Thor he's a jolly good fellow.

Rating: 7/10 (17 May 2014)

Thor (Chris Hemsworth), arrogant son of Odin (Anthony Hopkins), is stripped of his powers and banished from Asgard for disobeying his father's orders (by fighting the frost giants of Jotunheim). Landing on Midgard (or Earth, as we call it), he meets a group of scientists, falls in love with Natalie Portman, learns some humility, and defends the human race against a deadly foe, before finally returning to Asgard to face off against his deceitful brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), who has since laid claim to their father's throne.
I'm finally getting around to watching the standalone superhero films that paved the way for The Avengers, and I've got to say that, so far, I have much preferred the characters in their individual movies than when working as a team; this one is no exception. Thor was directed by Kenneth Branagh, which originally concerned me since he hasn't really had much experience with big budget blockbusters, but I'm happy to say that Ken did a great job, handling the material intelligently, delivering a film that gets the balance just right between drama and spectacular action.
Hemsworth—a relative unknown before being picked to play Thor—is excellent as the hammer swinging God of Thunder, a strapping fellow who not only looks the part, but who also gives a fine central performance. Hopkins is, unsurprisingly, great as Odin, Hiddleston is suitably loathsome as the boo-hiss villain, but Portman is required to do little other than look pretty.