Writer: Naseem Randhawa

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Watch this if you liked: “Clash of the Titans”, “Beowulf”, “Hercules", "Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief”

How many characters does Marvel have? From their infinite abyss of superheroes, now comes the god of thunder Thor, that will serve as one of this year's double Marvel feature that will lead up to 2012's "The Avengers". The other Marvel superhero feature that will be out this year is "Captain America: The First Avenger" who will be joined by both Iron Man and Black Widow from the "Iron Man" movies, "Thor" and "The Incredible Hulk" (2008) which later will be forming the ultimate superhero ensemble for "The Avengers".

The story starts of by introducing Thor in the realm Asgard of which his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins) is king. Thor is rashly arrogant and when he invokes war between Asgard and their enemies the Frost Giants, Odin banishes him to Earth where he runs into physicist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman). Back in Asgard, Thor's brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston aka. Jared Leto's doppelganger) takes over the realm while their father is incapacitated and makes new alliances with the Frost Giants. However, the real action is back on Earth where Thor is left as a mere mortal without his powers and his mighty hammer Mjolnir as he seeks to return to Asgard.

At first it seemed risky to adapt Thor into a live action feature, as it would be the first time magic is introduced in the Marvel Universe. And when actor Kenneth Branagh came on board to direct (Yes, he's the guy who played the goofy Gilderoy Lockhart in "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"), comic book nerds clutched their seats in anxiety. Well we're glad to say that the weird combination indeed works for the movie, and audiences will find that the breathtaking landscape and magical electricity of Asgard, blends well to contrast with Earth's New Mexico; the bleak dessert town in which Thor is banished to. The visual effects are possibly Marvel Studios' best yet. This may be hard to believe when one thinks back to the impressive effects that were used to bring Iron Man and the Hulk to life on the big screen, but just wait until Asgard is revealed to the audience. Compared to other superheroes, Thor is possibly one of the hardest to be made convincing without coming across as completely ridiculous. The hammer, Mjolnir, convincingly flies through the air, returning to Thor, and the powers involved with the weapon, whether they be summoning thunder or creating tornados, are all just as equally impressive.

Chris Hemsworth the brother of Liam Hemsworth ("The Last Song"), who is best known to audiences as Kirk's father in "Star Trek's" opening scene, is just as good a fit for the character of Thor as Robert Downey Jr. is for Tony Stark. Sure, one would expect countless slapstick situations involving the mighty god who's suddenly left powerless as a mortal on earth, but the humour in those situations are just adequate for the movie to stray it away from the brink of being annoyingly cliched. It's interesting to see how Oscar winner Natalie Portman settles for an inferior part in this movie as Thor's love interest, especially after her intensity in "Black Swan". However, by just standing next to the 6-foot plus Aussie actor, Portman looks pale in comparison and establishes that she's clearly not the highlight of the movie.

Overall, "Thor" is an awesome Marvel flick with all the right moves to checkmate audiences into wanting to see Thor and Iron Man together in a clash of magic versus science when they occupy the same world for the upcoming "Avengers" in 2012.

Cinema Online, 27 April 2011