I saw and enjoyed this movie today, and it's one of the better Marvel superhero films I've seen over the years. It introduces Thor, one of Marvel's well known comic-book heroes, who will be featured in the upcoming Avengers movie in 2012 or 2013 (?).
Thor (played by Chris Hemsworth) is the brave and adventurous son of Odin, ruler of Asgard. Their race once visited Earth over a millennium ago to defend humans against the invading Frost Giants from another realm. The Asgardians' existence and their interaction with humans would only become the stuff of legends.
When the bold, reckless, and often cocky Thor defies his father's will and starts a fight with the Frost Giants, he is banished from Asgard to live as a powerless mortal on Earth. There he meets an astrophysicist named Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and her two friends in a small town in New Mexico. Unbeknownst to many, Thor's sneaky and treacherous little brother Loki is hatching an evil plot to assume power.
Despite the mediocre script and the uneven story-telling, I enjoyed some of the performances by the actors and the Shakespearean dialogue under the direction of Kenneth Branagh. Anthony Hopkins had a great and commanding presence on the screen as Odin. Chris Hemsworth was cast perfectly to play the part of a ditzy blond Norse god who's so full of himself. Loki's motives weren't really clear to me; from the beginning, I knew he was going to be trouble for Thor. Did he want to kill Odin and be the king of Asgard, or was it his plan to destroy the Frost Giants, or both?
Thor doesn't quite compare to the first Iron Man movie, but it's definitely better than Hulk. What guy wouldn't want to be athletic and strong and have a big hammer? ;-)
Overall Rating: B