Thor (2011) Review

Thor is a 2011 superhero film directed by Kenneth Branagh and it is the fourth installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is a solid, but problematic film.

Thor is a prince of Asgard and is exiled to Earth where he falls in love with a scientist named Jane Foster. Meanwhile, Loki, his adoptive brother, intends to become king himself and Thor is to stop him. It is a clichéd story that isn’t particularly memorable, no matter how dramatic the filmmakers made it to be. It does have its moments, but it is mostly too predictable and quite typical. The beginning is solid and the middle of the film is particularly good, but it is the conclusion that wasn’t that good in my opinion and it detracted the movie.

Thor is an okay character who has his first introduction to the MCU in this movie and he works for the most part. Yes, he is an annoying, somewhat shallow God-like character, but they did what they could with the material and he has his moments. It is of course Loki who is the better and more memorable character. He has such a good backstory and the relationship between him and his father as well as Thor is nicely depicted. But he will be much better in future Marvel works. Jane Foster is a genuinely sympathetic character whom I honestly liked. And the relationship between the two is sweet. Odin is a well realized, if expected creation. However, the other characters are all pretty forgettable and quite underused.

The acting is okay in this one, but not the greatest. Chris Hemsworth did a nice job and Natalie Portman is stupendous in this blockbuster flick. Anthony Hopkins is also quite good as Odin, but it is Tom Hiddleston who did the best job and gave a superb performance in his introductive role to the MCU.

The action is the weakest part of the film. I like that there wasn’t much of it here which was a refreshing choice, but when it was there, it was pretty mediocre unfortunately. Some moments are interesting, but it is mostly poorly executed and so bland and uninspired. However, the humor is the opposite. It is one of the highlights here as it is so funny at times with its awkward relationships and behaviors of the characters with Thor’s overly theatrical speeches being put to great use on Earth in many funny moments.

Thor is directed by the great Kenneth Branagh and he did a good job with the material, but it still isn’t that great at is should have been more sophisticated. It certainly isn’t another ‘Iron Man’ both in its humor and especially dialogue. The dialogue here isn’t as good and the approach is at times troublesome. The science fiction and fantasy elements are an interesting combo even if they don’t blend that well with each other. The running time is bloated for sure and it isn’t particularly well paced. The emotion is there, but is mostly forced. The movie is humorous and it does have a bit of heart, but it isn’t smart and is too dramatic sometimes. The romance is typical, but nice and I liked the sequences on Earth more than those on Asgard, apart from the beginning. Thor is far from Marvel’s best efforts, but it has its charms and is entertaining and funny. It is definitely one of the better films in the MCU.

Thor has a clichéd story, some weaker parts and the action is mediocre, but it has its charms with the humor being particularly good with a couple of quite funny moments, some solid acting, good characters and a nice mix of genres. It is far from best, but is one of the better films in the MCU.

My Rating – 3.5

**************************************************************************************************

      Interior & Exterior Stills from Thor

[wppa type=”slide” album=”26″ size=”1200″ align=”center”]Any comment[/wppa]