The God of Thunder returns from Asgard to save the day again in Thor: The Dark World. Fans clamored for the hunky hero to make his return and they were not left wanting. The original cast all reprised their roles in this action packed sequel.
The previous movie introduced new fans of Marvel to handsome Chris Hemsworth as Thor, his raven-haired trickster brother Loki, portrayed by Tom Hiddleston, and the lovely Natalie Portman as astrophysicist Jane Foster. These characters and more made reappearances in The Dark World. The film follows were The Avengers left off, Loki, God of Mischief, is in a prison cell in Asgard. Thor and the rest of his Agardian warriors are cleaning up the nine realms and spreading peace throughout the universe. However, peace can never last longer in the Marvel universe, an ancient power, known as Aehter, is unleashed on the human realm. Meanwhile, Jane, who is still recovering from the two years since Thor first left her, is in London tracking electromagnetic waves that, signal the aligning of the nine realms or the Convergence.
On her search, Jane somehow comes in contact with the Aether and it begins to infect her. It is only moments before Thor shows up to attempt to save her and bring her to Asgard. Unfortunately the scientist there can do nothing for her condition and the Aether continues to sap the life out of her. The awakening of the Aether has also caused the Dark Elves, who created the dark substance, to wake from their centuries of slumber.
It is only natural that the Dark Elves would of course want their Aether back to destroy the realms and bring darkness to the universe. In their attempt to get the Aether back they fly into Asgard and kill everyone in their paths to get to Jane, including Frigga, Thor and Loki’s mother. Jane goes unharmed but Frigga dies in the process. In an attempt to save Jane from the Aether that is draining her life force, and to get revenge for the death of his mother, Thor releases Loki from his cell. The two team up for the kind of smack down only brothers can bring. The ensuing battles is more than enough to keep fans gripping their seats and answers a lot of criticisms people have of Thor.
In the past many have criticized Thor for merely being a brute without any redeeming qualities, however in The Dark World, Thor isn’t the arrogant prince he was in the first film. He is more dedicated to serving his people, his family and of course his love Jane. It is a necessary change for the god who, in the past two films seemed only to care about being a hero and came across as a bit egotistical. This movie sees Thor reconnecting with his brother, fighting against the tyranny of his father, and finally following his heart.
Yet all of Thor’s new complexities are nothing compared to Loki. The God of Mischief steals the thunder, pun intended, in almost every scene he is in. Loki is shown as a more vibrant character. He is more prone to pensive and scheming behaviors than all out displays of brawn, unlike his more famous brother and his super friends. In The Dark World Loki’s softer side is also revealed and he is shown to be more than just a villain. He is also a loving son and a loyal citizen of Asgard. Everything he has done in the past has been to prove his worth to his father and win his affection in the hopes he would be named king of Asgard. When all of those plans fail Loki still answers his brother’s call to duty even when it means he will have to a couple punches from Thor’s crew, including Jane.
While the screenwriters spent a significant amount of time adding depth to Loki and Thor, Jane seemed to have lost a lot of the gusto that made her a fan favorite in the first film. Critics praised Thor for it’s dynamic female characters that had no problem being their own superheroes. Both Portman and her assistant Darcy, played by Kat Dennings, were strong independent women. The Dark World shows Jane no longer as the empowered individual but as a sad and lonely women. It is revealed that Jane has spent the past two years since Thor’s departure crying and eating ice cream in her pajamas. While she does have a few redeeming moments she spends the majority of the movie waiting for someone else to save her. It isn’t until the last twenty minutes of the movie that she takes an active role in saving herself and the world. The self-assurance last only as long as Thor is around, when he leaves, Jane is once again depressed, eating a bowl of cereal.
Overall though, the woman of the film hit as hard, if not harder than their male counterparts. Sif, played by Jamie Alexander, member of the Asgard fight squad, shines among her male contemporaries. Frigga brandishes a dagger and lands some serious blows before she is taken out. Darcy even steps up to the plate and pushes Jane to get out of her slump and continue her research. The women in Thor: The Dark World are reflecting a more robust image of women in current society. While Jane may have slipped the other females of the film march forward for her.
Thor is definitely a movie worth seeing for Marvel fans and those new the comic book franchise as well. In just over two hours a clever, original, action packed plot is delivered by a myriad of talented actors. Make sure to checkout Thor: The Dark World in theaters now, and stick around after the credits for tow exclusive sneak peaks.
