A Mundane Epic

Rating: 6/10 (12 November 2013)

This is the sort of film that I could write and rewrite a review of several times, attempting to find just the right thing to say. For the sake of avoiding that, I will be brief.
Thor: The Dark World brings more characters and a wider scope of a story (and superb visual effects) into play, relative to its predecessor. Unfortunately, it loses the warmth and simple beauty that was present the first time around and suffers from an extremely clichéd, uninspiring and ultimately uninteresting execution of the overall plot. Viscerally, it is like watching handfuls of charcoal pencils repeatedly crushed for a couple of hours. Dark, yes, but compelling, no.
It is not a "bad" film per se. It is just not particularly good, in my opinion. In the theater, it felt very lengthy and I was fatigued as a viewer, which either means that it is too long, or has the effect of being so. Either way, not a good thing.
In particular, the villain is underdeveloped, as is the relationship arc between Thor and Jane. Generally, the story is clear and easy to follow, but it is a bit cluttered to the point of meandering effect, and does not manage to escape a certain pervasive dullness. The employment of humor is a double-edged sword – it undermines the needed elegant seriousness of the story, while at the same time mercifully making it watchable.
I want to note a few scenes, though, that do impress and inspire me. Early in the film, a few moments are spent in a tavern and in the street outside, somewhere relatively pedestrian in Asgard. It feels wintry and almost like A Christmas Carol. It also feels more personable than most of what follows. There is a beautiful funeral scene as well, very evocative and for me, a return to the mythological pleasures of the first Thor film. Finally, a scene in which Frigga engages in mesmerizing hand-to-hand combat with the villain. These are instances in which I can feel the potential for how great a Thor film COULD be, with a truly great character-driven story and the right director. Here's hoping for next time.
Overall, technically decent but a mundane viewer experience. To put a different way, less than the sum of its parts. I would group this film with The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2 as Marvel Studios' least interesting installments so far. 6.5/10