Fan Review Thread SPOILERS INSIDE - Part 1

[hitmanyr2k]

Darn, movies are too expensive to have the experience ruined like that. It doesn't happen often but when it does.....really annoying.

Sorry that happened to you.

Yeah, my frame of mind was ruined early on. They even talked through the trailers. I was patient because I didn't think these people could possibly keep making this much noise as the movie went on but it didn't end until the final 1/3 of the movie and I think the only reason they shut up was because it was constant action by then.

 

[Krystal]

Pretty solid 7/10.

Loki was awesome.

Thor was decent.

The "human" characters (Jane, Kat Dennings, and Stellan Skarsgard) were funny and added a lot of needed humor to the stuffiness purported by Malekith because...

Malekith sucked. Like he made TASM's Lizard looked good in comparison. Worst Marvel superhero villain by far, at least post-mid 2000s.

The action and CGI was good, but Taylor lacked the grandeur that Branagh brought to Thor, the rainbow bridge and Odin on a more limited budget.

The handling of [blackout]Rene Russo's death, as well as Loki's "death"[/blackout] were surprisingly well done.

And I called the "cliffhanger" tease at the end.

I am really starting to wonder if they had cut out just a bit of the comedy stuff--left in the backstory of malekith and let the movie move just a little slower if the folks giving it 7 & 8s would have given it 8s and 9s?

Were the flaws inherent or were they due to the editing process? And if people would have liked a slightly more measured pace---would it have made any diffence to the final box office?---which is all Marvel cares about in the end.

This link (post #1643) seems to be the final word on Taylor's opinion of the editing question. I don't see how his words can be taken as anything other than he didn't get the cut he wanted. Would it have made for a much better movie? Probably never know...........


http://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=176222&page=83

 

[mclay18]

Enjoyed it. Loved the massive scope and budget Marvel splashed out on this, and Taylor did a fantastic job with the CGI and action scenes.

The thing is, there's almost too much humor. It threatens to overwhelm the story stakes -- but not enough to overrun. I had a FUN time with it... certainly much better than the first. And as expected, Tom Hiddleston and Kat Dennings stole the show. They were hilarious.

Oh, and I hated that first post-credit scene. They should've kept that for Guardians of the Galaxy, and pretty obvious Taylor didn't direct it. The second one made up for it, though.

 

[Mr. Dent]

It was okay, just not great. It was definitely entertaining, but there was just no gravity to it. And the character arc for Thor was really weak in this, almost to the point of there not being one. It was supposed to be about him being reluctant to accept his role as king, but they really didn't flesh that out well at all. Honestly, the movie almost didn't even feel like a Thor movie, it just felt like a movie with Thor in it. It felt more or less by the end just like a set up for GotG and getting Thor on Earth for Avengers 2.

It also felt like an incomplete movie and seemed almost like a prologue to the real movie they want to tell. Funny how Joss said one of the cardinal sins of filmmaking is not ending the film an that's exactly what they did here. Speaking of Joss, is it me, or is it really easy to tell which scene he helped out on that Taylor was talking about? It was obviously that train scene and the whole hopping through realms. That felt extremely Joss and was ****ing hilarious.

Anyway, with where this movie ended, I'm more excited for Thor 3. It's pretty clear Thor 3 is going to be the movie they really want to tell and they have it set up to be really awesome. Also, anyone notice the easter egg for Surtur and Muspelheim when they were montaging through the convergence? Underneath Earth they showed a fire realm. Super looking forward to Thor 3. Fire demons, Surtur, and seeing the repercussions of Loki impersonating Odin.

I'd give it a 6.5/10.

 

[Feenix]

Hey folks in North America---what about the Cap Amer:TWS 5 minute preview?

Good, great, or awesome??

Awesome.

 

[Mr. Dent]

Hey folks in North America---what about the Cap Amer:TWS 5 minute preview?

Good, great, or awesome??

The preview showed more scenes than the official trailer they released a couple weeks ago as well as our first look at Sharon briefly. Dem sound effects on Winter Soldier's arm. That movie is gonna be special as ****. Even the 3D looks great and I hate 3D.

 

[DACrowe]

I am really starting to wonder if they had cut out just a bit of the comedy stuff--left in the backstory of malekith and let the movie move just a little slower if the folks giving it 7 & 8s would have given it 8s and 9s?

