sora_thekey

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CV's Community Review - Thor Movie

Hello Comic Vine users from all over. Welcome to CV's first Community Review. Comic Vine is know for its amazing community and from time to time we come together to make make awesomeness happen (If you don't believe me then go to the Artist Show-Off or RPG forums). One of the many features that Comic Vine has is that it allows fans like yourself to review comic books and comic books movies. A group of users from the site, like yourselves, joined together to do exactly that: Review.

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My name is Geo but most of you know me as sora_thekey. I will be moderating the review from the Spoiler Free section to Verdict. We will be reviewing a little film that is premiering in theaters (in the US) this week. That's right we will be reviewing Thor! To help me, xerox-kitty, lazystudent and punkelias will give insight throughout the review. Welcome!  

lazystudent: Hey Guys It's Lazy, Top 5 member of the Viners favorite Brits (Well at least I hope so).

punkelias: Hi, I'm punkelias and I'm from Mexico.

xerox-kitty: Hello, I'm xerox-Hemsworth, wife of Beardy Thor. At least until the injunction goes through...

Welcome guys and gal! Like I mentioned before we are going to be reviewing the Thor movie. You might be wondering how come we are reviewing it since it won't reach theaters until this Friday. If you didn't know already the movie was released all over the world a week or two before it reached the US. So, today two Brits (xerox and lazy) and two Mexicans (punk and I) have joined in this review.

Just to make sure you have all watched the movie right?

xerox-kitty: I finally got to see it yesterday, so it's still fresh in my head!

punkelias: Wait... wasn't this a trailer review? LOL Just kidding.

lazystudent: Hell yeah I watched the movie, I haven't shaved since either as tribute to his beardy epicness, lol, but seriously we knew that if you got the god of thunder to take his top off how many women would be watching it at the cinema. (Cue xerox swooning)

xerox-kitty: Mmmmm... Beardy Thor Moobies... Sorry, you were saying something?
That scene in the trailer was what convinced my gal-pal to go see it.  I thought it would last as long as it did in the trailer, but kudos to Mr Brannagh for giving the girls a reason to see it...!

Well let me explain how this review will work. First we will spend time reviewing the movie Spoiler Free . Afterwards the gloves are off and will will discuss The Bad and The Good . Once we are done we will go back to our spoiler free stance and give our Verdict .

So let's begin! 

Spoiler Free


Thor
Thor

Without any spoilers what did you guys think of the movie?

xerox-kitty: I just loved it! And no... I didn't spend the entire film drooling over Chris Hemsworth ;) 

lazystudent:   Okay well let me make my mini reveiw really simple, it's a tradition comic book film theres a few changes from the comic-verse some may not like them others may love them. The story and acting all around is very good in my eyes. It didn't have the big fights of say Iron Man, but its development of characters and the fact it has a much more complex setting than most other comic films means in my eyes it's pretty  much as good as it could of been, its really well done. There's so many great touches to it as well.

xerox-kitty: Usually when you think of summer block buster films you think of tacky special effects, thread-bare plots and scripts full of cheap one-liners.  This was a visual feast!  The effects were flawless and beautiful.  The plot wasn't exactly a deep complex mystery (pretty predictable, really), but even though I knew what would happen it was still entertaining to see how they were going to get through those key points. It was fun to see actors playing the whole Asardian shtick completely straight faced in the middle of modern New Mexico :)

punkelias: For me it was a great character introductory movie, not a lot of people know about Thor (I'm among them) and with his movie, I think, Marvel is setting the scenario for the upcoming Avengers movie.

Despite some changes in the history of the comic version of Thor, the story of the character is well developed and interesting . Also, we get to see some really good action scenes and the movie achieves to always keep you interested in knowing more about Thor.

In my opinion the movie is great. I think it was a great introduction to the character and this mythos. One of the things I enjoyed the most was that Marvel managed to set this in reality. My favorite line is still: "Your ancestors called it magic, you call it science. I am from a place where they are one and the same".

lazystudent: That is an excellent line, its captures the difference between the worlds brilliantly, especially when the first outed superhero on Earth marvel wise is Ironman who's all about science and engineering.

punkelias:  I haven't thought about the line in that way, but it's true what lazystudent said.

xerox-kitty: The only thing that really bothered me was my lack of knowledge. I know enough about Thor's world to get by in cross-overs, but when it comes to a movie... I had no idea whether it was a loyal adaptation or not until I'd read about it on the internet later. In a way, I still feel that it was faithful to the spirit of the comic book characters.  This is a great introduction for the non-comic reading population to Marvel's vision of Asgard.

punkelias: Oh, I forgot to mention, there are some cool winks to marvel readers in the movie.

