Spoiler Comics Book Reviews: TALK BACK: Thor: The Mighty Avenger

Posted on May 6, 2011 by Robot Overlord

For those of us in the United States of America, Thor arrives in theaters.

The powerful but arrogant warrior Thor is cast out of the fantastic realm of Asgard and sent to live amongst humans on Earth, where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.

Did you go and see it? What did you think? Was it the best thing Kenneth Branagh’s made since Henry V, or did it tank?

GO!

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Ivdar says:May 6, 2011 at 12:09 pm

Saw it and loved it. For me it’s on par with Iron Man as a superhero adaptation.

Branagh did a great job with the pace, striking just the right balance between drama, action and humor. The action scenes weren’t really spectacular, but they punctuated the plot nicely.

The story’s heart really is the character development, with all the actors doing a great job. The family drama in Asgard was especially well handled, with nuanced performances from Hemsworth, Hopkins and Hiddleston. Great supporting cast as well.

The build-up to the Avengers is a little invasive, but nothing that really ruins the movie. The real kicker, though, is the incredible world-building and visual prowess of Asgard and the nine realms. It really succeeds in creating a stunning universe with a cosmic scale. There’s a definite Kirby feel to it that warms the heart of the comic book fan.

In short it was fun, well-paced with great characters and visuals. Everything a superhero movie should be.

tsfogg says:May 6, 2011 at 1:09 pm

It was the superhero movie I was the most reluctant about, but it turned out to be an absolute blast. One part myth, one part action blockbuster. It took the best of the 616 and Ultimate universes and combined them into the best (and maybe the most accessible) Marvel movie since the first Iron Man. I’d recommend it to anyone.

Michael says:May 6, 2011 at 4:03 pm

I saw it.

I really enjoyed it. It had a very epic feel to it.

I liked how Asgard was colorful, like in the comics, but the colors were kind of muted down a tad. Enjoyed the cameo. Enjoyed the after-credit scene. Enjoyed the performances by all concerned.

peter says:May 6, 2011 at 5:13 pm

I saw it today as well.

the story was good, the dialogue was funny, the actionscenes weren’t to long, and the movie had a good feel about it.

but the acting was a bit on the weak side and the 3D made it look a bit to cartoony/ detached for my taste. The movie would be better in 2d.

ps: if you can read dutch, there is a review/ opinion about thor on my blog.

Rod says:May 6, 2011 at 5:33 pm

Saw it today in normal format, not 3D.

Good script, especially for an origin story introducing many to a character if the viewer is not a comic fan would be lost to just exactly who is the Marvel version of Thor. Good character development for all in the film, especially the main two of Thor and Loki. Nice balance between comedy and drama.

The action was alright, though I felt the Niffelem sequence suffered from the dull gray coloring and poor lighting of the world’s setting. Made it hard to follow some of the action in a dark theatre.

*spoilers*

The cameo of Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye, was done very well. Just enough to want fans wanting more in “The Avengers”.

The part where Thor just lays Mjolnir on Loki’s chest to keep him pinned in place was classic.

The final bit after the credits where Loki shows up, leading to the idea he will have a part in “The Avengers” makes me want next year to hurry up and get here!

Ced says:May 6, 2011 at 7:24 pm

Saw it. Also liked it. Asgard was nice. The rainbow bridge was really great. Sif could had a better costume. Thor work well as a character.

Tim Plummer says:May 7, 2011 at 3:09 am

Saw it this evening. Just got back. The movie was TERRIBLE. It is one of the worst movies I have ever seen. This was the first time I have ever witnessed people boo at the end of a movie.

The most entertaining part of the movie happens in the first 15 minutes. It’s the only decent brawl scene in the whole flick.

Not being a fan/familiar with the source, as a movie, everything about it was weak. The bad guy wasn’t bad enough, the action wasn’t actiony enough and after seeing Black Swan, I’ve got some pretty weird expectations for Natale Portman but I can’t really get into that anymore because she is now someone’s mother and I don’t wanna be a creep.

It had some cute little gags, but over all, it had no direction. What’s worse is, it felt like a really lame copy of the first Ironman movie. Where it starts out with an event, the story cuts back and explains the circumstances leading to the event, the protagonist acts heroic for a little while but sees the error of his ways and changes his life, baddabing-baddaboom you got yourself a hero.

My biggest problem was with his redemption. Spoiler, whatever, but he was banished because he did not value life/peace. The ambiguity is, did he volunteer to get bitch slapped by the tin-man because he now values life and wants to save his friends or because he can’t stand the idea of being a mortal and figures this is a way out? Right before this fight, he’s all pissed because Odin’s not really dead and Loki betrayed him. The idea that giving up and dying while putting the Universe at risk of utter chaos just to save 7 people TOTALLY makes the case for you to be a super hero. “Ah well, guess I’ll just pass on banging Natalie Portman and die instead.”

