Thor: The Dark World (2013)
Action | Adventure | Fantasy

From the Studio that brought you the #1 Super Hero movie of all time, Marvel's The Avengers, comes another must-own, epic blockbuster starring Chris Hemsworth as The Mighty Thor. Worlds collide when a powerful ancient enemy threatens to plunge the cosmos into eternal darkness. Now, reunited with Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), and forced to forge an alliance with his treacherous brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Thor embarks on a perilous personal quest to save both Earth and Asgard from destruction. Experience this action-packed adventure featuring exclusive bonus content, including a Gag Reel, deleted scenes and a new Marvel short film!

Storyline: Thousands of years ago, a race of beings known as Dark Elves tried to send the universe into darkness by using a weapon known as the Aether. But warriors from Asgard stop them but their leader Malekith escapes to wait for another opportunity. The warriors find the Aether and since it can't be destroyed, they try to hide it. In the present day, Jane Foster awaits the return of Thor but it's been two years. He's trying to bring peace to the nine realms. Jane discovers an anomaly similar to the one that brought Thor to Earth. She goes to investigate and finds a wormhole and is sucked into it. Thor wishes to return to Earth but his father, Odin refuses to let him. Thor learns from Heimdall, the one who can see into all of the realms that Jane disappeared. Thor then returns to Earth just as Jane returns. But when some policemen try to arrest her, some kind of energy repulses them. Thor then brings her to Asgard to find out what happened to her. When it happens again, they discovered that ... Written by rcs0411@yahoo.com

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Kenneth Brown on February 6, 2014 -- With Thor, we were given access to the heavens but too often remained firmly planted on Earth. With The Avengers, we witnessed the full fury of forces beyond our known universe... from the streets of Manhattan. However, with director Alan Taylor's Thor: The Dark World, Marvel Studios finally says to hell with it, bids the Big Blue a fairly significant farewell and grants fans of the Nine Realms the cosmic clash of the titans they've been waiting for. Yes, Taylor's action-packed sequel still makes one too many return trips to Earth, with London-based bookends and interludes. This isn't Guardians of the Galaxy. (Yet!) But for the first time, Marvel seems confident in journeying off world; the studio's carefully laid, meticulously executed plans coming, at long last, to fruition. Creating a shared saga was only Phase One. Phase Two is all about testing how far audiences are willing to allow Marvel to drift from the safety and security of standard superhero fare. And ye gods be praised, the masses are, at least for the moment, more than eager to follow Hollywood's hottest subsidiary studio wherever it leads. For those complaining that every superhero movie is the same as the last, prepare yourselves for the weird, wild reaches of the Marvel Universe. Thor, The Avengers and, really, The Dark World is only the beginning.

With Loki (Tom Hiddleston) imprisoned for crimes committed in Midgard and peace and order restored to the Nine Realms, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) returns to Asgard triumphant. His father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins), sees in his son a worthy successor; his mother, Frigga (Rene Russo), a boy who's finally become a man; and his companions -- Lady Sif (Jamie Alexander), Volstagg (Ray Stevenson), Fandral (Zachary Levi) and Hogun (Tadanobu Asano) -- a noble warrior, tireless friend and honorable prince. But peace is once again threatened when Dr. Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is possessed by a sinister energy weapon called the Aether, a vindictive Dark Elf named Malekith (Christopher Eccleston) is roused from deep space hibernation, attacks the Asgardian capital and leaves nothing but death and heartache in his wake. Determined to save Jane from the Aether and stop Malekith at all costs, Thor elicits the help of Sif, the Warriors Three and Bifrost guardian Heimdall (Idris Elba), recruits and frees his disgraced brother Loki, and gives chase. Elsewhere, on Earth, Dr. Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgård) and feisty intern Darcy (Kat Dennings) begin to notice an alarming increase in strange phenomena as they near an event dubbed the Convergence; a once-in-a-millennia alignment of the Nine Realms Malekith plans to exploit to annihilate everything in existence.


The trouble with Thor, much as I enjoy it, is that so much time is devoted to mythos justification and superpower-stripped moping. The film establishes a world of far-flung realms well worth exploring and a terrific (and terrifically assembled) cast of characters, and what's one of the first things it does? Spend the better part of its runtime with a powerless hero stranded on Earth who passes time yanking on a hammer that's stuck in the ground. In their defense, Marvel and Kenneth Branagh weren't exactly sure anyone would buy into a flick about ancient Norse space-gods wielding magic weapons against ice giants and fire-spewing Destroyer droids. And despite all its shortcomings, Thor is still a great little film; one that rather thanklessly laid crucial groundwork for everything that came after. The Dark World, though, isn't mired in such necessary spoon-feeding evils. Taylor's sequel charges into battle boldly and valiantly, brandishing Dark Elves, space ships, dimensional portals, fiery berserkers, Asgardian campaigns, stone behemoths, intergalactic prisons and castle sieges. All in the first forty-five minutes, no less. Taylor doesn't waste any time waiting for newcomers to catch up, much less keep up. Like The Avengers, The Dark World demands you either get on board or look for another ride.



