Film

Review: THOR: THE DARK WORLD (2013)

How do you make a good movie from a weak script? It’s hard, but Thor: The Dark World manages to pull it off; albeit, with very few of the character developments viewers have grown to expect from Marvel.

Once again, the cast is mostly great. The Thor films really get the right folks for the job, and it gives these characters a nice dynamic. Chris Hemsworth IS Thor. He brings all the gravitas to the hero while incorporating a greater sense of maturity to the role. Natalie Portman is good as Jane Foster, though quite underdeveloped by the weak script. Idris Elba is EPIC, Kat Dennings is a comedic genius, and Tom Hiddleston continues to elevate to role of Loki to that of a cinematic stalwart.

The one exception with the cast is Christopher Eccleston’s Maleketh, who is sorely underutilized by the script. Maleketh probably takes the cake for worst MCU villain, and it’s entirely because his motivation sucks and his tactics are nonsensical. But hey, at least Heimdal got an awesome action scene because of this guy. 💫

Alan Taylor’s direction is good. Where Kenneth Branagh brought a Shakespearean vibe to his movie, Taylor brings a Tolkien vibe, and it jives really well with a place like Asguard.

As for the screenplay? Christopher Yost and Christopher Markus & Stephen McFeely are way better writers than this. In T:TDW, the mark is greatly missed on character development; the dialogue is good, the action is good, but the character development is almost non-existent. These are guys who’ve written some of Marvel’s best movies, so it’s a little disappointing to know what could have been.

Nevertheless, this is a movie that’s truly the sum of its parts. And thankfully, those parts make for a passably enjoyable flick.

★★★☆
3.5/5

Clemson University Graduate. Lover of all things Star Wars and DC.