Right down the middle

If Thor was the exact same movie but released in 1997 it would have been the best superhero film since Batman Returns. But it had to be released in a world that already had Blade, X-Men, X-Men 2, two Nolan Batman films and Iron Man. And given the subject matter its hard not to compare this movie to those movies.

Thor is a simple jump shot, a base hit for a single, a 5 yard pass. Its fine. Good enough. Well executed and for the most part unremarkable.

Thor is a superhero film about a spoiled Demi-God, Thor, forced to grow up and prove himself worthy or his birthright. He has a love interest with a sassy friend. He has a dominating father, the one who challenges Thor, a duplicitous brother with an axe to grind and a secret and some fun friends. Simple is not bad and simple is what this is. I would argue that this movie attempted nothing MORE than simple. Hell a lot of movies swing for the fences and totally whiff.

Chris Hemsworth is a good action actor but has real chops when it comes to comedic timing, Natalie Portman and he have great chemistry. Kat Dennings is fun and the Skarsgård patriarch is always good. Idris Elba

and Anthony Hopkins both feel a little wasted but I think they both are having fun. Tom Hiddleston stands out as Loki and even years later you can see why he as a fan favorite.

Kenneth Branagh does a good job as a director making sure the silliness of the film doesn't overpower everything else. It would be easy to let the costumes, set or villains look cheesy AND lean into the campy factor but this film never winks at the audience. Either you are invested or your not.

Thor is fun though I probably won't watch it again until my next MCU rewatch.