Thor (2011)
Dir: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston
Well, well, well. I think Thor may have usurped Iron Man as my favourite Avenger…
I am a devoted Empire fan and, in preparation of my review, I was having a read of news editor Chris Hewitt’s review. In particular, I loved this paragraph:
“He’s a tricky one, the Odinson. Unlike Iron Man, Hulk or Captain America, he’s a god. An actual god, with awe-inspiring powers and a rich back story. There’s a lot to get through, and this is the sort of material that has to be handled with the utmost care, lest it go in any number of directions: pompous, cheesy or, most damaging of all, unintentionally hilarious. Things could go from bad to Norse.”
Oh to come up with such a classic line, ho ho ho.
Hewitt has, of course, got it spot on. A billionaire playboy and engineer who creates a flying, powered exoskeleton? Yeah, I can handle that. A physicist who is a not-so-jolly giant? Yeah, I get that. A god who is banished to modern day Earth? Erm, what?!
Thankfully, director Kenneth Branagh managed to keep Thor on the path to superhero stardom. Hemsworth is brilliant in the titular role with great support from Hiddlestone, Hopkins and Portman.
The plot is coherent and straightforward with subtle references to other Marvel characters. Odin is a wonderful character and Hopkins is a great actor so I would have liked to have seen more of him. This film is not his story, though. Similarly, a little more background to Thor’s companions – Sif and the Warriors Three – would have been welcomed.
Cinematic Delights 
Part of what I wanted from the film was a guy in armor with a giant hammer smacking frost giants in the face…and so I got that. It was a good time at the theaters, and that’s all I asked for. Good review, check out mine when you can!
Enjoyed your review. I was happy to see this film did not go off the rails as I feared it might prior to viewing it.