Thor (2011) Mini-Review — The Analytic Critic
How can you possibly transfer Marvel’s cheesiest superhero to the silver screen without it being a disaster? By losing the helmet and crafting a boring romance story, that’s how. I kid. Kind of. Thor is far from an awful MCU film, but it’s more in touch with reality than it should be for a fantasy property. Let’s take a look.
WRITING:
Thor, Son of Odin, is next in line to become King of Asgard, though his rash actions cause him to declare war on Jotunheim, realm of the Frost Giants. He is banished and sent to earth without his powers, where he comes across astrophysicist Jane Foster. She’s been searching for answers to scientific anomalies that Thor might be able to help her with. So the pair work together to get Thor back to Asgard, where he must confront the true mastermind of Asgard’s plight — a traitor.
Yes, Thor’s exactly what it sounds like: a fish-out-of-water story that’s been done to death. A child trying to prove his worth as king, too many characters to keep track of or to care about, a traitor, and unexpected help from an unlikely source… Thor certainly earns no points for originality.
It also fails in its attempts at humour because it primarily utilizes fish-out-of-water tropes that I’ve seen countless times before. That and its earth characters are outright irritating and pointless. Thor is at its best when it focuses on Asgard. But by trying to also illustrate how out of place Thor is on earth, the film begins to falter. In short, the script is a mess.
Honestly, there are far worse films you could watch than Thor. But there are also far better.
CAST:
Thankfully, the cast largely makes up for Thor’s shortcomings with the characters and plot. Let’s start with the bad ones. Kat Dennings is a horrible actress playing an almost as annoying character. It’s not hard to see how she really got the role based on her looks.
Then there’s Natalie Portman and Stellan Skarsgård. I consider both to be great actors depending on the material, though neither proves worthy in these ‘geek culture’ roles. There’s just too little interest in the material.
Similarly, Irdis Elba and Anthony Hopkins are brilliant actors, though neither is given the character development or screentime they deserve. Hell, Hopkins is literally asleep for half of the movie!
Finally, we come to Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Tom Hiddleston as Loki. There’s a certain charisma that both actors are able to employ here, and a vitality that makes Thor kind of fun to watch. Of course, Hiddleston is the one who steals the show… for now.
PRODUCTION:
I really like several of the production elements of Thor. It’s sometimes visually impressive to behold: the set design, the lighting, and the special effects all look beautiful. The sound is crisp and well-balanced. Everything seems to fit together organically.
However, the costumes aren’t the greatest, particularly because they’re quite silly and cheesy-looking. And the music is largely underwhelming; it just doesn’t stand out compared to the other elements of production.
SUMMARY:
If it seems like I rushed through this review, it’s because I did; there’s just very little of note in this film. Honestly, there are far worse films you could watch than Thor. But there are also far better. Thor has very little new or interesting content to offer fans of Marvel or Disney. Of course, I can think of worst ways to spend your time, I guess.
Thor gets a 5 out of 10.
