Thor: Review By CBF

This is a classic case of "don't judge a book by its cover" for me. I had little faith in this film during its production run, over something as silly as costumes looking plastic and fake. While that would have been an eyesore, I'm not sure I would have been able to overcome it long enough to get into the film itself without seeing plastic costumes in every scene. Luckily, the costumes are not as pseudonymous as I had once thought, and the film exceeds my expectations at every turn.

Story

The film begins in Asgard, a sacred realm, one of nine which includes Earth, and introduces the audience to the three core characters of this story: Odin, Loki, and Thor. Odin is the King of the realm, but is getting too old to reign and must hand over the rule to one of his two sons, either Thor or Loki. It is Thor's big day and he is about to be crowned King when there is a trespass and break-in inside Odin's Weapons Vault. After a quick investigation, it is discovered that the betrayal was committed by an old enemy of the Asgardians: The "Frost Giant" Jotuns of Jotunheim (another of the Nine Realms). When Thor pleads with Odin for travel to Jotunheim for inquiry and possible revenge, Odin refuses, and Thor disregards his command, leading to a looming war and his banishment from Asgard. Stripped of his immortality, he is exiled to Earth as a mortal and the journey begins to get his might back and his weapon, Mjolnir, a Hammer of the Gods that was forged inside a dying star, and which can only be lifted by a God whom is worthy of its power. Unbeknownst to him, Mjolnir has fallen to Earth and S.H.I.E.L.D. has found it. Along the way, Thor meets Jane Foster, Darcy Lewis, and Dr. Selvig, an astrological research team investigating magnetic storm phenomena. Now it's a race to try to beat the clock before Loki takes control of Asgard, becomes it's evil ruler, and destroys the other realms.

I felt the story was great. It was written by my favorite comic book writer, J. Michael Straczynski ("Spider-Man: The Other," "Superman: Grounded," creator of TV's "Babylon 5"), so no real complaints from me. I felt that it was easy enough to follow, which is amazing given the subject material. It makes me wonder how great the Silver Surfer movie would have been, since it was written by the same writer, just cancelled by 20th Century Fox along with FF3...

Story: Comic Comparison

I can honestly say that I'm not too savvy on Thor's universe. I knew, beforehand, about Mjolnir, Asgard, and some of the characters for the most part, but the only villain I knew was Thor's brother Loki. And the Frost Giants? The Nine Realms? Forget it. Sad to say that because of this, I can't really tell how accurate the movie is to its comic book roots.

Acting

Chris Hemsworth as Thor Odinson: I first noticed Hemsworth in 2009's "Star Trek" where he played Kirk's father. He played that role well and so he continues that streak here. I have nothing but praise for the man. He "is" Thor.

Natalie Portman as Jane Foster: Natalie Portman is becoming a better actress as of late. With each film she adds to her portfolio, her skills improve for the better. Her role of Jane is no different. She adds a smart, witty, and coy love interest to her résumé who is much more than a love interest. Natalie played this character in a strong and good-natured way so that the audience feels for her, and she did it with excellence and grace.

Tom Hiddleston as Loki Odinson: The God of Mischief plays both sides and Hiddleston pulls it off with ferocious accuracy. His displays of emotion are solid. Wonderful choice for the character.

Anthony Hopkins as Odin Allfather: What can one say about the great Hannibal Lecter? Hopkins adds another iconic character to his list of films as he portrays The King of Asgard with stunning ability.

Clark Gregg as S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Phil Coulson: Gregg was introduced in Marvel Studios' first film, 2008's "Iron Man", and had a role in its sequel, "Iron Man 2". His role in that film was expanded as halfway through the movie, he leaves to enter this movie. He gets a chance to stand on his own and call the shots in "Thor" without Daddy Fury standing over him in every scene. Here he plays a more aggressive Coulson (Son of Coul, ha ha) as he oversees the "New Mexico Project" in the Southwest corner - a.k.a. the discovery of Mjolnir.

Acting: Cameos

Jeremy Renner as Clint Barton: A nod to comic fans everywhere and Marvel film enthusiasts, this is a nice little cameo of Hawkeye in his civilian guise while working for S.H.I.E.L.D. Can't wait to see Renner play Hawkeye in "The Avengers".

Ray Stevenson as Volstagg: The only reason I point this casting choice out is because it's The Punisher from another Marvel movie, "Punisher: WarZone". Very interesting cameo. The writer, J. Michael Straczynski, also plays a townie.

Directing

Kenneth Branagh has great direction. There was nothing I questioned in lieu of directing as I watched the film with pure delight. I hope he does the sequels, if there are to be any.

Visuals

Most of the special effects were great and amazing, especially the universe scenes that would show the Nine Realms. Asgard looked beautiful. The Bifrost Bridge scenes were truly magnificent in scope. They did a wonderful job hiring the right company for this film. A few scenes could have been tweaked just a tidge but nothing to write home about. I feared early on in the development and production of this film that it would be dragged down by how the costumes looked like toy plastic Halloween armor made for kids, but this was not the case, and thus a welcome surprise.

Overall

The movie is a real triumph. If not for some minor issues with the visual effects and some undermined acting by overshadowing the minor characters, I would have rated this with 5's across the board. The film has little faults and succeeds where most comic book movies do not. This is a hard genre to get perfect ratings in, but so far, it's one of the very few that had the potential to pull it off, and save my minor beefs with the film, it pretty much did. For great story, great acting, great visuals and direction, I highly recommend this movie to anyone looking for something a little different in the comic book/superhero genre.