Director: Alan Taylor
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Film Pulse Score: 6.5/10
With Marvel Studios’ “Phase 2” lineup in full swing, director Alan Taylor’s Thor: The Dark World is next to bat, continuing the adventures of everyone’s favorite thunder god. Containing much more humor this time around, this epic CG-laden sequel proves to be a worthy successor to the original, however pales in comparison to Marvel’s previous entries.
Though the title suggests that Chris Hemsworth’s character of Thor is the film’s centerpiece, Tom Hiddleston once again steals the show as the cunning and conniving Loki, who fights on the side of good this time around. He doesn’t have as much screen time as his brutish brother, but he almost singlehandedly makes the film worth watching.
The humor in Thor: The Dark World is multiplied many times over compared to the first film, which makes it feel more fun and less serious. This is something that is almost demanded, considering the sometimes-ridiculous plot elements that are contained within. If the audience doesn’t have any jokes to laugh at, they’re probably going to laugh at how silly a lot of it is, but the injection of jokes reassures them that they should be having fun.
Like the first Thor, the main storyline is one that is both dull and forgettable. There’s a mysterious and powerful substance that a bad guy is trying to acquire in order to destroy the world. The only difference is that this time around Natalie Portman’s character of Dr. Jane Foster plays an integral role in it’s safety and destruction.
Lackluster plot aside, many of the action sequences in the film are more satisfying than the original. With the blending of science and mythology, we see battles involving swords, lasers, spaceships, and crazy black-hole creating grenades. The final battle, which involved an epic fight through gravitational rifts in the nine worlds was also cleverly done and very fun to watch.
Of course, with all Marvel films there are plenty of throw-backs, references, cameos, and twists at the end that make up the connective tissue of this ever-expanding cinematic universe. Some of these things worked, some felt forced, and others were downright confusing. There are two post-credit stingers for fans looking to see everything, and both are fairly cool, with the first being the clear highlight.
It’s not the strongest entry in the Marvel lineup, but Thor: The Dark World is still a solid, but flawed, film that will please fans. The upbeat humor and entertaining action makes up for the bland plot and generic bad guys, but I can’t help but feel that this was made as just a stepping stone to the next big thing.
