I beheld in breathless wonder…

I just got back from seeing Thor. For a while I’ve been kicking around whether or not to give brief thoughts of comic book movies on this blog. I usually see every superhero flick when it comes out (“support the team” and all that), so it wouldn’t exactly call for any extra effort on my part to do so. It seems a natural fit, and I can think of no better comic-to-film property to get things started than the character whose original book gave the title to this little spot in the web.

Thor is better than it has any right to be, and I mean that in the best way possible.

I’m sort of tired and have my customary post-3D headache, so let me just go through this thing in bullet fashion to give you the highs and hmms:

1. I was concerned about the casting of Thor. I was worried that Chris Hemsworth wouldn’t be able to pull off the big brick of meat that is the God of Thunder. My fears have been allayed. He is Thor. He fills the hero role in the proud tradition of Hugh Jackman, Robert Downey, Jr. and, dare I say it, Christopher Reeve. In fact, no one in this thing seems out of place, from the earnest Natalie Portman as Jane Foster to Tom Hiddleston in a memorable turn as Loki. And folks, Loki’s horns don’t for a moment feel stupid, and he is the scheming, wounded prince that we all know and loathe. He really channels some Joaquin Phoenix in Gladiator here.
2. Asgard is magnificent. It makes sense and seems natural — even the Rainbow Bridge.
3. Wasn’t Rene Russo a star at one time? She’s barely in this. They must have been paying her by the word.
4. When Thor is whipping Mjolnir about like a propeller blade, I saw Jack Kirby. When he’s flying around, I saw Walt Simonson.
5. A certian Marvel character soon to be in The Avengers makes a not-so-secret cameo in this. It’s very forced and sticks out like a sore thumb, which isn’t surprising since he was cast in his role after they finished principal photography on this puppy. But there’s a very brief allusion to a gamma-irradiated scientist that made me smile. So those two things cancel each other out.
6. Towards the end, I thought to myself I am watching Thor fight Loki. On the Rainbow Bridge. And it doesn’t look silly. I feel like I should pat Kenneth Branagh on the back for that. Or, more fittingly, buy him a flagon of mead. (Though his tendency to tilt the camera in half his shots can grow a bit old.)
7. They really have to stop forcing this 3D crap down our throats. It’s a stupid gimmick. At no point is it necessary for this film. Except to make me pay more to see it.
8. The “fish out of water” stuff in Mew Mexico is genuinely funny. When Thor walks heedlessly into traffic, much to the dismay of local motorists, I half expected him to pull a Jim Kirk and fire back a “Double dumbass on you!”
9. The Warriors Three and Sif’s roles were fairly thin, and though I picked up on smaller bits of characterization with them I’m wondering if moviegoers unfamiliar with the source material would have the same impressions.
10. Sam Jackson’s de rigueur post-credits appearance introduces a classic Marvel WMD to the film universe. Just put me in a coma now and wake me up next year for The Avengers.

There. That wasn’t so hard.

Thor gets four out of five Mjolnirs, making it a Blog into Mystery must-see.