Dueling reviews: Thor not exactly ‘super’

Thor came out almost a year ago, but in the spirit of The Avengers we thought it would be cool to look back on one of the original Avengers. Thor is probably the least known main Avenger of the crew by the masses, and certainly one of the harder superheroes to translate to the big screen.

Marvel took it head on and had mixed results. The acting was average despite a talented cast, the story was boring and predictable, but there were some good-looking scenes, specifically all of those in Asgard.  However, the movie overall lacked originality and proper structure. The result was a muddled film that provided more laughs (in a bad way) than wows.

Chris Hemsworth is a relative unknown actor in the Hollywood scene, though he did have a spectacular cameo in Star Trek (2009) as George Kirk, James Kirk’s father. Hemsworth is noticeably over-the-top in the film, making the character of Thor extremely one-note. Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, and Idris Elba are the three big names in the cast, though they are either misused (Portman) or have little screen time (Hopkins, Elba).

 Tom Hiddleston as Loki, the brother of Thor, may shine the most throughout the film. Though not the greatest acting performance, Hiddleston brings subtleness to Loki’s character that is lacking in almost every other major character.

The plot is boring and predictable. An argument can be made that it was necessary to be so formulaic as Thor serves as an origin movie. However, Thor is mostly about the major character changes in Thor and Loki. Though both characters change throughout the film, the execution is poor and unrealistic. It’s a shame as well, because Hiddleston and Hemsworth have good chemistry.

In the end, Thor is a bad movie by itself. When coupled together with the other pre-Avenger movies and The Avengers itself, it is a necessary entry.

Hopefully, Thor 2 can focus more on the characters of Thor and Loki. If it does, Marvel can make a truly compelling superhero series that will help progress The Avengers series as well.


Final Score: 2 out of 4 stars