A Look Back #11: Thor

A Look Back #11:

'A Look Back' is a place where 'Movie Freak 77' reviews old movies, that considers them one of best or successful movies.

Review: Thor

Official 'Thor' Poster.

      The movie that further cemented Marvel Studio's position and opened the alien world to their cinematic world, 'Thor' is the one that further expanded Marvel's cinematic universe.

"Chris Hemsworth".

"Natalie Portman".

      After 'Thor'(Chris Hemsworth), son of the king of 'Asgard' 'Odin'(Anthony Hopkins), foolishly attacks the home of the 'Frost Giants', who are lead by 'Laufey'(Colm Feore). This attack destroys the fragile truce that has been present between these two realms. Seeing the recklessness and naivety of 'Thor' angers his father 'Odin', who strips him of his power and banishes him from 'Asgard', along with his hammer 'Mjolnir'. His banishment would be to be exiled to Earth as a mortal to learn what it means to be self-less and worthy of his powers and the throne. But his banishment leads S.H.I.E.L.D's attention to the hammer, while back at 'Asgard', 'Thor''s jealous and mischief brother 'Loki'(Tom Hiddleston) is up to no good. On Earth, he will meet astrophysicist Dr. 'Jane Foster'(Natalie Portman), who has been waiting all her life to try and figure out the world beyond our comprehension. Other major characters include 'Jane''s co-scientist Dr. 'Erik Selvig'(Stellan Skarsgard), guardians of the realms 'Heimdall'(Idris Elba), 'Jane' and 'Erik''s goofy assistant 'Darcy Lewis'(Kat Dennings), 'Thor''s mother 'Frigga'(Rene Russo) and 'Thor''s comrades: 'Volstagg'(Ray Stevenson), 'Hogun'(Tadanobu Asano), 'Sif'(Jaimie Alexander) and 'Fandral'(Joshua Dallas). We also have S.H.I.E.L.D agent 'Phil Coulson'(Clark Gregg), and cameo appearances by 'Nick Fury'(Samuel L. Jackson) and agent 'Clint Barton'(Jeremy Renner).

"Tom Hiddleston".

"Stellan Skarsgard" and
"Kat Dennings".

      At the time before the release of the movie Marvel Studio has already released 'Iron Man', 'Iron Man 2' and 'The Incredible Hulk'. With the success of 'Iron Man' and with the decision to mainly use 'Iron Man 2' as a movie that further expands the cinematic universe. The announcement of 'Thor' has been announced right at the time 'Iron Man 2' was going to be made, a movie that hinted of a potential 'Avengers' team up. But the making of 'Thor' would come with its complications: opening the alien universe to the audiences, making it relevant to the cinematic world they are building and whether the audiences will be able to understand it. But at the time little did we know the bigger picture that Marvel Studio has set in motion and the stupendously precise execution of the plan. What is very much enjoyable about 'Thor' is its ability to provide us with a standalone movie that is able to present us with its own story about the titular character and his development, while at the same time subtlety linking it with the larger idea and chain of events that will eventually open up to the future movies that Marvel was planning to do.

"Idris Elba".

"Anthony Hopkins".

      Director "Kenneth Branagh", known for his work "William Shakespear"'s movie adaptations such as 'Henry V(1989)' and 'Hamlet(1996)', was surprisingly a very adequate fit to launch this part of the universe to the world. The way he built the world of 'Asgard' was astonishing, in terms of culture, architecture and costumes. Still elements from what is brought usually to an indie or small budget movie could be felt which at times lessened the grand scale of such movies. The screenplay was a mixed bag, where it managed to subtlety build the pieces of the universe and develop the titular character arc in a good way, many other elements and characters were left aside and not given the time to grow or much to do really. It was penned by "Ashley Edward Miller", "Zack Stentz"(both wrote the screenplay of 'X-Men: First Class') and "Don Payne"('Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer'). The music was a major part also to highlight the different feelings that are brought forward in the movie and built the alien world that we were introduced to. This was all thanks to the "Patrick Doyle", who has at numerous times collaborated with "Kenneth" on many of his movies such as 'Sense and Sensibility(1995)'.

"Tadanobu Asano", "Josua Dallas"
and "Ray Stevenson".

"Jaimie Alexander".

      The opening movie does grab the attention of the viewers bringing the alien mystery that this movie is prone to explain for audiences later on. The first part of the movie is heavy in terms of 'Asgard' explanation and setting up what is about to unfold in the movie as well as the status quo of each and every character. After 'Thor' is sent to Earth, the movie manages to move at a smooth pace, which was meant as a way to slow down on the action to allow the characters to develop and reach the next stage of their growth within the narrative. The action in this movie was entertaining, yet not groundbreaking or innovative, with the exception of the opening battle sequence which was the scene that really shined amongst the others. The interaction scenes were pretty enjoyable having their share of depth, while also having the right comedic timing, which Marvel's movies are known to have. The special effects and set designs were impressive, yet at times uneven in terms of refinement. The ending battle had its fresh new ideas yet had the element of predictability of some sorts. At the end the movie did manage to set in motion 'Marvel's The Avengers', while also allowing potential 'Thor' sequels to have much ideas to get from.

      Newcomer "Chris Hemsworth" was a match made in heaven for the character of 'Thor'(especially with his looks), brilliantly allowing the character to flourish in a very interesting and believable manner. "Natalie Portman" is one of those characters who weren’t really given much to do, yet manage to somehow pull it off. Maybe this was thanks to the great and obvious chemistry that both she and "Chris" had onscreen. "Tom Hiddleston" gave a breakthrough performance giving us a very fresh take of a villain. And his character would later become a step stone of this cinematic universe. "Anthony Hopkins" fits the majestic and grandness of the character he portrayed, while "Idris Elba" also gives a great performance seeing the limited time and stuff he was given with one of the audience's favorite character. "Stellan Skarsgard" carried out interestingly his character, while "Kat Dennings", who was given the role of comedic relief was a joy to watch. "Ray Stevenson" portray his bulky and fun character in an entertaining way, "Jaimie Alexander" totally fits as the courageous lady warrior, while "Joshua Dallas" and "Tadanobu Asano" achieve the limited responsibility their characters are given. Which will later seem as customary in 'Thor' movies, the evil characters are given limited to null development as they only serve as tools to advance the story forward. "Rene Russo"'s involvement unfortunately was limited. "Clark Gregg" performs as usual the link between all films, while the cameo appearances by "Samuel L. Jackson" and "Jeremy Renner" as their respective characters served their purpose.

      'Thor' showed that Marvel Studios is able to successfully expand its universe. It also was a defining moment that played a major role while at the same time being a stand-alone movie.

Official 'Thor' Poster.

-'Thor' Info:

-Release Date: May 6, 2011.

-Based on: 'Thor' by Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby.

-Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Idris Elba, Stellan Skarsgard, Kat Dennings, Ray Stevenson, Jaimie Alexander, Joshua Dallas, Tadanobu Asano, Colm Feore, Rene Russo and Clark Gregg.

-Studio(s): Paramount Pictures and Marvel Studios.

-Directed by: Kenneth Branagh.

-Screenplay by: Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz and Don Payne.

-Music by: Patrick Doyle.

-Running Time: 114 minutes.

-Budget: $ 150,000,000.

-Box Office: -Domestic(US): $ 181,030,624.

                   -Foreign: $ 268,295,994.

-Ratings: -IMdb: 7.0/10.

              -Rotten Tomatoes: 77%.

              -Metacritic: 57%.

              -PERSONAL RATING: 8.2/10.

-'Thor' Trailer: