Thor (PG-13)

Reading reviews that labeled “Thor” as “lacking” or “disappointing,” I watched the film not knowing much about the comic, but willing to give it a chance. However, contrary to other reviews, what I found was not a disappointment, yet another installment of comic-book-to-movie adaptations that bring to life these fabled heroes in a believable and entertaining fashion. “Thor” was poignant, exciting, and, like “Batman Begins” and “Spider-Man,” emotional and authentic.

The movie stars Chris Hemsworth as the thunder god, cast out of his home planet of Asgard after defying his father, played by Anthony Hopkins. Exile from Asgard is ruinous to Thor- it is his home, his future kingdom as he is to assume the throne after his father’s passing, and it is where his brother Loki and friends remain without him

Hemsworth does a good job in this film, and honestly his job wasn’t easy. He must start off as a cock-sure, arrogant warrior, andundergo an arduous transition to become worthy to carry the mighty hammer ‘Mjölnir,’ once again and live up to his father’s expectations. Meanwhile, he can only look toward the heavens from Earth, longing for his father and friends as he tries to make sense of his situation on Earth among the mortals. Thus Thor begins a journey to discover why he has been exiled, and to find out what he can about his new surroundings.

Thor is inadvertently picked up by a trio of scientists, led by the good-intentioned Erik Selvig, played by Stellan Skarsgård. Joining him is the ambitious and spirited Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and Darcy Lewis (Kat Denning). The three scientists, working on breakthrough research, are disrupted by the arrival of Thor, who Jane is drawn to both curiously and romantically, much to the chagrin of the overprotective Selvig.

Foster agrees to help Thor make his way to the west, where a purported “satellite” is stuck in the ground; however which Thor knows is his lost hammer, ‘Mjölnir.’ However, upon reaching the site of the hammer and engaging and defeating a legion of federal officers, Thor discovers that he, like the other mortals who have tried thus far, is unable to remove the hammer from its stuck position. However he knows, unlike them, that only a worthy person is able to wield it and harness all its powers. He sadly realizes that this is no longer him.

Portman,  Skarsgård, and Denning do a good job in their roles, limited as they are, as the movie seems to be about Thor’s journey and growth, and less about his interactions with them, although his relationship with Jane seems to both inspire and drive him towards change.

Meanwhile, it becomes apparent that while Thor’s brother Loki may be certain that Thor’s exile is for the best, Thor’s close friends are not so certain. The king has fallen into a coma at the aftermath of Thor’s dismissal from Asgard and from having to deal with questions from Loki regarding his birth. (To give away more of this is to give away too much of the movie), and it becomes clear that Loki’s intentions may not be on the side of good. This leads the three allies of Thor to break Loki’s decree that no one ascend to Earth, to warn Thor about his brother’s impending plans to make an alliance with one of Asgard’s oldest enemies for a plan of his own design.