Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Thor: The Dark World - Fantasy Tropes Abound In This "Mighty" Sequel, Its Thunder Utterly Stolen By Loki!


"Or you'll kill me? Apparently there will be a line." - Loki

There's an ongoing trend I've noticed in recent years, that fans of comic book movies are tired of watching their origin stories. If a popular and iconic character somehow didn't start right, or if their original time on the silver screen is outdated, it's natural to want to give the character new life in a new setting that new audiences can connect with. Plenty were skeptical of Thor before it came out in 2011. It looked odd, hokey, with copious potential for cheese. We were pleasantly surprised, so much that we couldn't wait to see the hammer-hurdling hero in The Avengers. Some might be tired of origin stories, but shouldn't we be more tired of rushed sequels that aim to cash in on fans without appearing to match - or attempt to match - the quality of their predecessors? Thor loses some of his thunder in The Dark World, but there's enough humor and action throughout to distract us from its clumsy plot and overused fantasy tropes.

Two years after Thor met Jane, the great gatekeeper, Heimdall, can no longer see her. Thor learns that a mysterious substance called the Aether has seeped into Jane's body, drawing on her life force and threatening to end her life. This same substance is being sought by the dreaded dark elf, Malekith, who wishes to use it to plunge the universe into an eternal darkness, for no reason. Taking Jane to the dark world will save Asgard and give Thor a chance to destroy the Aether, but only one can get there against Odin's wishes: Loki.

Among the film's finer attributes are elements I wanted to see more of in the first film, and I clearly got my wish: seeing more of Asgard. It's a beautiful setting, and the whole cast of supporting characters (in that world and in ours) are back and looking their best - especially Tom Hiddleston. The enemy has interesting aspects and ship designs that could rival anything in the Star Trek universe. Some clever fighting sequences and a crushing final blow was certainly sweet to witness as well. It's hard to shake a stick at the visual aspects, especially the most epic viking funeral ever seen on the screen.

(And no, I won't say who died - that would be a spoiler).

But in the end, what this sadly boils down to is a lot of unoriginality in this film. Or rather, it takes a slew of old - if not overused - ideas and doesn't try to spin them in a fresh way, something that can be easily overlooked if all you're going for is eye and man candy (no shame in that, right?). This includes the worlds aligning, a one-dimensional villain, and character traits inconsistent from the original. But these are the tip of The Dark World's woes. There's witty lines and good humor, sure, but half of the jokes try too hard. Several fantastic avenues could have been explored that never were, including the anticipated Thor and Sif dynamic. You can't have Sif give Jane a jealous look and forget to resolve that conflict! Most disappointing of all was Thor's metamorphosis from a hammer-wielding hulk with epic, loveable anger issues into a limp, love-sick puppy. Not since Spider-Man 3 have we seen a hero become so mopey.

The absolute best thing about this film is Loki - hands down - who alone holds the consistency stick and is worthy of theater admission. This might as well have been Loki's movie, since he clearly stole Thor's thunder, even when Loki wasn't present in the scene.

He's sly like that.

Thor: The Dark World suffers most from the "let's rush and get this done so we can make loads of money" sequel treatment, sacrificing story for banking on hype - but it's still a likable and cozy fit in the hero movie universe ... and the shallow end of the Marvel canon.

Cosmic Crullers:

If you've seen Thor: The Dark World, what are your thoughts on it? Who's looking forward to the next Marvel adventure?

I'm David, and (I'm sure) he'll find a way to save us all ...


21 comments:

  1. I haven't seen it yet (but I'm looking forward to when I can!), but I'm surprised at hearing that Malekith is a one-dimensional villain. I read an interview with Chris Eccleston (whom I have loved ever since seeing him as the Ninth Doctor, despite how much he apparently hated the role) where he talked about giving the character a very detailed backstory and motivations. Apparently none of that came through in the performance!

    I really hated the idea of Sif having unrequited love for Thor - she was way too interesting a character in the first film to be delegated to just another chick in love with the hero, so I will be one viewer un-disappointed over them leaving that avenue unexplored.

    But mostly, I want to see the movie for Tom Hiddleston-as-Loki. I love his quips and the sly humor!

