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"THOR"
(2011) (Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman) (PG-13)

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QUICK TAKE:
Action: Halfway across the cosmos, the arrogant warrior Thor is cast out of the realm of Asgard and banished to modern-day Earth where he becomes our protector.
PLOT:
Across the universe, the fantastic realm of Asgard is ruled by Odin (ANTHONY HOPKINS) and Frigga (RENE RUSSO) who knows that he will one day cede control of his kingdom to one of this two sons. Thor (CHRIS HEMSWORTH) is the greater warrior, but he is arrogant and often reckless. Loki (TOM HIDDLESTON) is the more cerebral one, but he is prone to all sorts of mischief. In fact, he secretly plots with his people's sworn enemy to seize the throne from his brother.

After a sneak attack by the rival Frost Giants led by King Laufey (COLM FEORE), orchestrated by the power-hungry Loki, Thor disobeys his father's wishes and ventures into the Frost Giants' realm with warriors Volstagg (RAY STEVENSON), Sif (JAIMIE ALEXANDER), Fandral (JOSH DALLAS), and Hogun (TADANOBU ASANO) to wage war. Odin eventually comes to the rescue and banishes Thor from Asgard to the distant planet of Earth.

Stripped of his powers, Thor befriends a team of scientists studying wormholes and atmospheric phenomenon comprised of Jane Foster (NATALIE PORTMAN), Erik Selvig (STELLAN SKARSGARD), and Darcy Lewis (KAT DENNINGS). He also runs afoul of a top-secret government organization known as SHIELD, represented by the sardonic Agent Coulson (CLARK GREGG), who has cordoned off a section of the New Mexico desert where Mjolnir, the almighty hammer of Thor has landed. Back in Asgard, Loki continues to consolidate his power, conjuring up The Destroyer and sending him to Earth to kill Thor and all who stand in his way.

OUR TAKE: 6.5 out of 10
I don't normally read other reviews in advance of seeing movies, because I like to go in clean and relatively unspoiled. This holds especially true for the big, so-called "tent-pole" films the studios put out each summer and holiday season. The filmmakers and money people spend months and even years guarding plot points. So, I really like to be surprised as much as I can. Usually, it's no problem because film critics typically see the movies early a few days to a few weeks before release so we can have our reviews ready the morning of their Friday opening.

That wasn't the case with "Thor." In a rare occurrence, here is a late spring/early summer blockbuster that actually got released first in other parts in the world - most notably Europe and Australia - before it hit the U.S. box office. So, the reviews have been online for a couple of weeks, and they have been uniformly positive. I was stoked.

In a nutshell, I think "Thor" has been a bit over-praised in these early reviews. It is a good movie, not a great one. In the superhero genre, it's not anywhere close to Christopher Nolan's "The Dark Knight," Richard Donner's first two "Superman" movies, Sam Raimi's first two "Spider-Man" adventures, or the second "X-Men" flick. What the film absolutely had to get right, though, it did get right. Chris Hemsworth is absolutely THE perfect Thor!

I guess there was two ways they could have gone with this. They could have hired a blond, muscle-bound, Schwarzeneggerian beefcake and crossed their fingers that he could deliver dialogue in a fairly believable manner. Or, they could have hired a real actor and bulked him up. Thankfully, director Kenneth Branagh and his Marvel Comics cohorts went with the latter strategy.

Hemsworth is perhaps best-known for playing Captain Kirk's ill-fated father in the opening sequence of J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek" re-boot a couple of years ago. In those 15 minutes, he brought more raw emotion and heart-tugging heroism than the "Trek" series had seen in years. This movie should make him a bona fide movie star. He has that "it" quality that you look for in a heroic lead. What his character cares about, we care about no matter how silly and outlandish the scenario.

And "Thor" is a pretty silly and outlandish offshoot of the Marvel Comics universe. Here is an immortal thunder god who has been banished from the realm of Asgard across the stars to Earth after disobeying his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins). Stripped of his powers, his prestige, and his mythic hammer, Thor is forced to survive among humans even as the government agency SHIELD seeks to uncover the wormhole-like portals Thor's people have been using to travel to Earth throughout the eons.

Thor is helped by a team of good-hearted scientists led by the fetching Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), the doubting Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard), and the sarcastic Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings). Back in Asgard, Thor's mischievous brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) is plotting against him, his father, and his mother Frigga (Rene Russo) to seize the throne. He is in league with Odin and Thor's sworn enemy, the Frost Giants led by King Laufey (Colm Feore).

Under Branagh's direction, you can't miss the Shakespearean overtones. All concerned are having fun here. And while nothing ever really major feels at stake here, Branagh injects a good bit of humor and even soap opera-ish elements into the proceedings so that the film is never a bore. The realms of Asgard and Einherjar are never quite believable in their CGI cartoonish-ness. And, wow, again here is another needless 3D conversion that just darkens an otherwise lively picture.

All in all, "Thor" delivers a solid origin story and introduces a potential major star onto the Hollywood canvas in Hemsworth. Will it catch lightning in a bottle and become the next great superhero franchise? By Odin's beard, I think so! I rate it a solid 6.5 out of 10. (T. Durgin)




Reviewed May 3, 2011 / Posted May 6, 2011


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