FilmSnobReviews

Title: Thor
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Anothony Hopkins,  Natalie Portman
Runtime: 1 hour 55 minutesWhat It Is: Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is Prince of the mythical realm of Asgard. His father Odin is King, and awaits naming his suitor. This was to be Thor, that is until Thor decides to take vengeance on their biggest enemy the Frost Giants. This lack of honoring thy father causes Odin to banish Thor to Earthrealm. It is there that scientist Jane Foster (Portman) goes to investigate a crash they spot in the New Mexican desert. Instead of some meteorological phenomenon they  find Thor. Intrigued by this wanderer Foster befriends him on Earthrealm. Meanwhile on Odin Thor brother Loki has plotted an evil scheme to not only win the throne of Asgard but allow the Frost Giants to take it over. Can Thor stop Loki, can he even get back to Asgard? Who knows, well we do because we’ve seen it! And we’re not telling…what do you think we are a spoiler site get outta here.

What We Think: Unlike your typical recipe for a summer blockbuster Thor puts a fair bit more amount of substance while still maintaining that bang for your buck. What you get is a great launching point for the impending Avengers film (also included is this Summer’s Captain America: The First Avenger). Hopkins’ turn as King of Asgard shows why he’s still a great actor that can chew scenery anytime and anywhere. However it is Tom Hiddleston that really brings it. His turn as the evil Prince of Asgard Loki not only enthralls the viewer, but shows his characters clairvoyance, cunning, and intelligence. You hate Loki, and that’s because of Hiddleston. Portman, Kat Dennings, and Stellen Skarsgard all do the job as Thor Earthrealm suitors, and Branagh’s direction never bogs it down, nor does he allow his film to fall into the CG reliant drivel Ang Lee turned Bruce Banner into, or the oversaturated confusion that Tim Story made Rise of the Silver Surfer. Point is superhero movies are a tough thing. Jon Favreau walked the line with the original Iron Man, and then fell face first in the sequel. Same thing happened to Sam Raimi. Luckily theres no planned sequel and we can live our Asgardian warrior with a good taste in our mouths.

Our Score: B+, while it isn’t the best of the Avenger series to date its far from the worst superhero film. Hemsworth is fun, and Branagh keeps us going with bits of humor melted into the action-packed blockbuster. What ultimately stops this from being REALLY good in the lack of depth in the script, and the disregard for continuity. I think the fact that there IS an Avenger’s movie sort of hurt this, that and with a runtime like 115 minutes you wonder what went wrong there.