Face-Off: Thor vs. Thor: The Dark World

Chris Hemsworth as Thor
Tom Hiddleston as Loki
Natalie Portman as Jane
Anthony Hopkins as Odin
Rene Russo as Frigga
Idris Elba as Heimdall
Stellan Skarsgard as Erik Selvig
Kat Dennings as Darcy Lewis
Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson
Jaimie Alexander as Lady Sif
Colm Feore as Laufey
Ray Stevenson as Volstagg
Josh Dallas as Fandrall
Tadanobu Asano as Hogun

Unlike a lot of the names attached to various MCU projects, Hemsworth was a true unknown to mainstream audiences, outside of Australia, of course. Having only been seen in a brief role in 2009’s STAR TREK, the actor had a lot of work ahead of him if he was to truly sell himself as the almighty god of thunder. Fortunately, it didn’t really look like work for him at all. Thor may be a bit of a brute, but Hemsworth plays him with undeniable charm and likeability. He swings a hammer like he was born holding a small one in his newborn baby hands, grinning in abject delight bashing the likes of frost giants and metal, statue being. Action aside, he was able to hit home the dramatic bits as well. Granted, this was very entry-level Thor, as we see him at his most roguish and ripe for molding into the hero he needed to become. On that note, it would’ve been easy for Thor to come off as unlikeable, but Hemsworth wears the golden locks well and had a blast (of thunder!) playing the exiled prince with aplomb, cementing his status as a Marvel god.

Branagh was a natural fit to take on the movie given his skill at working with actors and his career performing and directing Shakespeare plays and movies. In order to do that right, it requires sensibilities needed for crafting good drama, especially family drama as in THOR. It is because of how well Branagh crafted the relationships and how intimately he shot his characters that makes THOR a standout from other Marvel movies. There is a spectacle for sure, but the character work and performances are the major reason why it works. Branagh does a solid job at directing action, even if the scenes are some of the weakest in the franchise. But, the aim was to keep the action centered on the characters and not in the chaos, so for that their smaller scales can be somewhat forgiven

After proving himself unworthy to hold the title of King of Asgard, the God of Thunder, Thor, is cast out by his father Odin and forced to live in a quaint New Mexico town where their pride and glory is a single 7-Eleven. Down in the dirt and barren plains Thor must find himself and learn what it means to be humble, while his brother Loki acts on other plans to seize the throne for himself. Can Thor learn to love someone other than himself in time to stop Loki, or should he begin to look for work at the 7-Eleven?

Out of all the MCU movies before and after THOR, this movie remains the most simple. Like, it’s the simple of the simple. I believe the kids say “Vanilla.” This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The script by Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz and Don Payne whittled the story down to its bare bones, focusing completely on the drama between the characters. The movie is very theatrical in this sense. There are some great exchanges, particularly between Odin and his two sons, as well as some notable funny bits. Where the script falters, and unearths the movie’s biggest flaw, is that in an effort to focus on the drama between the characters there is very little personality given to them. Sure, they have their surface qualities: Odin is wise; Loki is jaded and conniving; Thor is arrogant, then later humbled. But they don’t get opportunities to really express themselves through dialogue. This doesn’t apply so much to Loki, but Thor only gets one moment to truly confess what he’s feeling inside (at the bar with Erik). He and many of the other characters’ personalities and complexities are very entry-level here, and Marvel probably hoped to explore them more in the sequel…

First Contact

Asgardians vs. Frost Giants

The Relic Room

Thor, Champion of Asgard

Crowning Ceremony Interrupted

Anger! Table!

Heading For Jotunheim

Fighting the Frost Giants

Loki the Frost Giant?

Through the Mouth of the Beast

Thor and Odin

Odin: “You are a vain, greedy, cruel boy!”

Thor: “And you are an old man and a fool!”

Odin: “Thor Odinson… you have betrayed the express command of your king. Through your arrogance and stupidity, you’ve opened these peaceful realms and innocent lives to the horror and desolation of war! You are unworthy of these realms, you’re unworthy of your title, you’re unworthy… of the loved ones you have betrayed! I now take from you your power! In the name of my father and his father before, I, Odin Allfather, cast you out!”

Thor Cast Out

Odin: “Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor.”

Thor awakens

Thor: “You dare threaten Thor with such a puny weapon…?”

