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| Courtesy of Marvel |
For casual fans of the Marvel
flicks, their rollout strategy might prove confusing. Not only is The Dark
World a follow-up to Thor, it’s also a direct sequel to The Avengers.
Viewers who saw the former and skipped the latter may be awfully confused when
they see the villainous Loki (Tom Hiddleston) being escorted around Asgard in
chains, considering he appeared to die at the end of the first one. It’s not an
insurmountable narrative hurdle, though (this is a comic book movie, after all);
most people will figure out the context pretty quickly.
The
MacGuffin-based plot gets confusing at times and often stretches credibility (even
in a movie with flying gods, magic hammers and teleportation). However, considering
how often the story allows various combinations of interesting characters to trade
entertaining one-liners, it’s hard to get too upset about it.
At
the end of The Avengers, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) helped save the world and returned
his scheming brother Loki to their home in Asgard. But viewers invested in the
hero’s romance with Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) or his contentious
relationship with his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) were left hanging. The
Dark World starts connecting those loose narrative threads with a lengthy
prologue establishing the film’s villain.
Long
ago, a race of evil creatures older than the universe was banished for eternity
by Odin’s father. (Not sure how living things could exist before the cosmos,
but never mind.) Now the beings’ ruthless leader Malekith (Christopher
Eccleston) has reappeared, seeking revenge against those who attempted to destroy
him.
He
does significant damage to Asgard’s defenses, leaving the kingdom essentially
powerless. The attack forces Thor and his friends (Jaimie Alexander, Zachary
Levi and Ray Stevenson) to disobey Odin’s lockdown order in an attempt to lure Malekith
into a trap. Thor’s plan involves a couple of interesting developments.
First,
he reunites with Jane and brings her to Asgard since she has been infected with
the virus-like weapon Malekith is searching for (it’s a long story). Next, he must
rely on help from the absolute last person he should turn to in this situation –
Loki. With further assistance from Jane’s Earth-bound colleagues (Kat Dennings
and Stellan Skarsgard), the unlikely group of heroes might just save the Nine
Realms.
If
all of that sounds like a hodgepodge of Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, you’re
not far off. No one is going to throw around words like “innovative” or “unique”
to describe The Dark World. But it is a lot of fun, which is the most vital requirement.
If this story was a grim, Nolan-esque slog about how difficult it is to be a
hero, it would be unbearable to watch. Instead, the two-hour running time flies
by thanks to a story that doesn’t take itself seriously and a couple of performers
who are clearly having a blast.
While
actors like Hopkins and Eccleston sleepwalk through the film (I didn’t know it
was possible to overact and still be disengaged, but alas…), Hemsworth and
Hiddleston infuse all of their scenes with pure exuberance. They seem to know opportunities
for iconic roles are rare and fleeting, so they’re relishing every moment.
Their chemistry is outstanding; even when their characters hate each other, it’s
apparent that there’s genuine love underneath.
Portman
does her best with Jane Foster, but the character still ends up a glorified
damsel in distress. She eventually plays a part in fighting the enemy, but
there’s still a lot of standing around on the sidelines until then. I can see
why there are rumors that she was reluctant to reprise her role.
Skarsgard
takes on the job of the film’s buffoon (usually running around without pants) and
Dennings – thankfully! – proves being on 2 Broke Girls hasn’t killed her
spirit or sense of comic timing. I appreciated the reminder that she’s too special
to be wasted on that awful show.
Alan
Taylor, taking over directing duties from Kenneth Branagh, knows his way around
fantasy worlds thanks to his work on Game of Thrones and he employs that
talent to great effect here. The battle scenes are solidly executed, with character
beats remaining at the forefront of the action. The written-by-committee screenplay
(with various credits going to Christopher Yost, Christopher Markus, Stephen
McFeely, Don Payne and Robert Rodat) is all over the place, but the talented
cast makes it work.
I’d
say The Dark World falls squarely in the middle of the pack of the current
Marvel Cinematic Universe. It’s not up to the level of The Avengers, but far
better than entries like Iron Man 2 and The Incredible Hulk, which haven’t
held up well over time. As with all Marvel flicks, make sure you stay until the
very end of the credits for a sneak peak at where the franchise is headed, as
well as a cute gag that pays off a seemingly random plot point.
Thor:
The Dark World is rated PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and
violence, and some suggestive content.
Grade:
B
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