Thor (2011)

Director: Kenneth Branagh

Writers: Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz, Don Payne

The latest origin film in the lead-up to The Avengers, Marvel's Thor  pushes all the right buttons typical of the now well overdone superhero film. But that’s just it… It fails to transcend beyond the conventions inherent to deliver anything other than JUST ANOTHER HERO MOVIE. But as long as the God of Thunder is kicking butt and swinging his mighty hammer Mjolnir, it's delivering exactly what it promised.

Expertly cast Chris Hemsworth excels his initial typecast as "eye candy" to portray the titular character, the arrogant and impetuous God of Thunder, next in line to the throne of Asgard. After provoking an incident with their legendary enemies the Frost Giants, Thor is banished to earth by his father, Oden (played by an ominous Anthony Hopkins). There he meets the traditional love interest, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and her team of physicists. With his new friends and old, he must learn to be a more considerate Thunder God in order to return to Asgard and thwart his quick-tongued brother Loki's (Tom Hiddleston) envious plan to ignite war and bloodshed with the Frost Giants and claim the throne as his inheritance.

The best word to describe Thor is "solid". Good acting - check. Love interest - check. Jealous brother - check. Betrayal - check. Action - check. Comedy - check. Spectacle - check. Lesson - check. The art dept and costume design are unmatched, as are the visual effects. The main problem is that it doesn't dare to be anything different. There is no mystery, no ambiguity, no subtlety, as every plot point is spoon fed to the gluttonous audience.

What the hell is Natalie Portman doing after Black Swan? Did she think "I've won an Oscar, now I can play a character where I can turn up on the day, do some acting, get home in time for tea." Her character is replaceable by any other love interest, and the relationship between her and Thor refuses to be anything more than the usual "You're pretty, let's kiss." But why would Thor, the mighty God of Thunder, fall for such an underwhelming mortal woman. How many foes has she slain in glorious battle? How many enemies has she valiantly vanquished? Are her hips just right for baring his children? Is she busting out of her corset? So why her? The other characters similarly fall flat. Thor's four companions could easily be reduced to two - the busty babe and the comic relief - the Asian and the poncy rogue have so little to do with anything.

Cape continuity. In one shot, Thor is knocked onto his back. He tries to stand up, treading on his own cape. In the next shot - a wide - he rises to his feet, and the cape blows behind him. This cape continuity is noticeable in multiple sequences. It's not the end of the world, but it does tend to ruin the immersion when Thor's cape flaps around with a mind of its own.

The ending is also disappointing. It is the only time that it breaks free of genre constraints, refusing to allow Thor to use the power of Mjolnir, his hammer, to fly to triumph. The terribly clichéd post-credits teaser adds to the disappointment.

Originally shot in 2D, the rotoscoped translation to 3D fails to impress. The added darkness adds confusion to the extremely fast close-ups of the action scenes, leaving the audience unfulfilled. The added effects do not add anything more than novelty to the otherwise spectacular visual effects.

But the biggest disappointment with Thor is the terrible choice of song for the end credits. Choosing Foo Fighters over the perfectly appropriate Manowar - having written an entire album dedicated to the God of Thunder - is the biggest blasphemy.

The film provides a lot of spectacle and excitement. Thor smiting Frost Giants with his mighty hammer Mjolnir generates all the satisfaction one would expect. The jokes work, even if they work in a self-parodying way. The acting is solid, even if the characters aren't round enough. Thor delivers everything that is traditional of the current superhero movie, nothing less, but certainly nothing more. It is just one step closer to The Avengers and what could be the best or worst film ever. The anticipation is murderous.

3 / 5