{"id":935,"date":"2011-04-28T12:06:54","date_gmt":"2011-04-28T12:06:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/?p=935"},"modified":"2011-04-28T12:14:04","modified_gmt":"2011-04-28T12:14:04","slug":"thor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmgaze.com\/blog\/action\/thor\/","title":{"rendered":"Thor (3D) ***"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>In a time of Norse folklore, where men were men and roared with pride, comes a larger-than-life and humour-rich take on the Marvel comic adventure Thor<\/em><\/a> that doesn\u2019t forget the personal angle in the midst of all its splendid grandeur. This thumping-good-fun romp has a true hero at its heart to cheer on, opting for a lesser-known star to fully capture the imagination in Home and Away<\/em><\/a>\u2019s Chris Hemsworth<\/a>, rather than someone established like Downey Jr.<\/a> in Iron Man<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

Cast out of the mythical realm of Asgard by his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins<\/a>), for waging a war between the gods, Thor (Hemsworth) is sent to Earth to live amongst humans. But scheming brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston<\/a>) wants the throne and all the power, and brews trouble for the exiled warrior. Thor\u2019s time soon comes to defend the human race, becoming our unlikely hero while dealing with his feelings for physicist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Hemsworth fully embodies Thor with all the energy, passion, arrogance and blundering foolery you\u2019d come to expect from a mythical warrior who lands on Earth with a different era\u2019s etiquette. He\u2019s more Superman than Iron Man, without having to go through all the learning processes and adapting to life on Earth in a regular job. Perhaps that\u2019s the appeal of Thor who crash-lands, quickly discovers his feet then gets on with the job of keeping us all safe \u2013\u00a0in the words of Bonnie Tyler\u2019s epic, we\u2019re holding out for a hero, and he\u2019s dashing and ready for action.<\/p>\n

Placed squarely at the centre of this film is the relationship between Thor and Loki. Director Kenneth Branagh<\/a> and team have thought hard about casting, with Hiddleston as Loki making a striking contrast, both physically and mentally to hammer-wielding Thor, as well as a well-acted adversary. Hiddleston\u2019s cool, calculating nature emphasises the film\u2019s visual dichotomies and opposing but related elements of earth, water and air, bringing the ancient mythology to life.<\/p>\n

However, back on Earth, Portman still seems to be in No Strings Attached<\/a><\/em> mode, portraying Jane as a giggly girly type who clearly has something between her ears, but gets shown up by Kat Dennings<\/a>\u2019 wittily dry Darcy character. Just where\u2019s the Portman fighting spirit we recently witnessed in Your Highness<\/em><\/a> even, when the mean government agents take away all Jane\u2019s hard work? Admittedly, there\u2019s not a whole lot for the Oscar-winning actress to sink her teeth into in such a role, but opting for \u2018dizzy female\u2019 portrayal is another thing.<\/p>\n

The sets and effects are stunning and help Thor<\/em> live up to its epic status. However, don\u2019t get too excited by yet another promise of 3D as it adds very little to any of the landscapes \u2013 of even the notorious hammer in flight. You may get a little more depth of field at times \u2013 where pulling focus in the past used to suffice \u2013 such as the beer mugs when Thor goes out drinking with Jane\u2019s colleague, Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsg\u00e5rd<\/a>), but it would have been thrilling to see more of the technology at play in the fantasy realm battle scenes, especially with Asgard\u2019s impressive \u2018Rainbow Bridge\u2019, Bifrost moments.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t help but feel like Branagh and co have merely created an teaser for the suggested sequel with this film, where all the characters are introduced, but without cooking up too much of a storm. However, Thor 2<\/em> would certainly be welcome. And do stay until the end of the credits for news of The Avengers<\/a> <\/em>(out 2012), too. There\u2019s definitely more Thor-someness and superhero team playing to come.<\/p>\n

3\/5 stars<\/strong><\/p>\n

By @FilmGazer<\/p>\n

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In a time of Norse folklore, where men were men and roared with pride, comes a larger-than-life and humour-rich take on the Marvel comic adventure Thor that doesn\u2019t forget the personal angle in the midst of all its splendid grandeur. This thumping-good-fun romp has a true hero at its heart to cheer on, opting for … <\/p>\n

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