Tasered-Face

The Mighty Thor vs. The Hospital Staff

Finding the Hammer

Crashing Into Thor, Again

Hammer Party

Stan Lee: “Did it work?”

The Glorious Shirtless Scene/Donald Blake reference

Thor: “This mortal form has grown weak. I need sustinance!”

Loki Confesses

Odin Comes Clean

Thor: “ANOTHER!”

S.H.I.E.L.D. Intervention

Thor: “I need a horse!”

Pet Store Clerk: “We don’t have horses. Just dogs, cats, birds.”

Thor: “Then give me one of those large enough to ride.”

King Loki

Jane and Thor Have a Moment

Thor Breaks Into S.H.I.E.L.D. Area

Enter Hawkeye

Thor: “You’re big; fought bigger.”

Unworthy

Thor Interrogation/Loki’s Lie

Thor and Erik Have a Moment/Drinking Contest

Loki Cuts a Deal

Thor and Jane on the Roof

Lady Sif and the Warriors Three arrive to Earth

Popsicle Heimdall

Enter the Destroyer

Agent Cale: “Is that one of Stark’s?”

Agent Coulson:” I don’t know. Guy never tells me anything.”

Fighting the Destroyer

Thor’s Sacrifice

The God of Thunder Returns

Thor to Coulson: “Know this, son of Coul…”

Return to Asgard

Loki Kills Laufey

Thor Confronts Loki

Loki to Thor: “I never wanted the throne, I only ever wanted to be your equal!”

Thor vs. Loki

Destruction of the Bridge

Loki: “I could have done it, Father! I could have done it! For you! For all of us!”

Odin: No, Loki.

Loki Lets Go

Say what you will about Marvel music, but when it comes to the THOR movies, the soundtracks are better than most of their counterparts. This is because THOR lends itself to a more regal sound than other Marvel movies, as well as something more cosmic (other than GUARDIANS, that is). Patrick Doyle was able to use that playground to create some marvelous, epic themes to sprinkle throughout THOR. These are heard in the beginning, during big fights, and then through the credits. Scenes in between don’t have as great a musical pairing, with most of the scoring sounding rather generic, but the bigger pieces from Doyle’s score set the groundwork for sounds you can hear even in THOR: RAGNAROK.

Clearly, Marvel Studios didn’t have the financial backing behind it like the sequel did post AVENGERS, and nothing from the costumes to Asgard have the level of detail they would in later films. But there are some good visual effects, from the planet Jotunheim, the Bifrost and the Thor/hammer action. Much of the movie takes place in New Mexico and looks like pretty unspectacular. At least the Destroyer distracted from all the dirt and tumbleweeds for a few minutes.

Though movies like GUARDIANS and DOCTOR STRANGE have expanded on the cosmic and supernatural realms, THOR was the first to show that the MCU extended beyond our planet. This may not have been a shock to comic fans, but it proved to casual viewers that the Marvel movies extended far beyond Iron Man’s cute toys. There’s also more that could fit into this category that will be discussed in “Character Dynamics.”

Loki is arguably the best villain the MCU has given us and that’s because, unlike other villains, he’s given a rich backstory, an emotional link to our title hero, and a “love to hate” personality. He’s given time to evolve in THOR so you understand his motivations, and he becomes a very tragic figure by the end of the film. He practically steals the show, even though he lacks here much of what makes him so watchable in future films. He’s not near as charming or awesomely despicable and spends much of the movie is quite morose. Aside from one or two scenes he basically has the same expression on his face the whole time. The Loki we know and love wasn’t quite there yet in THOR, but all his motivations and animosities certainly are, and those are truly the foundations of who he is.

Like I said, the personalities of the major THOR characters weren’t quite fleshed out yet, but the script and Branagh put as much effort as they could into illustrating the inner-workings of the character dynamics. Loki gets the best character moments, wearing his emotions on his sleeve when he confronts Thor and Odin. Much of THOR, THE AVENGERS, and TDW explores the conflicted relationship between Thor and Loki, and this first movie sets that up well. As for other dynamics, Hemsworth and Portman have a sweet chemistry, and I wish that romance was explored better in the sequel and other movies. Oh well. Thor is too handsome for any mortal woman anyway.

Golden Schmoes:

Best Special Effects (nominated)

Praise

Rotten Tomatoes: 77% (Audience Score: 76%)

IMDB: 7.0

Metacritic: 57 (User Score: 7.1)

Money:

$181 million domestic ($449 million global)