Review: Thor
(Originally reviewed in 2012)
Thor holds a special place in my Marvel Universe heart, since I’m not a comic book reader I didn’t think much of the upcoming Avengers film, when Thor came out I had a little more knowledge and my interest had grown and – as I said earlier – when I saw the Hawkeye cameo I immediately knew who he was and that I was going to see The Avengers.
On its own merits Thor is a good film, pretty typical story (Fish out of water comedy) but very enjoyable along the way. This is perhaps the funniest of the Marvel movies thanks in part to a surprisingly comedic turn from relative newbie Chris Hemsworth. Chris (and the young boy that played him near the start) show Thor to be a spoiled child, one that’s used to getting his own way and preferring to talk with his fists. When the Frost-Giants break into Asgard Thor wants to use violence to get answers but his father Odin (a good, almost Shakespearean turn by Anthony Hopkins) tells him to ignore it as some chancers trying their luck. Of course Thor doesn’t listen and when he seeks out violence he puts his world on the brink of war, Odin banishes his son for his actions.
When on earth Thor has trouble fitting into this new world, he has become mortal and he needs to get use to his loss of powers, with hilarious results. Hemsworth is really great as Thor, his arc is fully believable because he sells both the spoiled brat and the sacrificial hero with good comedic timing in-between both ends of Thor’s spectrum.
Of course that’s not to say no-one else was great, Natalie Portman brought something special to Jane Foster, it’s not a difficult role but you can believe someone like Portman as a scientist. Jaime Alexandra was actually pretty bad-ass as maiden warrior Sif, Idris Elba was fuckin amazing as always playing the all-seeing, all hearing gatekeeper Heimdall and Tom Hiddleston plays the mischievous Loki amazingly, he’s not an evil villain but he’s jealous of the attention his brother receives and wants his father to have the same respect for him.
In terms of directing Kenneth does a damn good job, mixing both the speeches of honour and loyalty and the large action sequences; the Frost-Giant battle and the Destroyer rampage being two highlights of the film. The visuals are also fantastic, Asgard looks fantastic and the rainbow bridge is spectacular.
In conclusion, Thor is a visually stunning film with great humour, action and two amazing performances from Hemsworth and Hiddleston.
7/10