I liked the first one better, although I did like it. Truthfully I am in the minority because everybody I know liked the new film a ton better.
You're not alone. I also liked the first one better. Some people look at me like I am nuts. ok, this is long...
Thor 2 was great.
Loki, indeed, makes these movies worth every penny spent on them. Every time he is on the screen he makes it count. He has a journey that reminds me of a Luke Skywalker journey where he progresses in each film and you don't know where they are going to take him. He is such a joy to watch. I am proud to say I am part of Loki's army
I enjoyed seeing more of Asgard, however, I thought the original concept art of Thor 1 was better. I get the director wanted a more Norse/game of thrones type world, but to back track a movie set is kind of weird for me. It did not, in no way, take me out of the movie but it was noticeable. As I posted before, I liked the more metallic, golden, warm, alien feel of the first movie. It was a nice mix of the two settings (norse/future). Overall, more Asgard is always a good thing.
The Warrior's Three: I thought Zachary Levi was a fine choice for Fandral and I may be the only one, but I liked the blond hair on him. My complaints here is there were not enough of them. I understood why Sif got cut: injuries and time. But Why was Hogan is 3 seconds of the film? Did they really need to cut him from the warriors 3? I didn't get that. I didn't do any research to see if there was a reason (did he get injured as well?) but I thought it very strange to split the 3 up. I am interested to see what becomes of them in the next film. As we know, they all comited treason so what is Odin (or Loki) going to do to them? Well, at lease Hogan will be ok....since he wasn't there to commit treason...just sayin'
Earth characters: ok, so...everyone apparently hates Darcy. I thought she was hilarious. I like her humor; I liked her in the first one and liked her in this one. I think her an Jane have good scenes together and it's a different dynamic from boyfriend/father/mentor relationships. I don't remember seeing too many gal pal style relationships in these movies. I also liked Ian. I thought he was funny and not too much of a bother. If I had to say one person to cut for time reasons it would be Dr. Selvig. I really didn't get his need to be in the film. I get it that he was in the first film and in avengers...but the whole 'Loki was in my head now I run around naked thing' was kinda odd. Actually, I am sure if Loki was in MY head I would want to run around naked too...I don't understand why Selvig acts like that is a bad thing....
Now, it's weird because...he was ok in the movie and I get that they were using him to be the one to have the solution to their problem...but I just feel he cluttered it up a bit. I would have preferred if he was NOT in this movie and showed up later on somewhere else.
I also liked Jane. I thought her motivations were all over the place but I don't blame that on Portman, I blame that on the writing. First, she slaps Thor because he didn't come back for her and she saw him in NY. Jane is way too smart to not know that the guy is busy. According to Avengers, Shield moved her for safety...you would think they would have debriefed her on what happened to Thor afterward. Just saying. So they say she was crying and moping around like a 16 year old getting snubbed at the prom. Ok then...if it moves the plot
I just think she would be a little more understanding of the situation. That aside though, I thought she was good. I would have liked to see her have a longer conversation with Loki though. The slap was great but I would have liked to see a conversation. Maybe something between them before the meeting with Malakith. I dunno. ANYWAY, Jane was fine for me.
The special effects were amazing. I think the only effect I did not like was Kurse's transformation in the dungeon. It looked very rough and 'fake.' long too. I was not a fan of that. Everything else looked fantastic. I loved the world jumping. I have not seen something like that before so it was very interesting.
Malakith: eh, what is there to say. He was used as a means for the store to progress. I can't say I wanted to know more about him....cause I didn't...and there really isn't a need. Did we need to know the back story of Darth Vader? do we need the back story of the Joker? not really. He just has to be menacing. What makes Thor the awesome film it is is the relationship between Loki and Thor. Any other villain really is just...filler. I would like to see Surtur though. He seems cool. I am also not a fan of Eccleston. He comes off very arrogant sometimes and I dunno. I could be wrong. I guess what I am trying to say is...I didn't go to Thor to see him.
Over all I really enjoyed this movie. It was funny, action packed, and full of great drama. Now, I said I liked Thor 1 better. It's because I love the drama that comes with these comic book characters. Too much action tends to bore me. Though I did not feel this way with 2, I still feel Thor 1 had more organic drama. More relatable characters. It also felt more streamlined; one story with events happening along the way. The events were easy to follow whereas this movie has a lot of stuff going on from the get go. Which is understandable seeing as how a lot of things have to be set in the beginning. That's fine, but that gives Thor 1 the upper hand for me. I think if they cut some clutter out of it, it would be better. Now, because I like 1 over 2 does not mean I hate 2. It's like a perfect sequel. It gives you enough twists to keep you intrigued while progressing the characters. They fixed some things people had issue with from the first film and I like how they left Thor and Loki and I can't wait to see the next Avengers and Thor 3.
Ok, so I have bored you all enough. I'll stop there and if I think of anything else, I will add it.
Oh yea...the Captain America cameo was hilarious. what makes it even better is knowing the story behind it.
http://www.cinemablend.com/new/How-Thor-Dark-World-Did-Amazing-Cameo-Scene-40243.html
So Thor 2 was amazing and for me, Beats out Man of Steel and Iron Man 3 as my favorite Comic book movie of the year so far.
