I went and saw Thor at the IMAX 3D last night, solid, enjoyable movie. I was never a fanboy of the Thor comic, mostly only reading it when it came in the big bulk packs that I bought, but I’m glad I went to see this movie. This is normally where I’d explain who Thor is and give the basic rundown on how he came to be, but I will link the Marvel wiki instead. I liked the way they are trying to integrate the more fantastical heroes of Marvel with the more real-to-life ones. I’ll never understand the power balance between the groups, but then again, the comic writers themselves have that problem too.
Chris Hemsworth has bulked up seriously and definitely looks the part of a god. The fighting style used for Thor fits as well, big, brutal strikes. The power of Mjolnir seems well represented, summoning lightning, smashing giants and causing mayhem. Loki (played by Tom Hiddleston) is a decent villain, it’s a not easy to have a baddie that ‘fights’ mostly with words, manipulation and illusions but that is why the biggest fights are against Frost Giants and the Destroyer.
Natalie Portman ably plays Jane Foster, Thor’s earthly love interest who is researching (unbeknownst to her) the end point of the bifrost, the rainbow bridge that connects the various realms together. She’s a bit of a maverick, and has a tendency to hit Thor with her van.
There’s a good bit of humor (as there should be for a comic book movie in my opinion), though a few of the jokes fall flat. There are plenty of in-references if you are a comic fan, though I had to look some of them up, having little experience with the more fantastical books in the Marvel lineup.
If you are a comic book fan, see it. If you are a Branagh fan, see it if only to contrast it to all the Shakespeare-related movies he’s put out. It’s just a good movie, with a set-up after the credits for the forthcoming Captain America movie that had my more Thor knowledgeable friends buzzing.
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