Thor
Okay, the first movie that I saw from the previous post was Thor, Marvels newest superhero movie. While this can be seen as nothing more than a hype generator for the upcoming Avengers movie (spot the cameo for evidence of this) it does also bring some much needed credibility to the torrent of superhero movies that have been released. Firstly it tells a good story, I went into this movie as a Thor layman, I knew nothing of the universe or the characters in it, and coming out of it I felt like I knew the basis for the comic book series and Thor he will fit into the avengers. Secondly I would like to state that Chris Hemsworth was very convincing as both the arrogant prince and the humble protector. The third good part of the film is some of the excellent cinematography, especially in the opening sequences, and a particularly excellent shot of Asgard upside down, the cinematography leads on to the praise that Kenneth Brannagh deserves with his directorial style. The film is well shot and most of the action is easy to watch and you can see whats happening, mostly.
So far all I've done is praise this film, and I would like it noted that there is more good points about this movie, but I am doing this from memory (having seen it over a month ago at time of writing, but due to uni responsibilities have been unable to write), for example Natalie portman is good in it, as is stellan starsgard but the finer details of their performances have been lost to memory so you will have to bare with me. Now to what your reading for, and what is much more prominent in my mind, the bad, the ugly, the crappy of this film. The list isn't huge but the issues are very large.
Now the main problem people have mentioned and I will give only a token appearance in my review, is the love sub-plot, the budding romance between Thor and Natalie portmans Jane foster, it is supposed to show Thors development and how he comes to realise how much of a douche he was, but what actually happens on screen is nothing more than a few car accidents (after which not a single lawyer appeared trying to claim compensation and I'm sorry but my disbelief does not stretch that far) a nice cup of coffee, and some star gazing. All of which happens over two or three days. After which Thor is a new man, who loves an earth girl who loves him back. Now the problem here is obvious, they shouldn't love each other, and their actions together shouldn't have caused such a drastic change in Thor's character.
Onto the more pressing issues, for one Loki's character is truly impenetrable, he has both no motivation and too much, there is a sub-plot of how he is a frost giant which goes nowhere, and if you can't call him as the villain within two seconds of him being on screen then you weren't paying enough attention so go back and watch the film again. The problem with his motivation is that he seems to want his dad, Odin, played wonderfully by Anthony Hopkins, to respect and love him like he loves Thor. To do this he acts just like Thor acted, which resulted in Thors banishment to earth and the loss of his power, this utterly retarded thinking would only lead to Loki being punished as Thor was. If he truly wanted to gain his fathers respect and love all he would have to do is to be a person worth respecting, by acting with patience and prudence, considering all possible solutions to a problem before choosing how to proceed. Instead of theses simple steps we get presented with convoluted plot twists and character reveals which don't add anything new to the plot and simply stagnate it with unnecessary elements.
Furthering the films descent into mediocrity is the sheer levels of camp. Any scene with "the warriors three", Thor's groupies, is just annoying and as with Loki do not add anything, I guess it was supposed to show how Thor has helped people become stronger and created a more accepting society, as was hinted at with a conversation with the female groupie, but it comes across as cheap comic relief and way to shoe horn some more action in. The three are so predictable in what they do, say, eat, breath, wear, fight and pass wind that by the third time you see them all you hope for is that the next scene will show their brutal bloody destruction. Any scene with them in simply slows down the film as they all question Odin's decision to banish Thor, which highlights a severe problem with the three of them as characters, when watching the film you will strongly dislike Thor in the first act, that's the point of it. When Odin makes his decision you will agree with him, we all know that if Thor wants to be king he has to learn some humility. With Thors groupies questioning this decision we learn that Thor has pretty much created a terrorist cell, a small group of people who wish to break royal decree, and are just as arrogant as Thor was for thinking so. In essence all they do is extend the reach of Thors poorer qualities, while interesting philosophically and socially they do not make great cinema, and are just peripheral fan service.
Thors change, and had nailed down what exactly it was Loki wanted and why. It is also important to remember that when this film does something well it does it very well, the acting is solid, and the special effects are amazing, I can't comment on the 3D as I saw it in 2D, but from what I've heard it is terrible. I would recommend this film, but wold content its glittering reviews, it is entertaining and it didn't suck, but that does not mean it was incredible, and from other reviews I have read they are all calling it one of the best ever superhero movies ever made, which it just isn't, the Iron man series are better and more entertaining. A final point, is that Thor seems infinitely powerful, so powerful in fact that he makes the rest of the Avengers look like ants, which makes me question why S.H.I.E.L.D. need anyone else when Thor signs up.
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