THOR Review:

For over the past ten years "Hollywood" has bombarded the summer movie season with the "Superhero" blockbuster, and this summer is no different.  With Captain America and Green Lantern around the corner thundering into theaters first is Kenneth Branagh's THOR, based on the marvel comic book series of the same name.


When I first heard Branagh was directing Thor, I thought it was an odd choice for a comic book hero movie, but in the first fifteen minutes it became abundantly clear why he was chosen.  Thor's character arc and mythology follow the classic stylings of one William Shakespeare.  Thor has everything a classic shakespearian comedy has: betrayal, love, overconfident lead characters, and daddy issues.  I'm not saying that they are on the same playing field, but  if there is one thing Branagh knows, its Shakespeare.  That being said, you aren't going to find any oscar worthy performances in Thor that you might see in his interpretation of Henry V, Much Ado About Nothing, or Hamlet.  


Outside of the few meaningful scenes of dialogue in the film the action pieces are frivolous, over the top, and with out any real drama or weight to them.  It's hard to sympathize or believe that any harm can every come to Thor because he is basically a superman without any weakness.  In other words he is a literal "god" on earth (pun intended) without a kryptonite weakness.  The action pieces are predictable along with the story, but the comedic elements thrown in the mix should be enough to keep your attention. As for the performances that's another thing altogether.


Hensworth does a good job here as the title character, mixing comedic timing with a little heart and a lot of bravado.  His screen presence is just as enormous as he is in the movie.  Anthony Hopkins too shines as Odin, Thor's father and ruler of Asgard.  Hopkins character seems to be the only one who can deliver lines giving them any meaning and purpose.  Like the characters on screen, when Hopkins belted out his commands and orders, I too was all ears.  As for Ms. Portman, not a lot can be said for her character. Yes, she's pretty to look at, but I found her performance to be pretty lack luster.  It's not terrible, but its just uninteresting.  She's one of my favorite actresses and has been in two of my favorite films Heat and The Professional, but after winning Oscar gold in February I have to ask, "Ms. Portman what were you thinking?"  I hope she can redeem herself with her next pick and maybe get back to a performance that suits her better such as Brothers or Black Swan.  


In Closing, if you are looking for a fun, silly, almost comedic action flick, then THOR is the movie to see.  I'm not going to give it the same stamp of approval and jumpstart that Iron Man and Star Trek did just a few years ago, but it could be a lot worse.  I for one had a good time in the theatre with this one and that's why I have to give it 3 out of 5 Hammers!


For the latest THOR trailers you can catch them here: http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/paramount/thor/


Also for some much better cinema chatter please check out my favorite podcast over at: http://www.filmspotting.net/

Top 5 most anticipated films of the Summer '11

Money is tight, and summer movies are upon us.  If you are curious where you should spend your hard earned cash, here are my top 5 picks in no specific order:

1.) "Super 8": J.J. Abrams is back in the director's chair, and that's a good thing. This movie is a monster flick of sorts, that has a little "Stand by Me" meets the "Goonies" throw into it. It has this whimsical magic in the trailer that I think most of us felt when we saw movies like "E.T." And, Like E.T., they touched on that bit of mystery and scratched our natural curiosity begging us to ask the question: Who do I give my 16 dollars to? I gotta see this!

2.) "X-Men: First Class": Fox Has really been dropping the ball for, oh I don't know about 8 years now. However, they are returning to familiar territory in the X-men Franchise. I think we all feel a little jaded by Ratner's take on X-men 3, but this is a prequel and our favorite Mutants are back.  In this re-boot Mathew Vaugn, director of "Kick Ass", has our mutants emerging from hiding ont the civilized world fighting Russia during the Cold War, in particular the cuban missile crisis...Um, Yes please! To boot we have two of my favorite actors playing the leads: Michael Fastbinder of notable "Ingorious basterds" fame and James McAvoy of "Atonement". Nuff said.

3.) Transformers, just kidding. No, I've picked a much anticipated film for me personally with Terrance Malick's "Tree of Life". Mallick's infusion of nature, and narrative are a constant theme in many of his films. His last outing, "The New World" was an engrossing tale that kept me glued to the story, and in awe of the natural beauty of America's wilderness before colonization. I'm not sure what the TOL is about, but frankly I don't care. The trailer alone, is enough to seal the deal for me. The cast seems pretty impressive to boot: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jessica Chastain.

4.) "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part II":  At this point in the Potter franchise, I've invested to much time and money (upwards of 100 bucks) not to see this epic tale through to the end.  This of course is the much anticipated sequel to HPADH part I, which makes it a sequel-sequel...I think.  Finally, we are going to see Harry and "You know who" duke it out on the silver screen.  The anticipation for this final confrontation is enough for me to shell out my 16 clams.  The last few Potter outings have been darker, edgier, and move much faster than the previous films.  David Yates is once again directing, which will be his fourth Potter installment.  Yates has really helped improve the Potter franchise, he focusses more on characters and the drama between them, while still maintaining a well structured narrative.  That being said I'll be jumping on my broom to the theater come July 15th.

5.) "The Devil's Double":  While most of you have never heard of this film,"Double" follows the true life story of Latif Yahia.  Who is Latif Yahla you ask?  Latif is the unluckiest lucky man on earth.   Unfortunately for him, Latif was cursed with the same face as Uday Hussein, Sadam Husseins crazier, more psychotic son!  Latif is forced to become Uday's double experiencing all the power greed and corruption that Uday bestows upon him.  As his self identity is infected with Uday's temptations he realizes how insane Uday truly is. Now, falling deeper down the rabbit hole, Latif must find himself again, while still maintaining the charade.  "Double" was critically acclaimed on the festival circuit finally getting major distribution and a release date: August 12th.  

For trailers and more on the movies mentioned above visit: www.themoviebox.net