Thor: The Dark Wolrd - Marvel's Phase Two Indeed Gets Darker

Rating: 7/10 (8 November 2013)

Imagine what it was like before the solar system existed. Now, imagine what it was like before the universe existed. Before the universe, what was there? According to Norse mythology, before the universe, there was darkness. In Thor: The Dark World, directed by Alan Taylor, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is forced to fight the darkness that once consumed everything.
Two years after Thor's first visit to Earth, and just over a year after The Battle of New York, scientist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) dreams that one day Thor will fulfill his promise to her and come back. While on a date, Jane's assistant Darcy (Kat Dennings) pulls her away from her date and to a deserted building which housed some sort of portal. After being sucked in by a portal, Jane stumbles upon the aether, a powerful, other worldly element desired by leader of the dark elves, Malekith (Christopher Eccleston), to bring the darkness back to the universe forever. The aether, with a mind of it's own (in a way), attached itself to Jane, now living inside her. When Jane surfaces back in London, she is greeted by Thor, who takes her back to Asgard after realizing something is terribly wrong.
Once the aether is awakened, Malekith is also. He learns that the aether is on Asgard, so he strikes. After a bloody battle, Thor is forced to go to the one man in all the nine realms who he trusts the least, his brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston). With Loki free for now, he, Thor, and Jane set out to destroy Malekith and save the nine realms from eternal darkness.
Being the second installment of the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Phase Two, Thor: The Dark World does a nice job of getting the story across. The Dark World was miles better than Thor back in 2011, and while it certainly is not the best movie of Phase Two, and only tops a couple movies in Phase One, TDW holds it's ground. Much of the movie was CGI effects, which were spectacular. Also, TDW seemed to go along with the overall plan of Phase Two to go darker, which TDW did both literally and story wise. While some may say that Malekith is a perfectly suitable villain, an argument can be made that he was subpar, and could have been made much more evil. Sprinkled throughout the movie were scenes that could have, and probably should have, been removed. Also, some plot point may be confusing, so be sure to pay close attention.
All in all, Thor: The Dark World is a solid movie. Chris Hemsworth gives the best performance he has given as the character. Tom Hiddleston once again shines as Loki, and Natalie Portman does a solid job as Jane Foster. Unfortunately, Stellan SkarsgÃ¥rd's Dr. Erik Selvig is ridiculously underused and treated as a joke, which is a shame especially considering the roles he play in Thor and The Avengers. With all this being said, Thor: The Dark World is still a definite must see.
Rating: 7 of 10
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