Superhero Film Excites with Thunderous Action

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Superhero Film Excites with Thunderous Action
May 5, 2011
By Matthew Asher
The Emory Wheel

Wise men and science fiction have long taught that man should never try to play God. That is, unless that God in question is the titular character from “Thor.” Considering that the film is based on one of Marvel’s toughest heroes, it is only fitting that it displays the same combination of majesty and unrelenting aggression.

Those who saw the post-credit scene after “Iron Man 2” know that Thor’s hammer has fallen under S.H.I.E.L.D. supervision in the New Mexico desert. The movie starts just as Thor descends to New Mexico, while the first part of the movie is a flashback explaining Thor’s exile. Due to his step-brother Loki’s (Tom Hiddleston, “Midnight in Paris”) trickery, Thor ends up in New Mexico after his father, Odin, (Anthony Hopkins, “Silence of the Lambs”) banishes him from Asgard and strips him of his power for disobeying Odin’s direct orders and not fighting the Frost Giants.

As soon as he arrives in New Mexico, Thor meets up with Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman, “Black Swan”). The two of them team up to recover Thor’s hammer and his abilities, while back in Asgard, Thor’s childhood friend Sif (Jaimie Alexander, “Love and Other Drugs”) and her battle companions, the Warriors Three, aid Thor in returning home.

Portraying the God of Thunder is not an easy task. You need to have a physical presence on screen and an equally impressive physique to back it up. Fortunately, Chris Hemsworth (“Star Trek”) packed on 20 pounds of muscle for this role and does justice to the eponymous character. At six-feet-three-inches, Hemsworth is an imposing figure, embracing the raw power of Thor and making it believable that he could go toe-to-toe with the mythical villains he faces.

But Hemsworth is more than just a generic muscular action hero. Rather than simply kill enemies and rattle off one-liners, Hemsworth shows a humorous side As expected, Thor does not like being mortal and still acts like the braggadocios warrior he was before his banishment. This leads to several very humorous set-ups that bring Thor’s Nordic roots in view. While eating in a diner, he loudly exclaims his admiration for the meal and breaks his glass on the ground as a demand for more.

Visually, Thor does a wonderful job of making Asgard look majestic without appearing hokey. The CGI Frost Monsters, the sworn enemy of Asgard, look equally as astonishing while still believable as living beings.

While the visuals are superb, the story of the characters, besides Thor and Dr. Foster, is somewhat lackluster. Acting as the film’s primary antagonist, the filmmakers never make Loki’s motivations particularly clear. At first, it seems that Loki simply wants to mess with Thor, but his motivations change on the fly. He veers between simply wanting to annoy his brother and then proving that he is worthy to be the next ruler of Asgard.

Fortunately, Loki’s fickle motives have minimal impact on the overall film.

The movie runs along at a brisk pace. Action scenes never feel like they’re going on too long, and, with every break in the action, more background information about the main characters is revealed.

The other main actors do a good job of bringing the mythological side to life. The romantic link between Thor and Dr. Foster feels forced at times, but Portman does a good job of not playing the typical damsel in distress. She aids Thor, rather than hiding and screaming whenever something is attacking her.

While he has a limited role, Hopkins effortlessly shows why the King of Asgard was simultaneously such a feared and respected deity.

“Thor” establishes its titular character as a force both on Earth and on Asgard. Rather than getting bogged down in mystical gobbledigook, “Thor” delivers the visceral punch we all seek in our popcorn movies.