Thor: Review By Newtron

Thor brings the Marvel superhero to the big screen. Before he can be named as successor to the throne of Asgard, trouble is ensued by an old Asgardian enemy. Defying the will of Odin (Anthony Hopkins), Thor's father and the current King of Asgard, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) decides to take matters into his own hands, ultimately heightening the said conflict and leading to his banishment to Earth, where he is forced to live as a mortal.

I have longed to see this film become a reality since the 90s, so I was extremely elated to see this come into fruition. First off, I feel this was a good introduction to the Thor universe. I love how they took the original Jack Kirby concept and translated it so well onscreen. In fact, I feel that the visuals were the strongest part of the film. From wardrobe to setting, I felt that the film was truly captivating in detail and scale. This especially goes for the wardrobe. Whenever Asgard was onscreen, I couldn't get enough of what I was seeing. And I absolutely loved the concept for the Frost Giants. Fantastic make up. And I loved Idris Elba as Heimdall, Anthony Hopkins as Odin, and in most cases, Tom Hiddleson as Loki.

However, there were certain aspects of the film that kept me from giving the film a 5 star rating, which is what I was expecting it to be, though that's not saying at all that I was disappointed. Although, I wonder if the screaming child ten seats down for 10 minutes of the film had anything to do with it. Anyway. I felt that Chris Hemsworth definitely had the look for Thor, but strangely enough, I just wasn't convinced of Thor as a character. I just felt that Hemsworth didn't necessarily draw me into the character. I felt he was good and descent for the role, but I still felt like I was looking at an actor onscreen. And for some odd reason, I felt the same way about Natalie Portman. It's strange, but it is what it is for me. I felt the action in the film wasn't quite up to the level that I was expecting it to be, though it was really cool at times, accompanied with the great visual effects...maybe I'm getting too used to the 21st century action sequences. Don't know, but that was my impression as I watched. And music fell short for me. Like Hemsworth as Thor, the music served its purpose but it didn't hit me like I was expecting to be hit. In most cases, I felt that the music either fell short, or rather, wasn't epic enough to match what was onscreen, or too over the top in scoring Thor's situation, at times anyway.

In general, I felt that the movie worked, but in a safe way, which is why I give it 3 1/2 stars. And SAFE is probably the best word that I can use, but it's a bold, enjoyable SAFE, which is why I liked the film. And I suppose that's why it worked as a descent introduction movie, as they didn't release the entire arsenal on the viewer. I look forward to see what else they do with the character.