Now to give this film a fair review, I must silence the fan boy that resides deep down inside of me. This little voice is always telling me to see the latest Superhero film because it looks awesome. Regardless this review will contain spoilers as it is the only true way to review the film and be fair. If you do not wish to be spoiled please go watch the film then come back or skip to the end.
I have never been a fan of Thor in the comics, He was not one that you automatically knew his origin or even anything about his character. To me he was always just there. And frankly somewhat boring. However this film has made me a Thor Fan. Thor is a film about learning Humility, and respect for those around you regardless of the harm they may cause. In this Film Thor is an arrogant God, about to become king until the frost giants interrupt his ceremony. He abruptly heads to frost giant realm, and decides he wants to kill the entire race. Thor wanted Genocide, this was a trait not worthy of a King.
As punishment Odin takes away Thors power and banishes him from his home on Asgard, This where the film truly begins. I will not bore you with more exposition; however the film progresses smoothly throughout. It has an equal amount of time in Asgard as it does in Midgard (earth) The writing in this story felt very Shakespearian. Well the tone of the film anyhow. I felt like I was watching an the first film in an Epic franchise. This is probably due To Kenneth Braughns direction which never falters. The direction was great, however my Friend that I went to go see the film with was pointing how there were many camera angles that were tilted sideways. A fact that I had not noticed until it was pointed out. In all honesty it did not bother me. It felt like the camera was capturing more by being sideways. This could be construed as an Aritstic choices Braughn made, or as a way of showing how important key scenes were. How Thors World in Both his physical realm and his mental one are on the brink of destruction.
The Acting was brilliant in this film, everyone was great. Odin was a very interesting character. I liked him. He was not an asshole, he was stern and knew there was only one way to show his son Humility. Although when he was mad, it was scary. Kind of like a true parent. Anthony Hopkins deliverd the lines as only he could in a demanding voice, yet kindhearted when he needed to be. Tom Hiddleston as Loki blew me away. I knew going into the film Loki was the villain. However, due to Hiddlestons acting, you never would have known it until 30 to 40 minutes into the film when he acends to the throne as king of Asgard. I felt sorry for his character. It is very good to make a villain likeable. If he was pure evil his character wouldn’t have been half as interesting. Hiddleston made him not seem like a villain, but more like a Jealous little brother, that had too much power in his hands. Which is what was needed for that character. Thor, was obviously brilliantly acted by Hemsworth, not problem there. All the actors did a good Job, however the one that truly stood out to me was Heimdal. He was one of the smallest characters, but he had the biggest role in the film. It always came down to him. He was the Gate Keeper of the Bifrost, or the rainbow bridge that connected the 9 realms. Idris Elba’s performance was flawless. I know nothing about the character from the comics, but it would seem a good fit. Now for the surrounding Controversy over a black actor playing Heimdall. I say as long as the actor performs well in the role than the color of the skin doesn’t matter. That and it’s not like they made Thor Black….
Now on to the negatives of the film. The final fight seemed a little rushed. I enjoyed the way it played out, however it was very short and I wished it had lasted longer. The ending was good, but it makes me wonder how Thor is going to be in the Avengers film. The Bifrost being destroyed and all. Hopefully Jane will use her awesome science skills along with S.H.E.I.L.D to create a new portal in which Thor can cross.
The post credits scene really shows the set up for Captain America, and The Avengers as it shows the cosmic cube. That and it Shows that Loki now has control over Erik Selvig. Over All I will give this film a 4 out of 5 while it held my interest and had a very deep and captivating story characters and out of this world special effects, this is a superhero film and fights while the hero is a hero neeed to be longer. But over all good watch. Worth the money. As a side note, don’t watch this film in 3D there was nothing that looked as if it would have been any good in 3D.