Somethin' Stupid, but Cute: Thor

Thor
PG-13 (Action Violence)
OOO

I walked into the new movie Thor expecting to hate it.  I had a couple of hours to kill and it was the only movie starting at that time.  I'm not a comic book superhero freak, and know next to nothing about the ancient god Thor, be it through traditional Norse mythology or the Marvel Comics version the movie is based on. As the movie started I was given no reason to alter my initial expectation.  I came in after the trailers started, which is unusual for me.  I usually get there way ahead of time to stake out my seat in the last row, right under the projectionist.  This being the number one movie of the weekend, a fact I was completely oblivious to, my tardiness meant that I had to sit in the second row with my nose up against the screen.  Fortunately for me this was a 2D presentation rather than the much hyped 3D version showing on the screen next door. Nonetheless I could feel the headache coming on by the second preview.

The first twenty minutes or so of the movie did nothing to alleviate the budding migraine percolating in my temples or my feelings of doom heading into the theater. The film starts off with the usual mindless action, pretentious comic book mythology and shallow mellow drama.  Then a funny thing, quite literally, happened; this comic book action adventure showed a self deprecating sense of humor that took me by surprise and saved the movie from being a run of the mill, live action cartoon.

Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is heir to the thrown of Asgard, a realm beyond the stars.  His father Odin (Anthony Hopkins), the king, strips him of his powers and exiles him to Earth after he defies the king and begins a war with a neighboring world.  The proud and arrogant boy must learn humility, and the small New Mexico town where he lands is just the place.  While the earthbound Thor is still stronger than your average Joe, he's no match for a taser gun or a speeding RV.  The team of scientists he runs into (pun intended), led by Natalie Portman and Stellen Skarsgard don't know what to make of this overly pretentious bore either.  The government starts poking around, the town's people gawk, especially when four friends from Asgard show up, and the mocking one liners begin to fly.

At the heart to of the story we get mix of  Grail legend, palace intrigue and Thor as Christ figure (no joke).  While the action is what you would expect, it's the humor and real character development that sets this move apart.  Not that this is Shakespeare or anything, but Thor is a different person at the end of the movie than he is at the beginning.  And it makes sense because this first of the summer block busters was directed by Kenneth Branagh, he of the four plus hour Hamlet (1996) and various other Shakespearean and Gothic productions.  Under his guidance the movie doesn't take itself too seriously while being careful not to fall into out and out parody.

This is not a must see, but you could do worse if you find yourself with a couple of hours to kill.  But take my advise.  Try to get there a few minutes early and get a seat a couple of rows back: your temples will thank you later.