Thor: The Dark World

Welcome to another episode of Lights....Camera....Popcorn!

Today's review is Thor: The Dark World.

Directed by Alan Taylor.

Written by Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely.

Screen Story by Don Payne & Robert Rodat.

Based on the comic book character created by Stan Lee, Jack Kirby & Larry Leiber.

Review #235

MPAA Rating: Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence, and some suggestive content.

Run Time: 112 min

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Cast

Chris Hemsworth ...Thor

Natalie Portman ...Jane Foster

Tom Hiddleston ...Loki

Anthony Hopkins ...Odin

Christopher Eccleston ...Malekith

Jaimie Alexander ...Sif

Zachary Levi ...Fandral

Ray Stevenson ...Volstagg

Tadanobu Asano ...Hogun

Idris Elba ...Heimdall

Rene Russo ...Frigga

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje ...Algrim / Kurse

Kat Dennings ...Darcy Lewis

Stellan Skarsgård ...Erik Selvig

The first Thor film had a lot on it's plate. It had to continue the story continuity that would eventually lead into The Avengers. More importantly, it had to introduce a character that wasn't well known outside of the geek community. Even tougher, the film had to make it's titular character popular enough so his appearance is The Avengers is met with smiles instead of smirks.

I know that many didn't enjoy what the final product was. I for one enjoyed the film very much. Mostly for the simple fact that it was different. The character is different from the main roster of Marvel heroes. His origin, his back story, his home and villains all come from different places but can be easily intertwined with the rest of Marvel's mythology and characters. This was something that the first film didn't really expand on and that could be reason for some disdain.

Obviously the first film not just set up The Avengers, it set itself up for a sequel. I was excited to see where they would take the Thunder God. Would he remain in Asgard? Would he be stay on Earth or a combination of the two.

The answer helped and hurt the film.

Plot

Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.

First things first. I liked this movie. As sequels go, Thor: The Dark World was good. I do however prefer Thor over this one. Why? Simply because this film did very little to separate itself from it's predecessor. A lot of what happens in this movie is recycled from the first one. Even down to the very beginning. Thor began with Odin's V.O. explaining what we were about to see in the form of a story he was telling Thor and Loki when they were boys. The same thing happens here only this time we are the kids being told the story. I get that some back story is needed to give us a sense of what our heroes will be facing but there are other ways to present that as opposed to giving us the exact same thing the first film gave us.

The next two issues I had go hand in hand so I will combine them. They revolve around Thor's relationship with Odin. In the first film, Thor's arrogance and ego forces Odin to banish him to Earth so he can learn humility and earn the right to rule. This created a disconnect between father and son. Then before credits rolled they patched things up and things seemed hunky dory. Fast forward to this film. Thor and Odin deal with the same issues. It's not exactly the same but at it's core their discord stems from elements we've seen before. Odin is at odds with Thor after a major disagreement over his feelings for Jane. Odin's disapproval forces Thor to defy his father in more ways than one and all I thought as I was watching this was....

Wash....Rinse....Repeat.

This comes to a head later in the film which doesn't help it's case as a true sequel.

Finally, the relationship between Jane and Thor felt more tacked on than legitimate. This could have been a byproduct of the several writers on this project. It's no secret that this script went through several revisions and that's never a good thing. It definitely shows here. At times the story feels disjointed and bare bones. There were clear examples of scenes trimmed either in the writing or in the edit room that give the overall structure weak legs. The time Thor and Jane spend with each other feel like the biggest victim of the countless twists and turns the script went through.

Now it's time to get into what's good about this movie. By far, the best part is Loki. The man almost stole the show in The Avengers and he unquestionably steals it here. His popularity is growing by leaps and bounds and it was clear that the people love this character. So that's what we got. In fact you know right away where the film is going with Loki from the beginning.

VERY VERY minor spoilers.

Loki is being brought to Odin in shackles. Presumably right after The Avengers when he and Thor returned to Asgard with the Tessaract. Loki slowly walks to Odin's throne surrounded by guards waiting to pounce in case he gets out of hand. Odin looks at Loki. Loki looks back at him and delivers one of the best jokes of the film. I'm paraphrasing here but it went something like....

"Honestly, I really don't know what all the fuss is about."

I laughed pretty hard at that joke. It showed Loki's charm and sense of humor which was on full display in The Avengers. It also established Loki as a fearless prisoner. His presence throughout provided a nice break between the poorly constructed romance between Jane and Thor. This was a major flaw in the film. The relationship between the two leads are important but they found a way to make it irrelevant to the story. It felt like a specific situation was written for Jane to get into just so her presence was justified. It didn't make a lot of sense.
Another thing that made little sense was the villain. Primarily his motivation for destroying Asgard. The first film had everything you needed when it came to the villain and his reasons for defiance against the hero. That was paper thin here. Even more of a crime, Malekith didn't inspire any fear or prowess. He spent a lot of the time relying on his underlings to either fight and or die for him. In fact the first time he actually fights Thor he gets his ass kicked. That can't work in a film like this. Thor is a deity. His power though limited is strong enough to vanquish evil doers. You have to give the hero that moment of failure or feeling of despair before he can triumph in the end. That wasn't executed properly here. The first film gave us that nicely. Thor was not only banished to Earth, he lost his ability to wield Mjolnir. This gave him multiple challenges to overcome before regaining his power to save the day.

The setbacks here were much weaker and transparent to accept as commonplace for a Thor film. 

There was one thing that Thor: The Dark World tried to do that worked nicely in spots. The film infused some comedy that screamed of The Avengers. It was clear that the writers of this film (and there were MANY) followed Joss Whedon's blueprint and tossed in some well timed and not so well timed chuckles to break the monotony of action and exposition. It made sense big picture wise since this film is not just setting up the next round of films leading up to The Avengers: Age of Ultron. It's also continuing the continuity that The Avengers started. That being said, the film would have been better served if the script had more weight to the plot and a few less yucks.
The action was pretty standard. Not very exciting or groundbreaking. Disappointing since the opening fights had some impressive set pieces. The finale was pretty lackluster. These are small nitpicks to what was overall a decent film and a suitable sequel. The problem is that the sequel is supposed to advance past the original and if you don't look beyond it's predecessor then a lot of it's power is gone. Thor: The Dark World unfortunately suffers from this typical side effect of sequels.

On the 5 star scale. Thor: The Dark World gets 3.5 stars with a "Go See It" recommendation.

That's a wrap for today.

Until Next Episode...."I'll Save You A Seat!"

"D"