Following the events of the first Thor film and the Avengers, Thor and his loyal warriors find themselves putting down rebellions across several worlds. Save all discussions of the virtues of absolute monarchy for other places, as this one is working JUST FINE, thank you. Thor is being groomed to take over the throne of Asgard from his father/the Allfather but continues to dream of earth and Jane Foster/Natalie Portman, who he met for approximately 48 hours in the first Thor movie, but whatever. After an ancient evil that threatens the survival of all of the worlds is discovered, earth and Asgard find their fates intertwined yet again.
The Good: Marvel made the decision following "The Avengers" to branch out its other properties into differing genres. Here, this works to perfection. The first 'Thor' film was a more straightforward superhero origin story, but for round two we're given a fantasy/sci-fi romp with much more humor and a fun approach to what could have otherwise been dense and confusing nonsense. Director Alan Taylor, after honing his fantasy chops on "Game of Thrones" proves to have been a perfect choice to take over the Thor franchise. The powerhouse cast, led by Hemsworth as Thor, Portman as the love interest, Anthony Hopkins as Odin and Tom Hiddleston as Thor's adopted brother and Avengers villain Loki lend gravitas to the proceedings. Every scene with Loki is a treat, as Hiddleston really brings a smarmy humanity and depth to a character who could have easily been a one-note villain. The effects are great and the plot serves to advance Thor as a character and provide an explanation for why he finds himself so interested in Earth. But the main draw here is the tone. Quite simply, this film is a ton of fun to watch. Comic relief is around every corner, but it successfully manages to toe that line between "silly" and "fun".. and that's no easy feat. The supporting characters, especially Kat Dennings, make it clear that everyone involved knows just how silly everything is, but it's still a lot of fun and never feels cheap.
The Bad: the plot feels a bit empty, due primarily to a lack of development of the villains. I get the impression that Malekith was intended to be a counterpoint to Asgard and Odin, but that many of his scenes were left on the cutting room floor. As a result, the villains wind up being a sort of mysterious menace that wants merely to destroy everything out of spite. Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with a one-dimensional villain, but in a film that otherwise does a great job with its characters it feels like something's missing.
All in all, if you had concerns about the Marvel stand alone films following the Avengers... you shouldn't. The decision to treat stand-alone films as just that has allowed the characters to veer off in new and interesting directions and really enriched the cinematic universe as a result. Plus, is there a character in film who's more fun to watch right now than Hiddleston's Loki? He's just chewing up scenery here, and the fact that Hemsworth doesn't feel like an afterthought is a credit to just how good he is at giving Thor some humanity. Alan Taylor is a director to keep your eyes on, folks, he's attached to the reboot of the Terminator franchise.
8/10.
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