hard to digest. The world of Asgard is unique, combining diverse visuals of medieval architecture with enough techno-flavor to make it practically its own character. Early on, the mood is established as very serious, with the armored warriors of Asgard speaking with a graceful and exaggerated language style, similar to the Lord of the Rings series.

However, once Thor is rocketed to our home planet, a jarring change takes place: The movie essentially turns into a slapstick comedy involving humorous but nonetheless somewhat out-of-place situations of Thor adjusting to Earth. The viewer is pulled directly from the serious, over-the-top Norse mythology into a quirky jumble of physical humor and pokes at modern culture like Facebook.  It is smart of the filmmakers to realize how silly the concept of the movie really is, and they make fun of themselves admirably while still not dropping the tone completely, but the transition is rough.

The action is what saves this from being merely “okay” fare. The flashy battle sequences are crisp and stylish, and despite the noticeable overreliance on visual effects rather than practical stunts, it’s still a lot of fun to watch. Things are made a bit tamer during the film’s middle act, where Thor loses his powers. However, after some accelerated life-lesson learning, he returns to Asgard for another hammer-smacking brawl that makes the film’s climax a visual treat.

Overall, Thor is content to be a loud and completely in-your-face event, chaining together its set-piece action sequences with passable dramatic dialogue and a sparse peppering of genuinely funny moments. If you’re willing to put up with its silliness, it’s not a bad way to spend an afternoon.  I’d give it 6.5 out of 10 stars.

Copyright 2011 Y-Press