Not as Character driven, but it makes up with better action sequences

Rating: 7/10 (15 December 2013)

"Thor: The Dark World" does not so much pick up on the events following its predecessor for it tells its own separate story. The focus is on another old enemy of Asgaard, the Dark Elves who possess a long since lost artifact called the Eather—which grants virtually indestructible power to a living host. While Thor brings peace and attempts to unite the 9 worlds of the universe, the Dark Elves arise and plan to blanket everything in darkness. Breaking away from a simple rehashing of the first film's plot is refreshing and advantageous, for it introduces a new perspective of this universe that non-Marvel Comic savvy persons like myself are unfamiliar with. At the same time, the movie retains all the characters and their personalities from the previous flick—Thor, Jane Foster, Dr. Selvig, Odin, Frigga, Heimdall, and even the science intern Darcy and Loki.
New faces are added too. Jonathan Howard plays the intern's intern Ian. And Chris Eccleston plays Malekith—the leader of the Dark Elves. Both are effective in their roles, however, their purpose to the overall story is rather vague. Ian is pretty much a sidekick of sorts, but he doesn't really achieve much as a character, other than flipping a car on some dark elves and making out with one of the girls. The motives for the Malekith character are left unanswered. So he is a villain who wants to rule the universe. Okay. Why? Revenge? Insanity? There is no explanation. The only conclusion I can come up with is from him floating around in space hibernation for 5,000 years. I guess the solitude finally got to him.
More meaningless actions brought questions to my mind during the film's progression, such as why the Asgaardian soldiers brought spears and shields to a laser rifle fight or how F-18s suddenly appear to try and destroy the enemy spaceship on earth. I'm probably taking this film too seriously when a movie such as this is anything but that. Nevertheless, some plausibility has to be present in order to suspend the viewer's disbelief. Unfortunately, this movie fails a bit here. More amusing is how the movie tries to be technical and intelligent about the sciences behind the Eather, the space portals, and the "convergence" between the different planets. Science fiction is fun but it needs limitations for the viewers' sake.
What does make "Thor 2" memorable though is the action sequences. They are abundant, long, gigantic in scale, and over the top entertaining. The Dark Elves onslaught against Asgaard is particularly fascinating to watch on the big screen. I enjoyed myself despite its ridiculousness and I can never resist the charms of the cast, especially Stellen Skaarsgard as the crazier than average Dr. Selvig, Kat Dennings as the quirky Darcy, Natalie Portman as the adorable Jane Foster, and Tom Hiddleston as the deceptive Loki. I also liked that Stan Lee and Chris Evans deliver minor comedic cameos. Characters and action is what this kind of movie needs and "Thor 2" has both. Too bad it is not nearly as character driven as the original Thor, but the ending makes up a little with a good twist. So pay close attention.