IN WHICH OTHER WORLDS ESCAPE TO US... "THOR"

I know, I know, this is mainly one for the fans. A film I mean. Not  blog post. I may have mentioned that on a normal day to day basis, Hollywood action – adventure films do not feature high on my “to watch” list. But there comes a time when even my interest is piqued. I’m guessing if you’re a fan of Marvel comics and all that that franchise entails, you have already seen this one. If, like me, you’re not THAT into comic books and the like, you may or may not be  contemplating watching it for a bit of a change one evening when you want to watch something fun but not out too much effort into philosophical analysis or complicated story lines. This is the first film of the series, the special effects are spectacular, the actors and actresses beautiful, it is everything modern Hollywood is today. What did I think of it? Well, I’m seriously considering watching The Avengers            later on this week so yeah; this should probably give you a clue…

In this first “episode” of the series, we are introduced to Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Loki, Norse “gods” who live in the peaceful kingdom of Aasgard ruled by their wise and benevolent father Odin (Anthony Hopkins). Thor is the elder and natural successor to the throne – and frankly he can’t wait. He’s an outstanding warrior, handsome, popular and a born leader. He is, on the other hand reckless, hot-headed and has a dangerous tendency to rush into situations without considering the consequences.  And when he opens his whole world up to the possibility of war with their eternal enemies the ice giants, Odin can find no further alternative but to banish Thor to Earth, minus his powers, to teach him a lesson in humility if nothing else. But if this is not painful enough, with Thor gone, forces within the palace that are not as friendly as they claim to be set to work… The danger of war is merely the tip of the iceberg as far these forces go. Thor may be adapting well to his new world and even making friends, especially in the person of the beautiful scientist Jane Foster (Nathalie Portman) but will he find what it takes within his soul to help him return to his duties back home and save his world?

I will not bang on and on about the entertainment value of this one. Like a lot of Marvel films, we are transported to a world of super-heroes and beautiful maidens and it is perfect, seamless, unadulterated escape from your daily woes for all of two hours. We know what we are getting and we get a good quality load. Romantic comedy, action, drama and a very well choreographed “alien getting used to our world” type comedy all rolled into one, and finished off with all the high sentiment and pumping adrenaline of classical storytelling and fairy tales. Now now, don’t get upset I called it a fairy tale. That is what it is, after all…

But there was one point I found particularly fascinating about this particular film. I loved the fact that Jane Foster is a scientist ( I do realise this is probably less to do with the film and more to do with the original storyline). But more importantly I love the fact that we are not told to just suspend disbelief and go “oh so Thor and the Norse gods are real after all – now, moving swiftly on”. The character of Jane Foster means that there is a voice constantly questioning the veracity of what is going on on screen and asking the question “well how can this be?” And sure enough, the film (or, like I said, the story itself. I haven’t read the comics so I’m not entirely sure which) provides an explanation based on physics. Now I know less about wormholes and the theory of parallel universes than I do about Marvel comics. Thus I have no idea how much the physics “stands up”. But I think it is a fascinating point that in the 20^th Century science has become so pervasive in every day life that even what would once be classed as “fairy stories”, now feel the need to provide at least a semblance of a scientific explanation for fear of alienating the audience. The mystification of the world is truly dead people, there is no mystery and no wonder… Or I mean, there is, but we are not very tolerant to it anymore. We MUST know the REASON. For some reason we simply can’t just kick back and enjoy the story…

And I mean, don’t get me wrong, perversely, I LOVED the fact that there is a scientific, “real life” explanation for it all in the film. But I just can’t shake this nagging feeling that this has become more of a “necessity” than anything else. And that we may have irretrievably lost an important part of our collective imagination… Then again, maybe the answer is to kick back and enjoy the ride. Because, if nothing else, Thor does provide a most entertaining ride. Highly recommended.