We'll talk about the winks at the rest of the Marvel universe later. (When we can talk freely). Without spoiling anything what did you guys think of the look of Asgard?

lazystudent: Visually Asgard is exceptionally well done it really pops, I liked the re-imagining of the bifrost  alot and sweeping skyline shots of asgard look great, the realm of the ice giants is also really well done with the complete pallet flip making it look darker and far less accomidating. Visually they nailed the non earth relms which is where its the toughest sell.

xerox-kitty: It was beautiful!  When RazzaTazz asked about 'what comic book places do you want to come from?' I immediately thought of Asgard.  Serene, scenic, and magical!  Bifrost surprised me, but I think that was for the better; it looked sturdy & magical at the same time... although I was singing Billy Jean when it looked like it was lighting up under their feet ;)

punkelias: Some might think it was too shiny but it's comprehensible because it's the location where Odin father-of-all lives and it has to display some importance and greatness. 

I agree with that. Asgard is a Fantasy world and I think they were able to bridge the gap between reality and fantasy very well. I loved the Asgardian outfits! ME WANT!

lazystudent: You can keep the rest of the outfit I just want the helmet and hammer.

xerox-kitty:  Don't you just love the trouble they went to, to make the Asgardians look right?  The costumes were amazing, and even characters like the Warriors Three were instantly recognizable ! Most non-comic readers won't have a clue who they are, but if they picked up a comic then they'll recognise Fandrall, Hogun and... welll, Volstagg looked like he'd been on a diet, but at least he had a hearty appetite!

punkelias: I read some people complaining about the rainbow road not being rainbow-ish, but seeing how it's intended to be a "serious" comic movie I think a rainbow would feel a little out of place.

lazystudent: It's rainbowish enough i feel it has the spectrum effect everytime the camera is on it.

Alright lets go ahead and talk The Bad.


Just as a warning to whoever is reading: This is the point where our Spoiler Free section ends. Skip down to The Verdict if you don't want any spoilers
.

The Bad 

Loki
Loki
So let's start mentioning everything that is wrong with this movie.
I'll go first: 3D 


xerox-kitty: Really?  I thought it was nicely immersive, rather than cheap excuses to throw things out at the audience (which always look flat, slow & weird on a regular TV set).

I thought the color composition was lacking because of the 3D.

lazystudent:  I  avoided 3D like the plague I am not interested  in gimmicks I just wanted to see a movie and not have to pay extra to wear two pairs of glasses like a fool.

It was not worth it. People don't pay the extra money for the 3D.

lazystudent: The final fight seemed a little lack luster but the dialogue and emotion show was good.

xerox-kitty: I didn't like the way that SHIELD went from being co-operative good guys in Iron Man to 'Men In Black' style villains. I also wasn't keen on the battle with the Destroyer. I can't even place the reason why, it just seemed like a cheap excuse to have an unstoppable killing machine.

lazystudent: It's cool to see Hawkeye, but he doesnt actually do anything he has like 3 lines and he holds a bow. I know it's a pre cursor for the Avangers and it's important to introduce him, but the guy just stands there and does nothing.

xerox-kitty: Ooh, good point!  He didn't even get to shoot anything... That was a bit of a let down.

lazystudent: Has Odin ever just collapsed into Odin sleep without warning?

Now that you mentioned Odinsleep. I was watching and I knew what had happened, but my friends were like "What the--?". That's when I realized that Odinsleep was never explained!

punkelias: Even though I usually like Natalie Portman, I didn't quite feel like she belongs in this movie.

xerox-kitty: Yeah, the relationship between Jane & Thor was rushed, but the movie was already 2 hours long... they couldn't play it out for a whole week to make it believable ;)  Traditional chick flicks create true love with even less time & less credible reasons ;)

lazystudent: Agreed the Foster/Thor relationship was rushed and kind of quirky in places th but it adds a little to Thor's overall transformation.

How dare you two talk about Portman that way?! 

lazystudent: I love Portman (Hides shrine) but seriously she just didnt seem as comited as the actors around her especially the asguardians who where all solid.

punkelias: Exactly!

I liked Kat Dennings character but she seemed unnecessary.

punkelias: I agree with you unnecesary, but it was a good character and it provided some funny scenes.

xerox-kitty: But do people have to be 'necessary'? I didn't know who the character was, or if she was a new or 'real comic' character. But I loved her; she was great comic relief to ease any tension & added an element for more non-comic reading female viewers to relate to. She's the bored girlfriend who'd been dragged along and keeps throwing in witty comments to stop herself from dying of boredom.

