Thor : Le Monde des ténèbres

The acting was solid. The production value was superb. Everything else was really poor.

The back story and character motivations are laughably sparse. Most of the characters are completely one-dimensional, with the possible exception of Loki. The plot is the most boring and typical of all action plots - some "bad dudes who happen to be really ugly" decide to "destroy the world for no reason other than being evil" and "only our hero can save us all", etc. Moreover, it was lazy writing - whenever an absolute miracle needed to happen, it conveniently did, every time.

Of course this is a mindless blockbuster Marvel movie so we shouldn't expect much. But the thing is that these kinds of films CAN be made with a reasonable plot, pacing, and character development. The writers were obviously just going through the motions to cash in on the surefire moneymaker sequel, and from a business perspective it is hard to fault them. But it says a lot about the sad state of Hollywood in 2013 that this film currently has a 7.7 on IMDb.

Thor The Dark World is brilliant and completely tops the first film. There are a lot of extremely funny bits in it as well as some dark and moving moments. Probably a much funnier movie than it had any right to be given the subject matter. Loki is done perfectly and the dialogue between him and Thor is superb.

If you're a fan of the first, this certainly won't disappoint at all. Without spoiling anything, the scale of this film is very Avengers-like in that the action pieces are amazing. During a sequence halfway through, I literally turned to my friend and said, "this is freakin' awesome".

Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Each frame is packed with action, heartfelt emotion, humor, drama or intensity. I was expecting to simply see crazy mythology with monsters destroying the landscape of the nine realms for two hours. Instead, I was shocked at the depth and complexity of this film. You definitely need your brain and your heart turned on for this one, unlike other CGI mishmashes. If you want a movie with just dumb action and no plot then stay away from this exceptional film. The performances are top tier and the visual effects may be the best I've seen this year. I have to join the majority of people and even critics that are praising this film. It's a true joy and such a pleasant experience.

Positives:

• Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston
• Some of the humor

Negatives:

• Story
• Weak and boring villain
• Most of the humor
• One-note side characters (Again)

Plot

When the Dark Elves attempt to plunge the universe into darkness, Thor must embark on a perilous and personal journey that will reunite him with doctor Jane Foster.

Cast

The same bunch as before but now we have a disappointing Eccleston and Fandral has been recast with Zachary Levi.

Verdict

I didn't hate the first Thor but I didn't deem it a great film, our titular character bounced between distinctly unlikable and oddly hilarious and didn't seem to manage as a leading man. The supporting cast, a combination of bland and oddly quaint! Dennings character walking a fine line between being quaint and deeply annoying.

The humor is on point, the visuals are interesting, Thor is the same mix of unlikable and funny (But less so than the first film) but the plot is really unengaging, Malkeith makes for a terrible villain and the ending is really quite poor.

The film also distances itself from the MC quite a bit, there aren't as many nods as we're used to though the Captain America cameo was kind of neat.

I consider Dark World one of the weak links in the MCU, thankfully Thors next solo outing made up for it.

Rants

I don't know what it is with Portman but she's so remarkably unlikable. Is it her face? Is it her acting ability? Is it her real life personality? I honestly don't know what my issue is. She just looks like someone who would kick me between the legs, put a cigarette out in my eye and expect me to say thank you.

Breakdown

Some funny moments A few solid cast members Malkeith is a terrible villain Inconsistent tones Plenty of bland moments.

Well I was so looking forward to seeing this movie when I went last night, and although it was reasonably good it was not at all what I expected.

Watch the official movie trailer and you see what looks like quite a dark fantasy, so you can imagine my surprise when throughout the movie the audience was laughing out loud at the stupid one liners. Yes I know this is entertainment, and this movie was moderately entertaining, but once again the makers have tried to please everyone by adding a bit of everything; action, special effects, romance and humour, just far too much of the latter for my taste in a genre that does not require hilarity to succeed.

Although it has a lower IMDb score I much preferred the 2011 Thor, a stronger storyline, darker and no laughing matter!