A decent surprise

Rating: 7/10 (30 May 2011)

Thor (or "The Mighty Thor" as some would call him) is admittedly and personally one of the most uninteresting characters in the MARVEL universe. Not only does he lack any good opposition in his villains but there's only so much a writer can do with an established Norse God turned comic book superhero. In the hands of the wrong team, a THOR movie adaptation could've been equally bad but thankfully this is averted in the case of 2011's THOR.
The movie is pretty much straight to the point, serving as an introduction to the future Avenger and it does its job well. The film thankfully decides to avoid side stories that could've bogged down the story and concentrated on Thor's story alone, ranging from his family problems in his home Asgard and romance on Earth. A small problem with being straight forward is that the film was a bit predictable since it still followed a typical superhero plot (redemption, save the girl, etc.) but this does little to bog down the fact that the film is enjoyable.
The characters are thankfully not as two dimensional as the trailer implied since they're a lot deeper than what one may expect, especially Loki. The whole cast did their part but it was Loki that really stood out for me. Loki could've been a boring one note villain but instead we get a conflicted god trying to prove himself worthy to everyone. Though everyone did play their roles well, not everyone got a balanced amount of screen time, which if done would've made them more engaging.
The action, on the other hand, is kind of weak. Not to say it wasn't bad but it failed to maximize the 3D which, again like most other 3D film out right now, seemed unnecessary. It was rather interesting to see how a hammer would fare against a spear and the like and believable melee weapon choreography IS hard to accomplish so points to the film's team for making it as real as possible without compromising the fun out of it.
Overall, THOR serves its purpose as an introduction to just who the mighty Avenger really is. If some other team made the film adaptation of the character, the end result could've been another DAREDEVIL; we may never know. But what's important is THOR lives up to the bar set by IRON MAN back in 2008; this looks like it's going to be a good decade for MARVEL studios and the rest of Stan Lee's creations.
Again, wait for the credits to roll. There's a stinger there leading up to THE AVENGERS