It's also a more rewarding successor to The Avengers than Iron Man 3, as it more directly and effectively deals with the aftermath of Loki's invasion of New York. Marvel could have shelved the series' resident Trickster or, worse, made him the primary antagonist of a third film. But the studio that Jack and Stan built is much smarter than that. Taking the path least chosen, Marvel introduces additional complexity and duality to Loki's character; a move typically attributed to more "serious cinema." And yet that's precisely what The Dark World and screenwriters Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely pull off. Hiddleston's Loki is infinitely more interesting than before, and he was already one of the MCU's biggest scene stealers. Hemsworth ups his game as well with a more three-dimensional, slightly less humorless Thor than we've seen, complementing Hiddleston's colorful flourishes and outbursts grimace for grimace and grin for grin. Together -- or in the company of Hopkins' Odin, Elba's Heimdall, Russo's Frigga, Alexander's Sif, Stevenson's Volstagg or Eccleston's Malekith, all of whom turn in excellent performances -- the brothers are simultaneously a perfectly compatible and perfectly disastrous odd couple, and the implied history they share is more palpable than ever. Make no mistake: whenever the film drifts from Thor and Loki's sides, it does so at its own peril.

If the sequel errs it's in its ever-fluctuating tone. Marvel remains intent on keeping things relatively light in the MCU and avoiding the oppressive darkness of series like Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy. And more power to 'em. (Even if the irony of the film's title won't escape anyone.) I'll be the first to admit it's nice to have fun with a superhero movie every now and again rather than being dragged along behind a quasi-realistic adaptation of a wholly unrealistic story. (Engrossing and masterfully made as Nolan's films are, they're intentionally heavy and joyless.) Still, Thor's second go-round is a bit too erratic, bounding between tragedy and comedy with something resembling a disregard for emotional resonance. It occasionally even feels as if several key transitional scenes were left on the cutting room floor. Pacing and storytelling receive a boost in the breakneck department, sure, but it isn't always for the best. One particularly devastating blow in Asgard and its subsequent fallout are immediately followed by scenes of comic relief in a British mental hospital. The shift is jarring and could have easily been alleviated had Taylor and editors Dan Lebental and Wyatt Smith simply added a few brief minutes between such disparate beats.

That said, any ensuing whiplash is more a product of Marvel over-exerting its control than of Taylor's original vision going awry. Lest ye forget, the studio ordered last-minute re-shoots to inject more humor into the mix after determining The Dark World was, erm, too dark. (Bleed over from Taylor's work with Game of Thrones no doubt.) Fortunately, Taylor is absolved of any sins the second he hurries back to Asgard and the Nine Realms, returning the focus of the story where it belongs: on Thor and Loki rather than Erik and Darcy. The result? There's plenty of fun to be had, not to mention Shakespearean drama, beautifully written brotherly conflict, grand battles and a rich expansion of Thor and Loki's individual arcs that make The Dark World a full-fledged sequel instead of Thor 1.5 or an epilogue to The Avengers. Does it top the first Thor? In many ways, yes. In some ways, not quite. (Jane irritates, the final showdown is interrupted by humans dabbling in rickety junk science, a love triangle is introduced only to be promptly abandoned, and the Darcy hand is overplayed.) Even so, the Thor series continues to churn out some of the MCU's most delightful surprises. I can't wait to see where Odin's boys go next. Hopefully farther and farther away from Earth with each new entry in the franchise.

Free from the shackles that bound the first film, Thor: The Dark World is a brisker, more refined and more satisfying Asgardian adventure bolstered by a sharp, crafty screenplay and another round of first rate performances. Hiddleston steals the show yet again, but Hemsworth is no slouch, adding welcome depth and dimension to a hero who could easily be all too flat. Bring on Thor 3. Disney's Blu-ray release, meanwhile, is a must-own title for any Marvel movie geek. With a first class video presentation, incredible DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track and full complement of special features, The Dark World comes highly recommended.

(Based on Comic Book)

[CSW] -3.5- The plot line in The Dark World fell a little short. It wasn't bad and was entertaining but since the plot line was based on the Aether they need to go out of their way to make me care about or understand it, neither of which I did in a satisfactory way. However there was enough eye candy and scenes that would be really enhanced by 3D that I plant to add the 3D version if the price drops enough. I rented the 2D version to both enjoy and to see if I was interested in getting the 3D version. I would have liked a more cohesive plot line but the overall is just enough to tip the balance in favor of getting the 3D version. I think that I always look for something deeper than just a good popcorn epic but that is what almost all of the graphic novel formats are. Grab you popcorn and enjoy.
[V4.5-A5.0] MPEG-4 AVC - D-Box 10/10.


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