So a lot of what I can say has been covered so I might use this time to address things that others have brought up. We’ll see how it goes. Anyway, Thor is not awful. It’s pretty average. The middle section where he’s on Earth certainly is the strongest part of the film. Hemsworth was great casting but you don’t get to really see it until the sequels. The whole film felt sort of buttoned up. Asgard looks cold and not a place where people live. The voices are very static and modulated. It just feels sterile in that opening act. And the plotting doesn’t help much either.
Once Thor is banished to Earth however the story opens up and has a more natural feel to it. Portman was a miscast in my opinion. The part is underwritten but I just don’t think she’s a very good actress. There’s no real chemistry between her and Hemsworth and as I said before this is the start of the “You’ve seen my abs and now we’re in love” style of romance that will perpetuate through the MCU. At the end of the film where Thor promises to return to her, he’s known her for what? 36 hours? And he was hospitalized and detained for a portion of that time. Their best scene is on the roof where he is explaining the life tree. There is a glimpse of a spark there but it never really ignites.
As for Loki, I think he’s a fine villain but he definitely improves once Whedon fine tunes the character a bit more. His arc is rather odd. He sets off the film by letting in the Frost Giants and then gently nudges Thor into confronting Laufey. Then rats him out immediately so Odin will punish him. So was this all a plan to get the throne? He later says he doesn’t even want it. And saves Odin (from a threat he created) and wants to destroy the Frost Giants?
Both Lady Sif and Loki talk about jealousy but there’s no sign that Thor ever mistreated Loki. His mother clearly loved them both. The only real conflict was that Odin seemed to pit them against each other for the throne but even that makes no sense. Was Odin really going to put a Frost Giant on the throne? Does a first born in Asgard not have first claim? The anguish in his confrontation with Odin was powerful. He’s been betrayed and because of Odin’s favoring of Thor over the years, finding out that Odin is not his father brings his worst fears to life. His father does not love him. He was simply a tool to be used. All of this felt more real than the “I always was jealous of you, brother” cliche in the finale. I get jealousy can be a powerful motivator but he swings wildly back and forth between focusing on Odin and Thor.
Also just a quick note, Hemsworth also gets a powerful scene when he’s been detained and Loki visits to tell him Odin is dead. “Can I come home” barely squeaks out of his voice as tears well up in his eyes. This almighty god has been brought to his lowest point and he just wants to be with his remaining family. Loki ironically by bringing Thor to this point, sets him squarely on his path to redemption. I appreciate the structure more now than I did on first viewing.
Last but not least SHIELD. We get the first appearances of Sitwell and Hawkeye. We get more Coulson! SHIELD does play a more transitional role here. How they act in this film will be how they operate through much of the first season of the series. They investigate and obtain strange artifacts and beings. The fight scene at the crater was well staged and shot in a better manner than the opening fight scene with the Frost Giants. With minimal lighting and so much rapid cutting it was hard to tell what was going on. The action on Earth has a smoother feel to it. On why Coulson lets Thor go, you have to remember that from that point to the end of the film it’s been less than 24 hours. Coulson has Thor and Selvig tailed and there are agents spying on them until the Destroyer arrives. After that he could hardly detain Thor once he got his powers back.
Overall Thor continues to not be as bad as I remember however I still rate it low. The ending is a little abrupt and tags on a final battle that doesn’t do as much justice to how the villain has been developed. I know it’s a superhero film and it has to end in a brawl but at least do something more exciting with it. I’m going to give Thor a 5/10. It could be a 6 if some of the problems of the first and third act had been hammered out better.
Current rankings:
1) Iron Man
2) The Incredible Hulk
3) Thor
4) Iron Man 2
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