This movie probably cost $200 million. This thing is five minutes of seemingly finished footage, much of it from major sequences, and with the intent to appease the core audience that will help build the 'buzz' for this very expensive adventure. The cast they've lined up is pretty impressive. And yet, the best thing I can say about the footage above is that Kat Dennings looks even hotter with nerd glasses. The action feels generic (ooh, exploding cars and black-suited men being beaten up!'), the acting is pretty bland (even Hopkins, who usually relishes scenery-chewing pulp fiction, appears asleep at the wheel), and the whole film still feels like a very expensive CW TV pilot. And let's face it, most of the Asgard stuff, with Thor in full suit and/or all the various gods and goddesses playing Shakespeare in space will probably just be in the first and last reels. This movie will likely play out like the 1990 Captain America movie and the 1987 Masters of the Universe picture: 10% Thor in costume kicking ass against the Loki and his goons, 90% Chris Hemsworth in plain clothes running around a city or small town trying to solve his own issues. It's a good thing Thor opens the summer next year, because that's the only reason it will open relatively well, unless of course Marvel is intentionally trying to make the movie look worse than it is. As always, we'll see.
Scott Mendelson
Man, you're totally right about Kat Dennings. I prefer her over Natalie Portman any day of the week. In the quiet words of the famous or infamous LexG:
ReplyDeleteDENNINGS POWER! BOW!
About the trailer, I always thought that Thor would be the hardest Marvel movie adaptation. The whole "Viking alternate universe" is going to be hit or miss. A lot of room for Shakespearean drama and the acting style that comes with that.
They could have gone with full CGI settings (300-style), but instead they went old school. That's fine with me, but I can't judge it alone on this trailer. Bo Welch is the production designer, so I expect quality. (I saw part of MIB2 last night and regardless of the huge crap that movie was, the production design is just tops.)
Hemsworth looks the part, but I still wonder what if Alexander Skarsgard got the job. I can't say much about who plays Loki but Hopkins looks on command like always as Odin. I'm glad that Rene Russo is back after years of absence.
Branagh was an unusual choice for directing, but looks like he understood the dramatic part of the comic. The action sequences looks not impressive, but I'll wait to May to decide for myself.
The problem with the whole Marvel avalanche of films is the hurry to make The Avengers and how that affects the quality of the individual films that precede them.
Iron Man 2 was a major letdown, compared to the first one, just because of the obsession to make the Avengers movie for 2012.
PS: Joss Wheddon is the wrong man for the job IMHO. If The Avengers is supposed to be this huge event film, you better go big and don't go with the guy of overrated TV shows and a pseudo sci-fi western that no one except a few fanboys cared about. I rather have Spielberg for The Avengers that Wheddon. I'm that worried.
Portman looked gorgeous in that ghastly Entertainment Tonight behind-the-scenes clip from a few months ago. Praise for Dennings does not necessarily mean taking Portman down. At the risk of sounding like LexG, I'd gladly take 'and/or'.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I'm a fan of Whedon's 'overrated TV shows' and said sci-fi western. Regardless, I'm guessing he was hired because he is a geek favorite, he's good as handling ensemble casts, and he made the $40 million Serenity look like $100 million. They were never going to get one of the mega blockbuster directors (Spielberg, Burton, Cameron, Bay, etc), so Whedon was a good pick: cheap and professional,, but beloved in the niche community that these films will be sold by.
i've got to tell you, scott, usually i totally agree with you on most of the movie stuff you talk about, but on this one i think you are wrong. i just watched the trailer and i think it looks amazing! i am really excited to see where this one goes. i've never been a fan of thor (own thousands of comic books, but not a single one featuring thor) but i am really excited about this one!
ReplyDeletePoints taken. Thanks for answering.
ReplyDeleteIn the end, either one of us could be wrong. Let's wait and see.
wow i have read your post and have to disagree with all of it, i mean honestly we cant say if the movie will be good or not until it comes out, but to relate it to WB television standards... this isn't twilight effects and teenage mellow drama. The director has managed to take the story of thor and bring it down to our "human" level.
ReplyDeletemost of your post seems to rant on, dont forget that this is unfinished footage and for it being just that it surpasses many other finished movies that have come out this summer.
We will have to wait for the movie to actually come out, but if i can say one thing Anthony Hopkins just in the brief moments in this Unfinished video bring something great to the show, not stale not underperformed, just like many of his performances i am looking forward to a sophisticated character in a power role.
OMG this movie is going to be the best movie ever. more more give us more trailer !!!!
ReplyDeleteI'd say I disagree some things you said in that post.. To say Hopkins is "asleep at the wheel" is purely ridiculous seeing as how there were only bits and pieces. The reference to the CW Pilot made me grind my teeth. That is a low blow. Totally unnecessary. I would think that, at the worst, the percentages with the movie substance will be split 50-50 (Thor kicking ass/Hemsworth in plain clothes). I do agree though that the movie will do much better because of a summer release. And I do believe that Marvel is trying waaaay too hard to crap out all of the preceding movies before The Avengers movie in 2012. I am very hopeful for Thor and intend to see it opening day..
ReplyDeleteOMG this movie is going to be the best movie ever. more more give us more trailer !!!!
ReplyDeleteMan, you're totally right about Kat Dennings. I prefer her over Natalie Portman any day of the week. In the quiet words of the famous or infamous LexG:
ReplyDeleteDENNINGS POWER! BOW!
About the trailer, I always thought that Thor would be the hardest Marvel movie adaptation. The whole "Viking alternate universe" is going to be hit or miss. A lot of room for Shakespearean drama and the acting style that comes with that.
They could have gone with full CGI settings (300-style), but instead they went old school. That's fine with me, but I can't judge it alone on this trailer. Bo Welch is the production designer, so I expect quality. (I saw part of MIB2 last night and regardless of the huge crap that movie was, the production design is just tops.)
Hemsworth looks the part, but I still wonder what if Alexander Skarsgard got the job. I can't say much about who plays Loki but Hopkins looks on command like always as Odin. I'm glad that Rene Russo is back after years of absence.
Branagh was an unusual choice for directing, but looks like he understood the dramatic part of the comic. The action sequences looks not impressive, but I'll wait to May to decide for myself.
The problem with the whole Marvel avalanche of films is the hurry to make The Avengers and how that affects the quality of the individual films that precede them.
Iron Man 2 was a major letdown, compared to the first one, just because of the obsession to make the Avengers movie for 2012.
PS: Joss Wheddon is the wrong man for the job IMHO. If The Avengers is supposed to be this huge event film, you better go big and don't go with the guy of overrated TV shows and a pseudo sci-fi western that no one except a few fanboys cared about. I rather have Spielberg for The Avengers that Wheddon. I'm that worried.