Movie Review: Thor

Mjolnir, the great hammer, formed in the heart of a star, is wielded by a boy. A boy, living in the body of a man.... And this boy, craves war. Thor, the god of thunder and wielder of Mjolnir, has grown up in Asgard. Under his father the king, he longs for the day when he can take his place as the king. With that title, he would declare war on the ancient race of the “Ice World”.

Against his father’s wishes, he goes with his loyal friends to this world and attacks the people there. Thus reigniting an ancient war which had been at peace for thousands of years.

As punishment for Thor’s arrogance and disobedience, his father banishes him to earth until he learns what is means to be a true king.

Things I liked

In the most simple of terms, Thor is a coming of age story, this movie shows how a boy becomes a man, albeit with supernatural powers. At the start of this movie, we see Thor immaturely make decisions without thinking of the consequences. He is arrogant, hot headed, and thinks only of glory in battle.

Through the story, Thor learns many things about being a man, and begins to embody them. Some are selflessness, honor, patience, and sacrifice. We see him turn into a gentleman who exhibits traits worthy of imitating.

Thor’s Father also is worthy of note. He is shown to have wisdom and patience. He hates the fact he has to banish Thor, but like any loving father, does so.

Finally, Magic/gods. I know this is the turn off for many christians. Oddly enough, the movie made it explicitly clear there is no magic in Thor's world. Rather it is science. They called what we call magic "science we don't yet understand". The gods were not portayed as gods, but people living on another planet with greater knowledge than us. In other words... Aliens.

Things I didn’t like
In terms of content, there is a reason this film is rated PG-13. Thor has a hammer, and boy does he know how to use it. Many "people" of the ice realm are killed by Thor. No blood is shown in the movie except once. (a person is run thru with an icicle). It is truly a smashingly violent movie, but not as intense or graphic as Lord of the Rings

There is a relationship scenario with a girl. Which results in one intense kiss on the lips.

There are a few times when God's name is taken in vain, and 3-4 other curse words.

There are a couple bar scenes where people are drinking, and a person gets drunk.

Closing Thoughts
Having seen numerous superhero movies. This one stands out to me.

Why?

Thor is a rare gem from hollywood. Thor is a boy and is struggling against pride, like all of us do. He is punished by his father and instead of rebelling against his family, like so many other productions portray, he in turn becomes apologetic and wishes to be redeemed.

Good wins, even if it is hard at times in the movie to see who is actually good. Evil is sought out and punished. Honor is glorified, deceit condemned.

Many a boy can watch this movie and be amazed at Thor’s superpowers. However, with some guidance, a boy can watch this movie and learn that leadership doesn’t rest in arrogant power, but in humble service.

This movie hits the nail on the head, and drives home those values in a way I won’t be forgetting for a long time.