I am reviewing something different this time, instead of doing one of my in-depth reviews, I am reviewing Thor: the Dark World completely spoiler-free. I got to see in theaters on opening day, because here on Brazil, the Marvel Studios movies are released here before the US for some reason. I was pretty excited for Thor the Dark World, even though the trailers look painfully average with nothing really standing out in particular, I didn't particularly enjoyed the first Thor movie much after some time and with the massive disappointment that was Iron Man 3 and the pleasant surprise The Wolverine actually was, how does Thor 2 fare?
The plot takes place obviously after the Avengers, with Loki still imprisioned in Asgard, that is currently celebrating recently estabilized peace for the Nine Realms, as the time for a new king to take Odin's place, a ancient threat re-emerges with Malekith the Accursed, King of the Dark Elves, a alien race that was subjugated over 5000 years ago by Thor's grandfather Bor, and it was believed to be long extinct. Following an assault on Asgard by Malekith's dark forces, Thor teams up with Loki to breach the eponymous Dark World and take the fight to their enemy.
I am pleased to inform Thor 2 is a very good movie, while may not be the best one Marvel Studios made so far, its far better than Iron Man 3 (and with that said, the best one in Phase 2 at least). If you were particularly disappointed (like I was) with the first Thor movie lacking the atmosphere and tone to the Thor comics, this movie nails it. Less time is spend on Earth and more on the Nine Worlds, and Thor faces a much varied brand of mythological enemies than just Frost Giants. This one has a larger scope as well, which encompasses something greater than a more personal story, almost like they were channeling Lord of the Rings (which earns extra points with me). The battle sequences between the armies are pretty good, as well the fight scenes.
I will say up front that the plot isn't particularly original and this movie as whole doesn't bring nothing new to the table. Like every other Marvel movie they made so far, there is countless action setpieces that are interrupted by comedy tidibits like the ones established by the Avengers. As far as the cast, goes no one really stand out more than the others, but they do held up (most of the time), with Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston feeling more at home with their respective characters. It still irks me that the Asgardian characters are still thrown into the background when the focus is still on Thor and Jane's relationship. Which leads me into the negative points.
There are of course two weak links in the movie. The first one is Jane Foster, because she feels shoe-horned into this movie, even if they try to explain her presence, I honestly could have done without her. I know Natalie Portman may had loads of fun working on this (or maybe not, last time I checked), but I think she is here for two reasons: to provide a audience surrogate of humans into a foreign, supernatural world and the most obvious one, to serve as love interest for the protagonist. The other weak link is, unfortunately, our villain Malekith. He is completely forgettable with zero personality and a such bland motivation. He is not even imposing or menacing for that matter (you will not believe who kick his ass at the beginning). The most menacing villain in the movie is, oddly enough, his brutish lackey Kurse (who hands a ungodly stomp to several Asgardians), and unfortunately when it comes to charisma, you can't do much when you are standing next to Tom Hiddlestom (on a side note, there was a lot of girls in my session and there some points they would squee sh*tless when he appear onscreen). Its clearly not Christopher Eccleston's fault, as the man tries his hardest, but good acting can only get so far when the character is so generic.
But here is the thing I liked it a lot more better than in Iron Man 3. While in that movie, the emotional tense wasn't worked well properly and they were undercut by comedy moments or outright negated a few moments later, Thor 2 has some pretty dramatic sequences and they do leave some lasting influence in the movie. I won't spoil for you, but some side characters don't make it through the end and unlike IM3, they don't get better and their deaths stick. This gives a certain level sense of seriousness that I was expecting from Iron Man 3, and Thor 2 executes very well.
Final score - 8/10. So yeah, I really enjoyed Thor the Dark World. Might not be the best Marvel movie, but its fairly entertaining. Is it a movie I want to see it again? Eh, probably not. But its still a good time with friends or family. On a side note, there are two post-credit scenes but only the first one is worth sitting through. I won't say what it is, but it reveals a great deal of might be Phase 3 in the Marvel Studio movies.
Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it. See ya next time =)
Log in to comment