Okay. So I think we can all agree there is more to say about what is good in this movie rather than bad. Lets move on to The Good.

The Good

Jane Foster
Jane Foster

What did you like?

xerox-kitty: Beeeeeeaaaardy Thor!  (I don't care if it sound shallow, I can't stop thinking about the Beard ;)

punkelias: Chris Hemsworth really looked like Thor and did a good role.

lazystudent: It's probably the best characterization of a Marvel Hero so Far in terms of capturing behavior as well as look,  his arrogance launguage the way he carries himself is just really great.

punkelias: Marvel did a good development of the character without being too complex or boring. As I say before the movie keeps the audience interested along the whole movie, some people even were interested in knowing more abut Thor and the history. I saw a couple of them buying the "Omnibus" of Thor after the movie. Also, the fight scenes were awesome, the dialogs were great, the characters were credible and, in my opinion.

lazystudent:  The warriors three and general Asgardians their characters where all preety much spot on, Volstaggs like about his appertite captured him exactly in my view. 

I thought the Warriors Three movie translation was spot on! 

lazystudent: Heimdall gets special mention for bad assery, his pressence was powerful.

xerox-kitty: I second thatl!  He was amazing!  Not only did Idris Elba have presence, but he was able to act the part completely straight-faced... even when he was committing 'treason'.   And he just looked beautiful too; truly magical, impressive & golden, not just some random guy in cosplay.

punkelias: (I repeat) the winks to marvel readers =)

lazystudent: The weapons room loved the sneaky refrences in the objects around them such as the eye of Aragmotto , infinty gauntlet ( apperently they dressed set to show a missing one didnt notice that thou.

xerox-kitty: Arse... I totally missed that!  But I bet I know what was 'missing' (mainly because I stuck around after the credits had rolled ;)

lazystudent:  It's supposed to be that so hear, but it s gonna be out there in Marvel verse soon enough, begs the question will they use the other two items in the future also.

I really liked Loki's interpretation in the movie. I actually felt sorry for the bad guy. Odin was the villain for me. 

lazystudent: Loki Has that edge to him you feel for him alittle hes step dad killed his real dad and loves his brother more . But theirs no doubt that Loki is defo the villian of the piece hes called a traitor by his own allies hes the grand duke of lies.

Well yeah Loki was the villain but I felt bad for him.. Meaning he did an amazing job at working with my sympathy 

lazystudent: Agreed on the sympathy vote, kind of feel bad for him and the end. 

xerox-kitty: The casting all round was impressive.  But I had no idea about Loki's dual background.  There were genuine moments when you could feel his loneliness. Although I did fin it really funny how Thor managed to 'pin' him down during their big fight!

LOL! Same here!

xerox-kitty: Sif did have a strong Xena vibe going on... but it's hard to carry a shield, wear armor & have your beautiful raven hair up-in-one without drawing comparisons to Lucy Lawless.  But even then they played on that. For a mystical drama, there was a great sense of humor running all the way through the film :)

I was going to ask about that. Did you guys think there was too much humor?

xerox-kitty: Too much?  N'ah...  The humour was there when it needed to be.  It never detracted from the tension or action :)

punkelias: No, it was serious, dark, funny, all when it had to be. For me, the humorous situations where balanced and well timed

lazystudent: I think the mix of humour action etc was preety good, The laughs come form the supporting cast mainly though.

What did you think of the inclusion of Donald Blake? 

lazystudent: It's kind of a crappy guise doenst the shield scanner even show the document they use to rescue Thor as a fake?  made snece to try and come up with another naem thou since he was running around up till taht point saying iam Thor son of Odin etc.    

punkelias: It was a nice touch to not totally forget about his comic universe history, one of the winks to I was talking about.

xerox-kitty: He wasn't really there. So I must admit that felt like a bit of a cop out. Still, at least they tried to include him.

What did you think of the addition of new original characters like Darcy, Erik Selvig and Agent Coulson?

xerox-kitty: Obviously I liked Darcy.  She & Erik gave Jane an adopted family environment, with an adopted naughty sister and a caring father figure.  I liked him, but I'm now worried about him and what'll happen to him in the inevitable sequel.  As for 'Son of Coul', he's there to tie it all together with the Iron Man films, and the overall Marvel movie franchise.  But it was also good seeing a bit more depth to him.

punkelias: It's always expected for a movie based in comic books to include new characters, Darcy as it was pointed out it's Jane's friend and it's added as a comic relief, Erik Selvig, I think in the movie it's hinted he might play a important role later. And Agent Coulson, well he's a tie in for all of recent Marvel movies.

lazystudent: Darcy  was okay to be honest I wouldnt really miss her if she wanst there though. Selvig I liked especially with his interaction with Thor, his mention of Banner and his interesting post credit scene (if I can mention that) Coulson is one of those people like Darcy he has his moments but his only real scene of worth is the Interegation form the trailer really.

