Movie Review - Thor

Thor proves that Norse mythology can be pretty friggin' sweet.

To be perfectly honest with you, I didn't not care one bit for Thor when I first heard about it during development.  I thought the costumes were hokey and I didn't think the whole premise was very interesting.  So I stayed away from each screenshot that surfaced and each trailer that premiered.  After awhile though, avoiding it altogether was near impossible.  I finally caught a trailer at the theater, and it blew me away.  WHAT!? The special effects kick-ass!? WHAT!? It takes place on Earth?! WHAT!? Natalie Portman is in it?!  After that trailer I was hooked.  My girlfriend actually enjoyed the movie, much more than Fast Five, where I constantly saw her roll her eyes as Vin Diesel acting.  This was different though.  These characters were much more real.  I haven't seen an origin story this good since Batman Begins and Iron Man.

Chris Hemsworth as Thor

Chris Hemsworth does a great job as Thor, bringing the cocky attitude along with the heartfelt for his new friends on Earth.  He does a good job showing the range and transition of Thor, from being a over-confident jerk to brave, caring hero.  Idris Elba should also be praised for his portrayal of Heimdall.  He just reeks of coolness.  Interesting use of words.  Moving on.  The rest of the cast is pretty well put together too, such as the great Anthony Hopkins as Odin, and Stellan Skarsgard as scientist Erik Selvig.  Natalie Portman does a good job too, initially confused on Thor's actions, but ultimately falls for him.  Kat Dennings, who is probably best known for Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist, doesn't really have anything to do in the movie besides comment on Thor acting weird and talking like he is still in Asgard.

Asgard. Thor's homeworld.  Shiny and full of metal.

Speaking of Asgard, Thor's homeworld, boy is it a sight to behold.  It is full of interesting architecture and color.  What was the coolest though was the Bifrost bridge that connects our world to Asgard.  It is pretty much a giant cannon that shoots people out of it as lightning bolts.  How sweet is that?  Plus, the effects are also top-notch, really bringing this alien world to life.  The sound effects are also pretty good, especially when people are transported via the Bifrost bridge.

In the end, Marvel Studios has another winner on it's hands.  With a star-studded cast, great effects and a good screenplay, director Kenneth Branagh  really does a good job bringing the tale to life  Not only is Thor great entertainment, he is also a welcome addition to the Avengers movie coming out.  Also, how great was it to see Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye?  I literally got goosebumps.

4.5 out of 5 Stars

Movie Review - Fast Five

Holy crap, the Fast and Furious franchise actually has a movie at 79% on Rotten Tomatoes!

Everyone is sweating in this movie, especially the Rock.  No seriously.

Looking back at what I just typed, I can't believe what I just said.  I mean, it scored a percent higher than Thor!  Ratings aside, director Justin Lin helms his third Fast film to date, and with every installment, he seems to learn more and more.  His latest, and loudest, Fast Five explodes with a great start to the summer movie lineup.  This time, the movie actually has a pretty good plot, focusing on each of the series regulars' strengths as drivers whilst trying to evade the law.  Paul Walker and Vin Diesel, as well as fan favorites from every Fast movie to date, such as Han from Tokyo Drift and Tyrese from 2 Fast.  Yes, Tyrese still has stupid one liners, but that's what I expected from his character.  All in all, the acting isn't the best, mainly because when Vin tries to act (whether as a bad-ass or being sentimental) it's just awkward.  Oh man, AWKWARD.  Bringing in Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was a stroke of genius, giving the film some fresh blood and also some bigger star power.  It was also great to see Vin and The Rock fight each other in a giant steroid brawl.

I hope to see Justin Lin return for the 6th installment ( I mean, come on, if you stayed until after the credits, you'd have been treated to a crazy twist that pretty much null and voids the 4th movie completely.)  Lin expertly chose to have more practical effects that CGI, which is commendable, especially if you take into account how many crazy stunts were in this movie.  Cars flying off bridges, cars exploding, cars crashing, cars driving around with giant bank vaults attached to the back.  You name it, Lin does it.  It all looks great too, and I'd love to see a special features section the DVD on how they achieve some of the stunts.

Red Bull drinking "bros" cheer as Vin and Paul get ready to bail.

After seeing this movie a couple weeks ago, I ran to my car and sat there wondering if I should peel off into the night.  It wasn't an Oscar-caliber movie by any means, with it's corny acting and goofy characters.  It was, however, entertaining as hell.  That's how the Fast franchise works.  If you leave that theater and want to re-create every car chase sequence from the film, you know it worked.  It has never been about the people in the films; its about the cars.  As soon as you realize this, you will start to enjoy these movies a heck of a lot more.

4 out of 5 Stars

Let's Try This Again

Alright it's about 12:22 as I begin typing this.  I pretty much thought I would probably not come back to this blog, and I almost didn't.  I kept thinking about things to write about, and I want to just talk to the internet, even if it doesn't talk back.  People don't have to like my opinions, but I want them to have the chance to at least hear them.  There's a steady drizzle on the window in good old Nebraska.  A lot has happened since my last post, mainly my graduation from college and getting a fancy new degree.  Now on to grad school.  While the next two years go by, I hopefully will keep updating this thing.  Anyways, time to catch up with some movie reviews.  They are a little late, but are still in theaters, so it's not too big of a deal.  Read them if you want.  Also, I will probably start updating about random stuff I do throughout the summer, like weddings I am attending or me trying to launch a rocket.  We will see.  Hopefully I will get around to uploading some architectural things I did during the school year, and some summer projects as well.