Before I continue I must warn you, this is not a spoiler free review. I feel that I have to let you know because for those of you who have not seen the latest Thor movie I do not want to stunt your enjoyment of Thor: The Dark World. With that said, let’s continue.
Unbeknownst to Thor, and his band of warriors, a threat that predates all of existence is looming. An ancient enemy so vile that even Odin the All-Father and Asgard cannot combat. Awakened by Jane Foster is the rediscovering of a deadly weapon, the Aether, a relic from before the universe and possibly the Infinity Gauntlet’s Gem of Power. The Dark Elves and their leader, Malekith, plan to use this Aether to plunge the Nine Realms back into darkness and at the same time exact vengeance for Asgard’s long ago victory over and near-destruction of their race, eons ago by Bor, father of Odin. Every five-thousand years a cosmic anomaly causes the Nine Realms to become aligned, and Malekith plans to use this event and release the Aether to revert the known universe to pure emptiness back before the big bang.
Odin’s warrior son must embrace his most dangerous and intimate quest thus far, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save all the nine realms. Thor: The Dark World opens with a prologue narrated by Odin himself played by Anthony Hopkins. An epic tale of ancient wars between the Asgardians and a race of dark elves lead by Malekith the Accursed.
Thor’s second solo film strikes a far better balance between the Earth bound action and the dramas on his home world of Asgard, but beyond the strong set pieces and humor, the plot and central romance fail to hit home. One example that comes to mind is when after the Accursed and his dark elf army is defeated, it feels like Thor says to his father it sucks to be you — your half son is dead, your wife is murdered, your house is in ruins but I’ve got to rush Earth and be with my girl, leaving his dad to grieve in a broken house by himself after the death of his mother. I’m sure that was not the writers’ intention, but that’s how that comes across. Undoubtedly the film does not get rid of its clichés dealing with a family in crisis, but there is an honesty about the characters that makes the film much more enjoyable. It’s probably because the actors playing the title leads play these characters with such ease that I believe that I’m watching a chapter in their lives on a magic mirror.
Thor: The Dark World, is a more entertaining follow-up to the first Thor movie keeping the promise that each stand-alone film would give the franchise, as a whole, space to breathe, rather than attempting to fulfill sequel duties for everything that have come before it. The origin setup is out of the way, and now what we get is a pretty-to-look-at picture, filled with romance, action, and mild humor. In short, if you’re looking for an exciting piece of light entertainment that subscribes to the modern formula of a popcorn-movie, then this film is for you.
In The Dark World, director Alan Taylor fully embraces the fantasy elements of Asgardian lore, skillfully deploying them to play against the Earthbound segments and playing up the difference for comic relief. Taylor knows this territory very well. His fellowship on the set of HBO’s Game of Thrones does not go unnoticed here. He brings the epic reach of that fantasy series to the otherworldly parts of this film only with a much bigger budget for painting on a much larger canvas. Thor contains some of the most gorgeously rendered images in the Marvel cinematic films to date, from the majesty of Thor’s home in Asgard to a sparkling starlit funeral over Asgardian waterfalls, both melancholy and magnificent. Then to the bleak and storm-swept landscapes of Svartalfheim, home to a race of Dark Elves.
Thor: The Dark World is a lot of fun and sometime feels like an experimental amalgam of The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and KRULL. Yes, that 1983 film about a prince, with a cool weapon called the Glaive, and a fellowship of companions out to rescue his bride from a fortress of alien invaders who have arrived on their home planet. Alan Taylor’s sci-fi fantasy film feels like Game of Thrones meets Masters of the Universe, complete with alien creatures, bad guys with laser pistols, and epic adventures.
As stated before the issue with Thor: The Dark World is in the screenplay, written by Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus, and Stephen McFeely. While these screenwriters get the tone of the universe and its characters, the plot is muddled. Major events within the story don’t make much sense, but we accept them. Still, production design is amazing, fast paced action, and Hiddleston’s mischievous Loki makes Thor 2 more entertaining than Shane Black’s Iron Man 3. It isn’t as crowd-pleasing as The Avengers, but Thor: The Dark World is the best sequel in the MCU, furthering the story of its title character while expanding the Marvel Universe on film and setting up events that will be in Marvel’s upcoming slate of films such as Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Guardians of the Galaxy, and The Avengers: Age of Ultron. Thor: The Dark World provides plenty of the humor, action, and eye-popping visuals you’ve come to expect from Marvel Studios.
Thor: The Dark World is in theaters November 8th, 2013 and stars Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Stellan Skarsgård, Idris Elba, Christopher Eccleston, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Zachary Levi, Tadanobu Asano and Jaimie Alexander with Rene Russo & Anthony Hopkins. The film is directed by Alan Taylor.