I just got back from seeing Thor in 3D at the local movie theater. I was entertained by what I saw, and I can not wait to see the other CBMs coming out this summer. I will tell you straight off the bat, that although I read a lot of comics, I don't know much about Thor. Sure I've read the basics about him, but this review is strictly pertaining to how I felt Thor holds up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Let me break it down for you.
The Length: At 1 hour and 54 minutes, Thor was way too short and the story felt like it took a little too long to get off the ground. This is a story of Thor being banished from Asgard to Earth to learn humility. Once he's learned it, he can once again weild his hammer, and fight as the God of Thunder. Unfortunately, his redemption comes almost right before the final battle. He should have been able to lift that hammer midway through at earlist. As for him falling in love with Jane Foster so quickly, I'm not bothered by that. Yes they are smitten fairly quickly, but hey that happens in the real world too, so it's really not as hard to swallow. I'm sure the films length will be addressed in the DVD and Bluray, but I wanted to see more while I was the theater. Thor is depowered way too long, which makes for not enough action.
The Character: Despite not having a long enough time period to act in, everyone did a good job. Chris Hemsworth is believable as the brash and cocky warrior who makes a mistake, and has to get knocked down a few pegs. There was a really great scene about midway through the film where he trys to lift Mjolner and fails. The anguish, dissapointment and feeling of defeat at this failure really is displayed well by Hemsworth, and I felt bad for Thor in this scene. His fight scene with the Frost Giants was cool, showing of Thor as a skilled combatant. I just wish we got to see more of that combat, because the other fight scenes were way too short. Agent Phil Coulson played by Clark Gregg appears in this movie too, and his precence along with the other with various other S.H.I.E.L.D. personel really help to let people know that this movie is connected to rest of the MCU. HE is also featured in the scene where Thor tried to lift Mjolner. While he ultimately arrests Thor for the security breach of the base, you can see that Coulson does see something in Thor, and feels bad for him when he can not lift the hammer. Also in this scene is Jeremey Renner as Clint Barton/ Hawkeye. His face is shrouded by shadow, and he only has a few lines, but it was cool to see the character introduced. I smiled when he went for the sniper rifle, but instead went for the compound bow. Anthony Hopkins makes for a very good Odin, and you really do get the sense that he is a wise king who thinks all of his actions through. And you can tell that when he banishes Thor, he does not enjoy doing so. He still believes in Thor, but needs to teach a lesson. When, he throws Mjolner to Earth, you can tell in his voice, that he wants Thor to be better and believes that he can be. Tom Hiddleston as Loki was good too, but not the show stealer everyone made him out to be. His skills of deception are seen, but we don't get to see him use them enough. He does have a good scene, where he finds out the truth of his heritage, and the anguish tha ensues is well understood. The Warriors Three also show up. The only actor who I recognized was Ray Stevenson as Volstagg. He and the other actors do well in their parts, and they seem to care about Thor making their frienships with him believable. Jamie Alexander as Sif was ok, but kind of felt like she was just there to be there. Kat Dennings as Darcy was good as comic relief, and Stellen Skaarsgard as Dr. Selvig made for a good co worker to Natalie Portman as Jane Foster. At times, Jane only appears to care about getting back her equipment and research, but it's her faith in Thor as being more than just some just delusional guy talking about gods that make her character worth having around. Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury delivers too.
References to the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe: As I said in the characters section, Phil Coulson and Nick Fury were good characters to put in this movie to establish a cohesive feel to the film to the rest of the MCU. Selvig makes a Bruce Banner reference and Stark is namedropped in the scene with the destroyer. The Cosmic Cube also shows up, giving a pretty good indication of what might be at stake in The Avengers.
The 3D: This movie was converted to 3D and while it was not bad, I can understand why some people would go for regular old 2D. When characters and other objects are close to the camera, they are clear. Stuff in the backround and large battles scenes with a lot people fighting came off bulrry though.
Overall, Thor is pretty good, but not long enough, and some plot points felt like extra time was needed. It felt like a worthy Marvel tale but needed more action, and overall, both Iron Man films were better. It's worth your money though. A 7.5 out of 10.