Many agree that in terms of Marvel’s “Cinematic Universe,” Thor was one of the weaker initial entries. It was not as action packed or intriguing as the likes of Iron Man, or Captain America: The First Avenger, and most people think it exists for the sake of establishing Thor and Loki for The Avengers. I don’t see it completely that way because it taught Thor humility, and it got us some good looks at Thor’s home of Asgard. This time Thor gets a second chance to swing his lightning-powered hammer, but is his movie good, or is Thor a bore?
The plot takes place after the first movie, The Avengers. Loki has now been imprisoned in an Asgardian jail, while Thor helps defend other realms. Despite things going pretty well, Thor still misses his girlfriend on earth, Jane Foster. While researching in London, Jane comes across an unknown substance called Aether. Thor takes her to Asgard and discovers that this substance will result in the awakening of the Dark Elves, led by Malekith. An event called the Convergence is coming, and Malekith wants to use the power of the Aether to destroy the universe. To defeat him, Thor must rely on not only his Asgardian and Earthly friends, but also his deceitful brother, Loki.
It’s great to see Thor’s character behave differently. Thor is not the arrogant barbarian he was in the first movie and The Avengers. He is now wiser and tries to think more strategically to defeat this new foe, unlike his father, who is blinded by rage by Malekith’s actions. Thor has become willing to risk everything to accomplish the task, whether it be his reputation, right to the throne, or life. The film also does a great job of letting the audience see more of Asgard and the other realms present in Thor’s universe. It was something I felt lacking in the first film, so I’m glad they improved this aspect.
There was also more development within Thor’s family in the sequel. His mother hardly had lines in the first movie, and now we see how she treats Thor and Loki and what she means to them. Thor and Loki’s interactions were probably the film’s best parts. Tom Hiddleston received a lot of praise as Loki in the first two films, and he certainly knew what to give the audience with Loki’s sense of humor and insanity. The film’s attempt to make Loki more of an antihero worked very well as the audience is unsure if Loki will keep to his word or not.
The film is also entertaining with the special effects. The visuals for Asgard are gorgeous and part of the reason I like the Asgard scenes. The film also has some pretty comedic scenes. There are some good quick gags at some parts.
The film, unfortunately, does contain flaws that keep it from being the best Marvel movie. One of the main problems is with the antagonist, Malekith. With the exception of Loki, villains have been the primary complaint regarding the Marvel movies, whether their screen time is too short, there are not enough fight scenes, or the payoff isn’t good enough. Malekith is just plain forgettable. He doesn’t seem to have much motivation for destroying the world, or an interesting backstory. I get the feeling they were trying to make this guy the actions-speak-louder-than-words sort of villain, but Thor’s gone toe to toe with Frost Giants, the Destroyer, his brother, Iron Man, and the Hulk, so what’s special about this guy if all he’s going to do is punch Thor in his pretty blond head?
There were also parts where the comedy felt forced, and I groaned whenever I saw Kat Dennings or Stellan Skarsgard on screen. While the special effects were great, the fight scenes weren’t anything mind blowing. Though the first film had few fights, they were at least memorable by having Thor conjure up a tornado or fight Loki on the rainbow bridge. Most of the locations that the fights took place weren’t anything special excluding the Asgard places in the first half, nor are there any techniques used to show full spectrum of Thor’s power. These contributing elements can make it forgettable. Iron Man 3 had people talking, whether in a good or bad way. This isn’t exactly going to get people to rush to the theatre.
Thor: The Dark World is a good sequel to it’s predecessor, thanks to it’s character development in Thor and Loki, but it’s unmemorable villain, forced comedy, and uncreative fight scenes keep it from its true potential. Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston are what make this film an entertaining watch, but I think it’s enough to keep Thor fans happy until Avengers: Age of Ultron. (And for those who were confused with the post credits scene as I was, it connects to this summer’s Guardians of the Galaxy. I just saved you a Google search.)
