Thor (2011)
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Natalie Portman, and Tom Hiddleston
115 minutes
rated PG-13

I’ll go ahead and admit at the outset here that I’ve never read a Thor comic book, or even a full comic book  of any hero variety. A blasphemy of sorts, perhaps, but I’m ok with that. But I still appreciate a good comic book hero movie, and the latest installment in the Marvel movie franchise did not disappoint.

The movie Thor features a godly character of Viking descent – based on a mixture of Norse mythology and Marvel comic book lore. In the movie, the Mighty Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth, is the son of the “all-father” Odin, played by Sir Anthony Hopkins, and older brother to Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston. Just as Thor is about to be crowned King of the mythical realm of Asgard, the Frost Giants break in to Asgard and attempt to steal a powerful relic. Ever the warrior, Thor counsels his father to make swift and violent retribution against the Frost Giants, which would no doubt lead to all-out war. Recognizing his son’s arrogance and pride, Odin calls him a “vain, greedy, cruel boy”, and banishes Thor to Earth without his god-like powers, most significantly without the ability to wield his iconic war hammer Mjollnir. Once on Earth, Thor must learn the humility and wisdom required to be a great ruler, in order to earn back his godly powers and access to Asgard. Along the way he apparently also “learns” the ability to fall in love – with astro-scientist Jane Foster, played by Natalie Portman.

This movie was complete eye-candy – I almost wished the Asgard scenes had run in slo-mo so I could take in all the details. The special effects were flawless – from the epic battle scenes in Jötunheim (the frost giant world), to traveling via the Bifrost Bridge portal, to Loki’s cloning powers, to the Earthly battle scene with the Destroyer – all just awesome. This is a film that is definitely worth seeing in the theater to get the full effect of the big screen – even worth splurging the extra few bucks to see it in IMAX 3D (which we did – Happy Mother’s Day to me!)

I thought Chris Hemsworth did a fine job with the role – he was convincing as an arrogant Viking lord in the first half of the movie. I laughed out loud when he enthusiastically smashed the coffee mug on the floor of the diner.  He obviously enjoyed the role and (ahem) filled it out nicely. OK – so I’d have to agree with the Kat Dennings’ character’s comment: “You know, for a crazy homeless person… he’s pretty cut.” And also like her, I wouldn’t mind giving him mouth-to-mouth. Hemsworth clearly added to the “eye-candy” appeal of the movie. But aside from that, he portrayed the mythical journey of a hero accurately and believably.

I can’t entirely say the same of Portman’s character – but I think that was more a matter of the actual character, than the acting. The acting was fine – the character seemed slapped into the story for the sake of having a love interest, and a reason to want to come back to Earth. If I wanted to look hard enough at the movie to find something to critique, that would be it, but that aspect didn’t take away anything from my enjoyment of the film.

Major fan-boy points of interest in the movie – S.H.I.E.L.D makes a significant appearance, with Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, and Clark Gregg renewing his role as Agent Phil Coulson. We previously “met” Agent Coulson in the Iron Man movies, and we’ll see him again in the currently-filming Avengers (due out next year, directed by Joss Whedon), and the yet-to-start-filming movie Nick Fury. The Thor movie also references characters Tony Stark and Bruce Banner, and includes the traditional cameo by Marvel creator Stan Lee. There were probably other fan-boy nods in the movie, but I was so wrapped up in the experience, I didn’t remember to ask my comic-geek husband about them.

According to IMDB.com, director Kenneth Branagh saw this film as “a Norse/comic-book twist on William Shakespeare’s ‘Henry V’, which was about a young king who underwent trials and tribulations: fighting a war, courting a girl from another land, and basic character development.” I’m curious how far Branagh’s interpretation strayed from mythos.  I do remember wondering about the accuracy of the Norse mythology – I didn’t remember Thor being Loki’s brother, for example. This movie made me want to read up on the lineage and stories – as a quarter-Swede, I should probably be more well-versed in the lore.

Since I’ve been writing for GeekCrafts, I’ve found myself watching for craft-able moments in the geek world around me. Thor was so action-packed that my first viewing didn’t yield much. I did notice that Dennings wore a knit hat for several scenes, and the heroic costumes in Asgard would make some epic cosplay. I think I’ll have to go back for another viewing or two to gather more ideas. All in the name of crafty research, of course!

In summary, I encourage you to make a point to see Thor. It’s a good adventure of a movie with pretty special effects and exciting fight scenes. The fan-boy/girl in you will not be disappointed. Be sure to stay after the credits for some added comic-book geek joy. For more comic joy, read the Thor trivia at IMDB.

A side geek-note – Stellan Skarsgård played Erik Selvig in the movie. In real life, Stellan is the father of Alexander Skarsgård, who plays Eric Northman the Viking vampire in HBO’s True Blood.  Further geek-note: according to IMDB, Alexander even auditioned for the role of Thor.

Geeky links of interest:

• Thor entry on IMDB
• Crafting Valhalla on GeekCrafts
• Comics category on GeekCrafts