Thor

Rating: 5 Shurikens

If ever there was a movie that has to be seen, Thor is it. Based on the Marvel comic book which was created by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee in the 1960's, it precedes the other Marvel Comics adaptations of  Captain America and the X-Men prequel, due later this summer. At the same time DC breaks from the old Superman and Batman habits to release the long-awaited Green Lantern. This promises to be a great summer for comic book and sci-fi movie lovers.

The movie, Thor, captures the essence of the original comic book series of the 1960's and 70's, although some changes have been made to the storyline in the interest of the big screen. The concept of adapting an entire mythology to a comic book was due to the comic book geniuses Jack Kirby and Stan Lee. They depicted the grandeur of Asgard, and brought Thor to Earth as a one-armed doctor who had been sent to learn humility. He found a walking stick while vacationing in Scandinavia, and learned that he could strike the cane on the ground, and be transformed into Thor. Thor became a superhero, and a member of the Avengers.

They evolved the contentious Thor-Loki relationship, which was an aspect of Marvel comics heroes of that time, in that they had extraordinary lives but they had real-life problems. Thor had his dear brother, whom he loved, but who was also prone to doing evil deeds. There was friendship, rivalry and forgiveness. Thor's father was the extremely powerful Odin, also the King of Asgard and the Realm Eternal. He was a tough parent himself, and Thor had to deal with a father who was beloved yet also was kind of overbearing, much like real fathers can be sometimes. People could relate to some of the human problems that Marvel heroes experienced, but which were quite absent from DC heroes, until much later.

The movie shortens the storyline somewhat, but does feature all of the main characters, including the alter-ego Don Blake, who was Thor's identity in the comic book. Also, Jane Foster, the scientist in the movie, was a nurse in the comic series. Thor's warrior companions from Asgard, .the Warriors Three, Hogun, Fandral and Volstagg, are featured in the film, very much like the original as they were in the comic series co-written by Lee and Kirby. As an avid reader of comic books in the day, I can say that Jack Kirby would be proud if he were alive to see it. The excellence of Thor surpasses the Fantastic Four/Silver Surfer movie, and at least two of the Spiderman movies.

The story begins with Thor, played by Chris Hemsworth, ascending to the throne of Asgard. Hemsworth was George Kirk, father of James Kirk, in the recent Star Trek movie. As Odin, played by the accomplished actor Anthony Hopkins, is preparing to hand over the power of King, a small number of Asgard's rivals, the Frost Giants, enters Asgard and causes a distraction which keeps Thor from being actually named king. Thor wants to get revenge on the Frost Giants, but Odin tries to convince Thor not to be rash, and an argument ensues. They call each other names, and Odin takes away Thor's hammer and his powers and sends him to Earth.

Jane Foster is a scientist, played by Natalie Portman. Natalie is a pretty famous actress, having starred in three Star Wars films, although her acting was not that good. She has been in many other films, both good and bad, and recently appeared in Your Highness, reviewed here previously. As Jane Foster, she actually impressed me, because I have been dubious of here acting abilities. I saw Black Swan, and was not impressed, and of course the aforementioned Star Wars movies, which could have been poorly-written scripts. She portrays a great character in Thor, adding to the experience as a love interest, and a believable scientist, even though the character did not exist in the comic book, in an absolute sense.

Anyway, Jane Foster is studying electromagnetic anomalies in the weather in order to find actual wormholes, when she happens upon the fallen Thor. There is some pretty good comedy as Thor learns the ways of Earth. Meanwhile, Agent Coulson of  S.H.I.E.L.D. locates Thor's hammer which has landed in the same desert as Thor, but fifty miles away. Agent Coulson is played by Clark Gregg, and was seen in Iron Man and Iron Man 2. In the post-credit teaser from Iron Man 2, he finds Thor's hammer in the Arizona desert. This teaser turns out to be an actual scene in Thor. Clark Gregg is set to appear in the upcoming Nick Fury and The Avengers.

Loki portrayed by Tom Hiddleston, is somehow involved in the events that cause Thor's elevation to king to be interrupted. To say much more would be to give away too much, and I am not a spoiler.  Hiddleston is a relatively unknown actor to me, but his acting is really good. He does a great villain, and a really good Loki. The energy and the brotherly rivalry between Thor and Loki is evident, and the drama is so believeable that you hardly think you are watching the adaptation of a comic book, it is that good. Even the resolution of the storyline in the later parts of the movie is unexpected, but superb. The plot does take a twist or two, and even though the outcome is already expected, due to the fact that the comic book series runs a span of decades, it manages to surprise.

Rene Russo plays Frigga, Thor's mother. She has only a few scenes in the movie. She was probably at her best in the Lethal Weapon movies of the 80's. Some other characters never appeared in the comics, but seem to have been created especially for the movies.  Erik Selvig is Jane Foster's mentor in the Thor movie, yet I can't place his character in any comic book I have read. The actor, Stellan Skarsgård has a lot of cinematic credits under his belt, and will reprise his role of Erik Selvig in The Avengers, next summer. The other is Darcy, Jane Fosters assistant. Darcy Lewis is played by Kat Dennings, who was also Nora in Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist.

Thor is an entertainment masterpiece. It has excellent action sequences without too many different camera angles, although there could be less of that. The special effects are pretty good, too, and the acting is really top-notch. The audiences were pretty large, and the number of people waiting for the teaser after the credits was as much as half the number who crowded into the theaters to watch the movie on opening night. The story flows easily from one scene to the next, and at the end you are left with the feeling that you have just seen a really good movie. Even people who have never read a comic book in their life ill enjoy Thor. This is rated a Must See, with 5 Shurikens for fantastic all-around enjoyment. This is truly a white giant star in the comic book movie universe.