Thor Review

Summer 2011 has shaped out to be the season of a lifetime for superhero fans. With four major comic book films releasing within the next three months, it’s a comic nerd’s dream come true. On May 6th, Marvel kicked off the summer season with a smash, releasing its first of three studio superhero blockbusters coming this summer. Thor is a drastic step away from the tone set by recent superhero films like The Dark Knight and the Iron Man movies. All of these films took a rather realistic spin, or at least as realistic as invincible crime-fighting super-humans can get. With Thor, Marvel returns to days of comic old, when superheroes weren’t subject to the restraints of the real world. They delved into alternate dimensions, explored fantastic worlds and stopped aliens from invading Earth. And it’s for this reason that Thor manages to break away from the Marvel norm and become something rather special.

Chris Hemsworth stars as the title character, the Norse god of lightning. After reigniting an ancient war between his race, the noble people who reside in the floating city of Asgard, and an evil species of ice trolls, Thor is banished from Asgard and crash lands on Earth, stripped of his godly powers and left to fend for himself on in a world he knows nothing about. Luckily, a young female scientist happens to be studying the sky with her two friends in the exact place where Thor lands, and, through a series of events that range from hospital rampages to Sword in the Stone-like competitions, the two forge a special bond and help each other achieve a common goal. Of course, all does not go according to plan as baddies from Thor’s world start to show up on Earth, but I won’t spoil the action for you. To sum it up, Thor takes its comic book mythos seriously, and never fails to surprise the audience with another awe-inspiring mythological spectacle. 

The film’s choice to stay rather true to its fairly incomprehensible (as far as common sense goes) comic roots has its strengths, but it also has its fair share of weaknesses. The more traditional approach that Thor takes will undoubtably turn off many viewers looking for another gritty, jolting action film. Though Thor definitely has some gritty aspects, they usually come in the form of giant metal monsters blasting cars to shreds, and less from terrorist groups having shoot outs with metal-clad men. Another problem Thor encounters on more than one instance is its rather bizarre mix of two worlds. It’s one thing to tell a story spanning two universes, and it’s another to jump between the two universes, one of which is the Earth we know and another of which is a giant floating fantastical castle in the sky, with only a few lines of dialogue as a bridge. This problem could have been handled with more elaborate transitions between scenes that take place in these two worlds instead of jarring transitions that feel a bit thrown together. 

Thor is far from perfect, and it may leave some looking for another Marvel masterpiece disappointed, but what it does deliver are some very exciting old school comic thrills, tossed in with some very human aspects and strong performances all around. It may not be deserving of godly status, but Thor sure is one heck of a good time at the movies. 

Final Score:
7.5/10
"Very Good"

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