The God, the Bard and the Funny

Cine Review: THOR
12A – 114mins – 2011
Story by: J. Michael Straczynski and Mark Protosevich
Screenplay by: Ashley Edward Millar, Zack Stentz and Don Payne
Based on the Marvel Comics character created by: Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby
Directed by: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Anthony Hopkins, Stellan Skarsgård, Clark Gregg, Colm Feore, Ray Stevenson, Idris Elba, Kat Dennings, Jaimie Alexander, Joshua Dallas, Rene Russo
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Proud and overconfident warrior Thor (Hemsworth; well cast), the mighty God of Thunder, is stripped of his supernatural powers and his iconic battle hammer Mjolnir and banished to earth by his incensed father, Odin (Hopkins), ruler of Asgard, after his war-mongering arrogance breaks the fragile peace treaty between the Asgardian’s and the Frost Giants of Jotunheim.

Such is the state of play at the start of this fourth Marvel Comics superhero movie from the collective Universe which has so far brought us Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2 (reviewed HERE), and will continue in Captain America: The First Avenger, The Avengers and a third Iron Man film over the next few years.

British director Kenneth Branagh – a man most noted for his Shakespearian adaptations – may seem like a leftfield choice for a blockbuster Hollywood superhero movie, but then Thor (a character born from ancient Norse mythology) is hardly your typical superhero, and the dialogue spouted – particularly by the deities in the scenes set in celestial city of Asgard – is reminiscent of the lofty language of the Bard’s renowned stage plays.

Visually, the shimmering Asgard locales (in particular the rainbow-coloured Bifrost Bridge ; the road to other realms) look magnificently grandiose, even in the 2D screening I saw. An oft-compared fusion of Flash Gordon’s fantastical pomposity and Lord of the Rings’s towering majesty, you would expect the earth-bound scenes set entirely within a small dustball community in the New Mexico desert to feel disappointing flat given the almighty contrast, but I actually preferred the fish-out-of-water plot as the felled Thor adjusts to a mortal existence in a territory where people bawl instead of bow at his presence.

Not since Tony Stark’s silver-tongued charm in the first Iron Man adaptation has a comic book film so successfully embraced the comic without coming across cheesy: the entire audience were laughing along as Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster and her band of storm-chasing scientists (Skarsgård and a standout performance from the dryly derisive Dennings) quip sarcastically (“Mjolnir? What’s Mmnnn-mnnnn?!”) about the raving loony they accidentally hit with their car… twice.

The humour really works, and it’s almost a shame when the action shifts back to the decadently divine dimension to illustrate Thor’s nefarious brother Loki’s (the quietly slimy Hiddleston) deceitful duplicity. The shift in tone is so gigantic that you may as well be watching two entirely different films. Fortunately, Thor’s trusted compadres, Sif (Alexander) and the Warriors Three (Stevenson, Dallas, Asano) retain a playful sassiness which keeps the comedy quota at a comparative high, even when Loki sends metallic monstrosity “The Destroyer” to Earth to dispatch with his indomitable sibling and the narrative gives way to a full blown CGI sandstorm showdown.

As super-secret agency S.H.I.E.L.D. – lead once more by Iron Man’s Agent Coulson (Gregg) – descends on the dessert to quarantine the unshiftable Mjolnir and confiscate Foster’s wormhole-locating research, links to this ever-expanding Marvel-verse are further enforced without isolating those hazy on the mythology. The now-obligatory post-credits teaser once more sees Samuel L. Jackson make a cameo appearance as Nick Fury, but it feels somewhat less worthwhile and more compulsory than previous tags, but at least we know this is one silver screen superhero saga in full flight.


In a CR@B Shell: A welcome injection of dry wit helps ground this potentially outlandish Norse-God-come-arrogant-superhero tale and keep the fantastical accessible. I still heavily favoured the Earth-bound scenes, but Branagh’s Thor was nevertheless a mighty good summer blockbuster – even if it is only April.
aaaaa

Boys and their Toys

Cine-review: IRON MAN 2
12A – 124 min. – 2010
Written by: Justin Theroux
Based on the characters created by: Stan Lee
Directed by: Jon Favreau
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Mickey Rourke, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson, Garry Shandling
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After a bleak and washed-out Russia-set prologue establishes the theme of fatherly vengeance fuelling physicist Ivan Vanko's (Mickey Rourke) violent motives for becoming electric-harnessing foe Whiplash, Jon Favereau's superhero sequel swiftly shifts gear into a totally different animal for the remainder of its two hour running time, hiding any sense of darkness under a bright and polished shell. Which, as it happens, is also a fair assessment of how we find billionaire man-behind-the-iron-mask Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) as he opens the “Stark Expo”, a year-long technological showcase, amid a blaze of fireworks and cheerleaders; fearful for his survival as the power source keeping his heart beating is slowly poisoning his body, yet all smiles, peace signs and self-assured sarcasm as the poster boy for America's peace: Iron Man.

Unfortunately, everybody isn't quite so in love with Stark as he is with himself: the Government – spearheaded by hot-headed Senator Stern (Garry Shandling) – is determined to take control of Stark's “weapon” for military use, while shameless rival Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) has tenacious plans to upstage the techno-suit and stick two fingers up at Stark by unveiling his own drone-like creations (think beefed-up Super Battle Droids from the Star Wars prequels) at the Expo, by any underhanded means necessary. Being the top dog is really important to these people.

Friend Jim Rhodes (Don Cheadle, replacing Terrence Howard from the first film) isn't always successful in keeping Stark's head in the game – or clear of alcohol – as Tony names former personal assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) CEO of his company, then slowly goes off the rails towards self destruction. A riotous sequence as Rhodes dons his War Machine suit to butt heads with his drunken pal following a disastrous birthday party is a highlight in an otherwise talk-heavy, preparatory middle section as Tony returns to his Minority Report-style lab to battle with the elements and revitalise his uncooperative chest reactor, while Hammer secretly hires the scientific services of a scheming Vanko to mobilize his drone army for a flashy, high-flying conclusion.

The A-list cast are superb at putting the comic in this comic book adaptation; Downey Jr. emanates suit-ably elevated ego, while man mountain Rourke is a believably unpredictable threat and Rockwell is as shady as he is scatty. Scarlett Johansson smoulders as the secretary SHIELDing a secret identity, and even Favereau's chauffeur character, Happy Hogan, is a chucklesome success in an expanded role which sees his boxing training come in handy.

Beyond the buzzing banter, however, the explosive Monaco set-piece early in the plot is never bettered for sheer nail-biting tension, despite the filmmakers employing the 'bigger is better' approach to this entertaining CGI extravaganza. The busy finale ultimately wastes Whiplash's accumulated ferocity in an all-too-brief battle. When all is said, done and blown to smithereens, this big-budget follow-up boils down to a bunch of emasculated men vying to topple a superhuman idol in their magnificent flying (war) machines. Some things never change, no matter how much cash you flash. Question is, who's got the biggest... rocket?


CR@B Verdict: A marvel-lous cast have a tremendous time delivering bright, shiny, summer blockbuster fun, peppered with laughs. Iron Man 2 is a lightweight but likeable robot pissing contest on a grand scale.
***.5