He mentioned Banner? I didn't even notice that!

Since we are in a Spoiler section, we all know that Thor is stuck in Asgard by the end of the film. How do you think that Thor will go back to Midgard for the Avengers movie? 

lazystudent: Shot in the dark I am gonna go for magic or a newly built Bifrost. Lets face it, Asgardian labour would be fast, strong and payable with meat and beer so construction would be quick. Also how does Loki get to earth in post credit scene could Thor not use that? Is hammering a portal an option?

punkelias: Definitely they will find the "other ways" to go in and out Asgard, Loki was talking about.

xerox-kitty: Loki was foolish enough to brag to Heimdall that there are other ways in & out of Asgard then the Bifrost... It's only a matter of time before they find one. That, or they'll introduce Enchantress with her magic.

Enchantress!? Yes please!

What did you think of the final scene after the credits? (No Spoilers) 

lazystudent: It was very interesting, spoilish for another film but interesting. 

punkelias: This scene is interesting because it reveals two important things that might set the starting point for an upcoming movie. (The Avengers movie? Thor 2?)

xerox-kitty: Very dark. Not just visually, but that it was heralding a darker turn for the sequel. It makes sense with what lazy was saying about the missing item from Asgard... and another certain Marvel movie that's due out this year.   


I hope those hints aren't too spoilerific ;)

A little, but Iron Man and Incredible Hulk's after-credit scene was the starting point of the Avengers. Iron Man 2's after-credit scene was the set up for Thor... I think it's safe to say that the scene will set up Captain America.

We have talked about everything we liked and didn't. You guys made a few points I didn't even notice.

The Verdict



Thor Concept Art
Thor Concept Art
What's the verdict? Give me a final thought/sentence that says what you think of the movie (No Spoilers)?

lazystudent:  Well, it's worth the watch if you like Thor or comics in general. For the authentic Thor experience go unshaved thou. 
Rating is 5 out 5. The quality speaks for itself.

xerox-kitty: I loved it!  It made me feel like a kid again. Like when a movie would make you feel lighter than air at the end, like I could jump out of my seat  fly out of the theater. I was uplifting, bombastic, action packed, delivered plenty of eye candy for both the ladies & gents in the audience... I would go so far to say that this was a full-on FIVE out of FIVE and I can't wait to see it again!

punkelias: Maybe I am still excited because of the movie but I will go as far as say: Thor is the best modern Marvel movie so far. It has great special effects, good fight scenes, a well done movie development, and very good acting. Even if you know very little about Thor, the movie will grab your attention and you will want to know more about the character. I watched in 3D (because it was the only available) and in my opinion it's well worth your money, it doesn't feel like a 2D movie forced to be 3D, the inclusion of the 3D effects is well made and it feels right.  Rating: 5 out of 5

Overall this movie got a 5 out of 5! I think it was an amazing movie and I agree with all of the above (except the 3D), including the rating. The ending does leave you with a sense of: "Wait! That's it?" but since we know that Captain America is around the corner and Avengers is coming next year then the feeling is gone instantly. I think it's the best Marvel film so far! Go watch it!

Now it's time to say good bye everybody!

punkelias: It was nice to contribute to the community, Hopefully  my review was useful for all of you. I hope this isn't the last time you hear about me

It was great having you punk. Al fin otro Mexicano con quien hablar!

xerox-kitty: Is 'xerox-kitty-Hemsworth' too much?  It looks like a triple-barrelled surname... Ah well, I guess I'll stick with plain old 'xerox-kitty' for the time being. Anyway, it's a terrible film, you wouldn't like it, so don't waste your money on a ticket... and get your eyes off my gorgeous Beardy Thor!  ;)

You can keep your Thor. I'm keeping that Black Swa-- I mean Jane Foster.

lazystudent: Since I am still in Thor Mood I will down a few beers, have a fight/make my ancestors proud and then have the great lazysleep. See ya guys!

Anyways, I am Geo/sora_thekey signing off. Hopefully you all enjoyed our review. 
@lazystudent: Can I come?

-- Geo (sora_thekey) 24/7 geek! -- Follow me on Twitter: @sora_thekey
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