Review of Thor (2011) by Charlene S — 14 Feb 2014

Branagh's Shakespearean chops add texture in scenes that require the care and feeding of literature's grander themes: pride, paternity and honor. I never would have believed it, but Branagh gets the balance between pageantry and silliness just right. Thor meets the elevated expectations for superhero movies today, but doesn't exceed them. There's some sloppy plotting, which always shows a certain disregard for the audience's intelligence. The visuals are breathtaking without it, all swirling cosmic nebulae and mythic cityscapes of the Norse-god capital Asgard. It's a film with its own identity, the simple, thrilling story of a handsome god who falls to Earth and reminds everyone what heroes do. Humor is the most powerful weapon deployed by director Kenneth Branagh in Thor, his rollicking take on the comic. Unfortunately, the committee-designed script never finds a consistent balance between building characters, delivering action and pushing the story forward. For a holding maneuver, Thor itself turns out to be diverting enough - not close to a sharp-edged romp like "Iron Man" but not the B-movie roadshow some of us were expecting. Turn off the snark-o-meter, and this is a return to form for Marvel, introducing a new hero we'll be happy to see again in, oh, about a year or so. It's not art, but it's mighty fun.

VERDICT: "In The Zone" - [Mixed Reaction] These kinds of movies are usually movies that had some good things, but some bad things kept it from being amazing. This rating says buy an ex-rental or a cheap price of the DVD to own. If you consider cinema, ask for people's opinion on the film. (Films that are rated 2.5 or 3 stars).