Monday, May 02, 2011

Thor - movie review

Thor was always a bit of a B-list superhero. Other than a notable run by Walter Simonson in the mid-1980s the comic book was never amazing. I did enjoy reading about Norse mythology, as well as Greek and roman mythology, when I was a kid. The character of Thor has been made a wee bit more interesting by the Mark Millar Ultimates comics of the past decade and those comics were probably the main source of this film.

I was a bit surprised when I heard that they would make a Thor film. It felt like Marvel were scraping the barrel. I understood the desire for a Thor film to help set up an Avengers franchise but I didn't really think it would do well at the box office. Then I heard that some left field decisions had been made in the production of this film. Kenneth Branagh to direct, the decidedly non-Aryan Irdis Elba as a norse god to piss off the American racists. Natalie Portman and Anthony Hopkins to take on key roles. It was beginning to sound like a good film.

Now that I've seen it I can say that Thor is an OK film. The special effects are good although it is a bit CGI heavy at time. The 3D looks a bit tacked on. The story is acceptable. Thor comes across as a bit 'empty'. The actor playing him is not as good as Samuel L Jackson or Robert Downey Jr. He will probably be lost in the ensemble cast of The Avengers.

Thor is a mildly diverting bit of chewing gum. OK but not amazing.

No comments: