By JARROD POTTER
Thor: The Dark World
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman and Tom Hiddleston
SEQUELS. They always suffer from high expectation, low care-factor by studios and are driven only by the profit centre of that insidious corporate monster.
That’s why it’s with great surprise and overall delight I found Thor: The Dark World to be fashioned against the usual grain.
It was quirky, funny, dark and suspenseful – an odd mix you usually associate with British comedy rather than a superhero action film.
Little by little the tough exterior of Thor (Chris Hemsworth) was purged in the midst of his battles with his rebellious brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) and most of all, this movie’s big, bad villain Malekith (Christopher Eccleston).
Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is outshone once again by her sidekick Darcy (Kat Dennings), which isn’t much of a barb at Portman considering how Dennings usually does that to anyone adjacent to her. Still not buying the Hemsworth/Portman love affair, but this is a Marvel film and every hero needs a love interest.
This sequel assumed you knew the original and didn’t belt you over the head with exposition and dare I say it, but was much better than the first iterant of the franchise.
Thor: TDW plays its part within the greater Marvel universe and adds another element to 2015’s Avengers sequel and this is the second generation Marvel film I’m more likely to re-watch (sorry Iron Man 3 … but you’re just not my type). Hammer it into your calendar as it’s worth your time and as always with Marvel films – don’t leave until the lights come on.
– Jarrod Potter