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  2. I didn't like the first one that much or the Iron Man sequels so I'm not holding out much hope for this.

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  3. I liked how we saw a bit more into the secondary characters. That funeral was impressive. I was entertained by the eye candy and by Loki. It was better than the second and third Iron Man movies in my opinion.

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  4. I love action movies and enjoyed all of the comic world movies. The comics themselves are over the top and some stories don't have a lot of dimension in some villains or story lines. Still, I love the heroes. :-)

    I have noticed the penchant of movie makers, recently, who rely heavily on dynamic visuals to distract the viewer from weak story lines. That's a shame since it only takes a little effort to start with a solid story and then add the icing of great action and visuals to the story.

    I do think Loki is a great character! Despite him not being the good guy he was great to watch in the first and I'm glad to see this carry over in this one. Good actor too!

    Still, I'm looking forward to seeing this one.

    Sia McKye Over Coffee

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  5. I really do want to see this movie. Hopefully I can make some time for it this week. Work and NaNoWriMo take up all my time...

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  6. I've heard mixed reviews of this, though I know I'll see it at some point. Mainly because I want to see Loki :)

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  7. I haven't seen it, though we thought about going last weekend. After reading your review, it might take me a while to get to the theater on this one. I might even wait until it shows up on Netflix or something. Thanks for an honest thorough review. I do appreciate it!

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  8. I've seen it and I liked it. I am hoping that some of the issues you mentioned will be addressed in the third installment (i.e. Sif's feeling about Thor and Jane as a couple). Loki was a favorite of mine even when he was a villain. Tom Hiddleston is just FANTASTIC. I actually cried after the fight on the dark world. This may not have been the best it could be, but it was still pretty good.

    That funeral on Asgard was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

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  9. I haven't seen it, but it sounds like one my husband would like. :)

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  10. I disagree almost entirely with what you're saying here. I think this one is better than the first by quite a bit. But, then, you read my review.
    And this is no "rushed sequel" movie. Just sayin'.

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  11. I haven't seen it yet...but it's on our to-be-watched list.

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  12. It's on our list once I can break away from edits and writing a new book.

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  13. I looooooove Natalie Portman... V for Vendetta? Can I say more??? But that's disappointing with the unoriginality... I'll definitely watch it. When it comes out on redbox. :P

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  14. Oh man! I loved this one. Actually, of all the comic book movies, Thor was my favorite. So pure. So sweet. But, I did like this second one more than the first. *shrugs* What can I say? We'll just have to disagree. :P

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  15. I haven;t seen either movie yet, but I feel like I have - just from looking at my dashboard on Tumblr. :)
    They're on my to-do list. I'm like everyone else on the planet, I want to watch Loki...

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  16. I will say what I have said everywhere else. This movie was good, but could have been called Loki. My friend that went with me is a huge Thor fan. After the first movie went limp, for him, he had high expectation. He was quite let down.

    I really thought this time we would see the strength of Thor. There was a moment at the end he could have wowed. He is one of the strongest characters in Marvel and yet they dumb him down for some reason. Oh well I got my MoS Blu-ray this week so I have been able to go comic fanboy and not be disappointed.

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  17. I'm still going to see it. It looks a lot better than most movies that have come out lately.

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  18. Sequels are often disappointing because of that. And, unfortunately, I'm seeing that trend in books too. Authors are pushed to far to fast to pump out new books to meet deadlines and keep the attention of our instant, want it now society. I think if everyone relaxed a bit we would find that most people would rather wait just a bit longer for a higher quality work. Or maybe that's just me. We'll probably wait and catch this movie on Netflix.

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  19. Every time a new Marvel movie comes out and my friends rather go see some romance I have to reconsider my life choices. Haha, no I'm not that mean. But really, I haven't seen The Dark World yet. The trailers haven't gotten me too convinced, but I'm sure I'll end up going to see it anyways. Great review, I always love your insight. :)

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  20. Excellent review! It's tough to keep sequels fresh with compelling plots.

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  21. Great review, David - and it sounds like I might be disappointed with this movie as well. But then, I love the guy who plays Loki, so maybe I can enjoy his man candy. Of course I am going for the Thor-candy as well, so probably my shallow needs will be easily met. :D

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