After getting a taste of the hinted Avengers Initiative in 2008’s Iron Man, audiences were rewarded for their patient four-year wait with the much-anticipated superhero crossover, Marvel’s The Avengers. Now, much like Thor’s hammer, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is in full swing as we progress through Phase Two, with more big story threads coming into play and each entry helping the MCU in becoming a lot more rich as each comic-book mythology continues to expand.
With most of the characters having been introduced throughout Phase One, these solo outings can now focus on adding more to each hero's world and contribute new characters. Even though Iron Man 3 didn't reach the dramatic heights it could have with its material (Remember that weird plot twist?), it looks like Phase Two has picked up the thrills with the return of the god of thunder.
Directed by Game of Thrones veteran Alan Taylor, Thor: The Dark World takes a bigger approach to Thor’s mythology as it delves more into Asgard and the rest of the Nine Realms. Although a few aspects of the story fall short of the grand settings they’re placed upon, the film is still a fitting chapter in the Marvel canon.
Two years after the events of the first film, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is remaining dedicated to protecting the Nine Realms; his half-brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston), has been imprisoned for the destruction he brought to Earth, and scientist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) is in London, studying an astrophysical phenomenon. When her discovery transports her to an unknown world and she becomes infected with a mysterious substance called the “Aether,” Thor returns to Earth to bring her to Asgard to find a way to separate her from the unearthly parasite.
They find out that the Aether’s release has awakened an ancient enemy of Asgard, known as the Dark Elves, led by Malekith (Christopher Eccleston), who plan to use the rare alignment of the Nine Realms and the Aether’s power to plunge the universe into darkness. Thor soon realizes that, if he wants to vanquish this threat, he must recruit Loki for help.
Chris Hemsworth continues to show why he deserves to be Thor. He brings considerable godly authority to the part, but still manages to infuse it with a sense of fun, the kind of high-spirited fun that many of the Marvel films have delivered.
Just like in the original Thor and The Avengers, Tom Hiddleston’s performance as Loki is devilishly fun, and it’s because of this that his character is the best villain in the MCU, so far. Hiddleston portrays him as a truly sympathetic villain, wanting to be as admired as his half-brother, but wanting the king’s throne even more. He could very well be one of the most emotionally-complicated characters that Marvel has brought to the screen. As a plus, he gets some of the film’s funniest lines.
Odin (Anthony Hopkins) is given much more to work with for the sequel, seeing as he was bedridden for a majority of the original. When you have an actor like Hopkins playing the ruler of Asgard, you want to see him display the power and kingship that you know Hopkins can convey to this godlike character, and he certainly brings it.
As a villain, Malekith isn't particularly well-developed, and up until the big finale, we only see him for a couple of minutes at a time. His minions actually get more screen time than he does. That’s a shame because it seems like there are small traces of what could have been a better performance if his character was given more to do, other than stand around, look menacing and utter bits of dialogue here and there.
The story also builds more on the relationships within Thor’s family. In the movie, mostly in the beginning, we see more of the adoptive father-son relationship between Loki and Odin, where Odin is disgusted with Loki for the crimes he has committed. There is also, however, a scene between Loki and his adoptive mother, Frigga (Rene Russo), a character who’s featured more prominently in this installment. We see how Frigga is the parent who truly understands how Loki is feeling, and her presence emanates a feeling of gentle motherhood. This sequel also has more time shared with Thor and Loki in scenes that build the tension, both serious and comical, between the two.
The screenplay by Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely strikes more of a balance between the settings of Earth and the other Nine Realms, especially Asgard, compared to the first film where Earth was the main setting. With the cinematography by Kramer Morgenthau, there is an abundance of attractive storybook imagery, thanks to an expanded view of Asgard.
This deeper look into Asgard allows the story to explore more of Thor's home and the secondary characters. Besides Odin and Frigga, a few other characters who are given bigger roles in this sequel are tough warrior Sif (Jaimie Alexander) and sentry Heimdall (Idris Elba). There is also a supremely entertaining cameo from another character in the MCU.
As in other Marvel films, there are plenty of humorous bits. While some of the jokes hit the mark, some of them fall flat and distract from the action. There also could have been a little less of Darcy Lewis’ (Kat Dennings) character.
In terms of the subplot concerning the romance between Thor and Jane, while it does raise the stakes, it can feel somewhat needless at times. In the portion of the film when Jane is on Asgard and is walking with Thor, there is a brief moment when she passes Sif, and the two have a stare-down for a few seconds; in an earlier scene, Sif has a one-to-one discussion with Thor, and you get the sense that she might have feelings for him, and I was worried that the movie would throw in a needless love triangle. Thankfully, it didn’t.
In true Marvel fashion, there is a mid-credits scene that sets up a future installment for later in Phase Two, and this segment also includes some hints of what’s to come in Phase Three. Without giving much away, the scene involves an Oscar-winning actor in what looks like will be one of the most enjoyable performances of 2014 cinema.
Director Alan Taylor has helmed several episodes of Game of Thrones, so he's an appropriate choice to direct this sequel, seeing as he has experience in dealing with stories that are driven by elements of fantasy and myth. He has an eye for the grandiosity of the Asgardian scenery and for the mythology behind it.
Now that Thor has brought superhero excitement once again to the MCU and his second solo adventure has concluded, it’s time to bring on Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Final grade: B
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