Review: Thor Pales In Comparison To Later Stories
- Feb 1, 2018
- 2 min read
Something consistent among most Marvel Studios films is that they are equally enjoyable on rewatches. As I make my way through them while awaiting the release of Black Panther, Phase One films Iron Man & Iron Man 2 are just as exciting and full of potential as ever, and The Incredible Hulk is as awful as it ever was. But Thor is somehow different.
The idea is that Odin (Anthony Hopkins) is ready to pass on the throne of Asgard to his first-born, Thor (Hemsworth). But then the palace is attacked, and it is soon revealed that his brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) let some frost giants into the trophy room in order to aggravate his brother into attacking their race. Upon his return, Thor is cast out of Asgard by Odin, and is sent to Earth, where he meets some scientists (Stellan Skarsgård, Natalie Portman, Kat Dennings). He attempts to reacquire his hammer from S.H.I.E.L.D. Later, some Asgardians arrive to help Thor return to Asgard and overthrow his brother's tyrrany.
I found myself hating the Earth scenes and the climax more than I have before. I'm pretty sure it's not just because Chris Hemsworth looks strange with light blonde eyebrows, either. No, I think that I've been spoiled by Avengers films and Thor Ragnarok, and now expect more out of Thor as a character and the world around him. I've seen the greener grass on the other side, and now know that the character and world portrayed in Thor could have been far more interesting.
As a whole, the movie is solid and has no overwhelming flaws. It's just not that entertaining, and has really nothing new to offer. It feels like it was cranked out to fill out the Avengers lineup more than anything else, which is not something I would say about the other Phase One films (even though The Incredible Hulk was complete garbage).
I found the human characters completely two-dimensional and not particularly likeable, and the climax was needlessly complicated (and a bit silly). The romance between Thor and Portman's character isn't remotely engaging, given that she believed that Thor was just some crazy guy until late in the movie. And Dennings' character Darcy as the comic relief is neither comical nor relieving - she just follows the other characters around saying things that don't really need to be said.
But Odin and Loki are a treat as their respective mythical / Marvel characters. Hiddleston breathes life into a character previously known solely for being annoying. Magnificent sets and colourful CG blends to create Asgard, which is truly a painting brought to life. And yet these performances are overshadowed by the film's distracting obsession with dutch angles.
Thor is a fairly generic blockbuster, to be frank. Its story may be something relatively new to cinema (or at least the superhero genre) but can still be boiled down to a fish-out-of-water story crossed with an origin story and a setup for Avengers. What was once a fairly generic and decent movie is ruined by hindsight and a glimpse of what could have been.
Comments