Which brings me to my next point, when the hell was it announced that they were going to hookup? I mean, sleeping with Padme should be the prime directive here but it just comes out of no where. Their romance isn’t developed at all. There’s no daring rescue, no bonding over some common dream or aspiration, she’s just got the hots for some buff alien. He got her a book, was that it? Seriously, if that’s all it takes to get in with her, I’ve got a stack of old National Geographics that I’m pretty sure I could get to second base on.

Over all, see if your local cinema will pro-rate your admission, watch the first 20 minutes, take a nap for about 40, and then watch the rest of the flick. Then maybe you’ll think it’s ok.

Damascus says:May 7, 2011 at 9:08 am

I saw the movie yesterday, and I really liked it. It’s not the best superhero movie I’ve ever seen and there were a few things I’d have liked to have seen done differently, but they did a pretty good job with what they had to work with.

***SPOILERS***

I didn’t understand why they put Hawkeye into the movie if they weren’t going to have him shoot a single arrow and basically do nothing other than be a 2 minute running commentary on what Thor’s doing. I guess I was just hoping that Loki would allow for the Frost Giants to cross the Bifrost Bridge and enter Midgard and we’d get to see Thor, Sif and the Warrior’s Three along with Hawkeye fighting some giants in better lighting so I could really see what was going on. I didn’t feel like I got much chance to really see what Hogun could do as a fighter either. I liked Fandrall’s portrayal, I knew who he was the moment I saw him, granted he did look like Cary Elwes from the Princess Bride. I’d have liked to see Volstagg be a bit “girthier” but I liked the character for the most part.

Also, where was Balder the Brave? They didn’t have to focus a large portion of the movie to him, but he’s a notable character from the series and I never saw him (or at least didn’t realize I’d seen him). I did like the scene after the credits, it shows that the Cosmic Cube will play some part in the Avengers movie or at least some role in the Captain America movie and Loki’s going to be a threat.

Suffice to say that I was worried about Thor, with it’s high fantasy elements, but I feel like it did an adequate job in what it set out to do. I’m still most worried about Green Lantern due to the high amount of CGI, but we’ll wait and see.

Frantz Niemans says:May 7, 2011 at 12:24 pm

Saw it last week, thought is was good, not iron man good, but good. Thor and Loki were well portrayed, The rest were ok. I think this has got potential.

addicted2aa says:May 7, 2011 at 4:00 pm

Good flick, vastly exceeded my expectations, but it could have been better.

Spoilers
The romance was out of nowhere, and seemed really forced. When Thor goes down, it seemed really odd, his best friends stand around, while some woman he hardly knows runs to him.
On that note, I felt that we should have seen less of the behind the scenes of Asgard. Had we seen more of Thor trying to fit in as a human, and really learning humility, the romance would be alot more believable.
Also I really wanted Loki’s position as the bad guy to be more up for debate. Had we seen less of his meddling, but given hints, it could have led for a face turn during the avengers that I feel would be alot more powerful. I really wanted to see more from him, and while I liked that he was doing it all for Daddy’s love, I think they could have done even more, had we only been exposed to the parts that Thor saw.
The main battle was a bit of a let down, but since the first battle was epic enough, I didn’t really mind.

Asgard was beautiful and somehow the costumes managed to look good and not corny, despite their inherent gaudiness. Hemsworth is a surprisingly decent actor. Portman was actually the weak point for me, but I think that has more to do with the writing than the actress(she didn’t suck either, just not that good)

Overall it’s a good superhero movie on par with Spiderman and IronMan. It’s not Dark Knight good but still worth seeing

KidZoom07 says:May 7, 2011 at 6:47 pm

Loved it. Humor was well done. Romance was more of a believable mutual infatuation and less of a love-at-first-sight deal, which I prefer. Asgard was awesome/beautiful. Bifrost bridge was the bee’s knees.

Although, the fight with the frost giants was smidge too dark. Battle with the destroyer could have been more intricate; there was like one close-up of Thor in the thick of it where he hammers away a laser beam; I wanted to see some blows exchanged, but eehhh whatever.

All in all, a great installment to a shared film universe.

Brian Minto says:May 8, 2011 at 2:38 am

I definitely loved it. I’m curious, has Thor ever in the comics utilized Mjolnir’s worthiness enchantment the way he did with Loki in the movie?

Ced says:May 8, 2011 at 10:36 am

The Destroyer was also perfect. I loved how the flame-plasma-energy rise up from it empty torso.
But the fight could have been more dramatic.

This said I agree that 1) The movie was fun & entertaining and that 2) Some stuff could be reworked.

Russell Catt says:May 8, 2011 at 2:01 pm

On the whole, I thought it was a good movie.
Thor is in a completely different vein from the 616 world. I really enjoyed the duality of the movie. At times it had the high-fantasy mythic vibe going yet it also did a good job of bringing everything down to earth.

I thought the humour parts of the movie felt a little unnecessary, but it certainly doesn’t detract too much.

The highest compliment I can pay a movie is to say that I would go and pay to see it again. Thor does it for me.

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