Being a huge Marvel fan, I was chomping at the bit to watch 2011's first life-action movie adaptation of demigod Thor. But I must admit, I left the cinema a little disappointed. I couldn't pinpoint exactly what went wrong with the film, albeit if anything really went wrong at all. But in my eyes, it just didn't match up to not only my hyped expectations but other Marvel movies as well, such as Iron Man or X-Men.
Despite that cementing Thor as my least favourite Marvel superhero (I then saw Captain America and the bottom slot was quickly filled by another), I was eager to give the second instalment a try! And I'm glad I did, as Thor: The Dark World has none of what failed it's first go.
Like Iron Man 3 earlier this year, Thor 2 follows on from Avengers Assemble (with plenty of knowing references to it throughout). Having taken Loki back to Asgard to be punished for his actions on Earth, the realm sees itself under attack by Dark Elves, hellbent on plunging the entire universe back into one of darkness. Villainous Malekith (Christopher Eccleston), leader of this crusade, wants after a powerful force called The Aether which when unleashed, will fulfil his dream of forever living in the dark. When Jane literally stumbles across The Aether and becomes tangled in Malekith's evil plot, Thor can't help but try to save the planet and the woman he loves once more.
It was pleasantly surprising to see quite a lot of Loki, despite him not being the villain in this film. Tom Hiddleston's interpretation of the "God Of Mischief" is inarguably brilliant as he mixes quippy one-liners and menacing glances simultaneously. Not many could portray a likeable bad guy so successfully, so hats off to the London-born actor.
It's not only Loki that provides the movie with some chuckle-worthy moments, Kat Dennings has us laughing in every scene that she's in as Jane's intern Darcy, and all the other characters also have their moments.
Something that has always been different with Thor than a lot of the other Avengers is that he has a close group of Asgardian buddies that he relies on when carrying out his Earth-saving missions. Despite his obvious power, he often needs someone to help him out and this is one thing that makes Thor loveable in Thor 2. This kind of camaraderie comes across well on screen and in this film in particular makes audiences relate to Thor a little more than in the first, making him more likeable. Whilst we mainly saw his Asgardian friends in battle in the last film, we see more of them acting as moral support to Thor and this is a refreshing change, bringing all the characters involved down to a human-level.
What makes The Dark World much better than Thor respectively, is that it undeniably has a story-line. Unlike the previous film, you don't walk away asking yourself 'just who was the villain, exactly?!' or whether you actually LIKE Thor. His relationship with Jane seems much more real in The Dark World and this softer, protective side to the bulging hunk is much more endearing than the arrogant, reckless personality we saw before.
One parting word of wisdom, if on the off-chance you haven't seen this film already, if you're not too bothered about 3D, opt for the 2D tickets. There wasn't really much to ogle at three-dimensional wise and if you only want to see things popping out the screen then you won't be pleased with what The Dark World is giving! Also, if you're a big comic-book movie buff, stick around for the notorious Marvel "after-credits" snippet - setting it up for another film whether it be just a Thor instalment or an Avengers movie! Only a few minutes long, but you won't want to miss it.
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