Were the flaws inherent or were they due to the editing process? And if people would have liked a slightly more measured pace---would it have made any diffence to the final box office?---which is all Marvel cares about in the end.

This link seems to be the final word on Taylor's opinion of the editing question. I don't see how his words can be taken as anything other than he didn't get the cut he wanted. Would it have made for a much better movie? Probably never know...........

http://www.**************.com/fansites/MarvelFreshman/news/?a=89684

Well the comedy didn't hurt the movie for me. Honestly, this goes all the way back to RD's humor in the first Iron Man. Comedy, particularly of a screwball nature, is kind of woven into the MCU's DNA at this point, for better or worse. And for example, as I found Malekith such a poor villain, stuff like Thor having to take the subway during the final fight or Darcy making out with Ian while a giant Ice Monster terrorizes downtown London made it far more enjoyable, because Malekith was such a non-entity for me that I didn't care that much about Thor hitting him with the hammer. The madcap zaniness elevated what would have been an otherwise rote climax (IMO).

As for more backstory for Malekith improving him? Possibly. But I think the approach was all wrong. Not only did he have motivation, but he was boring. The best bits of the movie, which will surprise no one, are when Loki is on screen. I don't even think Loki is a great "villain" per se (he's not threatening in the least), but he is a great character and charismatic to watch. Christopher Eccleston is a decent actor (though not my favorite Doctor), but he was given nothing to work with. Malekith is just too monotone and one-note.

What could have been given more breathing room is Thor's relationship with Odin about becoming king, as well as Thor's relationship with Jane before **** hits the fan, especially with his mama involved. All of that could have been given more depth. I think Malekith was a lost cause though.

 

[Spider-Fan]

I am really starting to wonder if they had cut out just a bit of the comedy stuff--left in the backstory of malekith and let the movie move just a little slower if the folks giving it 7 & 8s would have given it 8s and 9s?

Were the flaws inherent or were they due to the editing process? And if people would have liked a slightly more measured pace---would it have made any diffence to the final box office?---which is all Marvel cares about in the end.

Does anyone know what was cut from Malekith's backstory? Even if they kept it, Malekith was fairly bland in the way he was acted as well. I don't think backstory would have helped the scenes we saw much because his overall mannerisms wouldn't have changed.

Enjoyed it. Loved the massive scope and budget Marvel splashed out on this, and Taylor did a fantastic job with the CGI and action scenes.

The thing is, there's almost too much humor. It threatens to overwhelm the story stakes -- but not enough to overrun. I had a FUN time with it... certainly much better than the first. And as expected, Tom Hiddleston and Kat Dennings stole the show. They were hilarious.

Oh, and I hated that first post-credit scene. They should've kept that for Guardians of the Galaxy, and pretty obvious Taylor didn't direct it. The second one made up for it, though.

Spoiler

But, that scene was related to the Aether. I think it was better to deal with it here, since we now know what the Aether is as opposed to GotG, which won't be about the Aether and that scene would be a distraction in that narrative.

 

[DACrowe]

Quick question: What was the final post-credits scene. I only stayed for the mid one. Just curious.

 

[Spider-Fan]

Quick question: What was the final post-credits scene. I only stayed for the mid one. Just curious.

Spoiler

Jane, Eric, and Darcy are in the apartment. Then it starts raining, and Thor comes back. He embraces Jane. Then it cuts outside where that ice creature is chasing some birds...still on Earth as a result of the convergence.

 

[TheDarkKnight08]

I actually liked it a lot. A very solid 7/10 for me. Thor and Loki were both great. The action was top-notch, which is something I couldn't say about the first one. The scope of it was big enough for a character like Thor and, finally Marvel gets

Spoiler

a villain death right.

My main gripes with it: It's running time. The scope of the film is fine, but the film doesn't have room to breath. It's moving too fast, meaning that every other character that isn't Thor, Loki, or Padme gets sidelined. Also, while the humor did make me laugh, it was often put in the most inappropriate places. For example:

Spoiler

Having the phone scene with Jane and her "date" right after Loki's death kill the emotional weight of that scene. On the flipside, Frigga's death was handled well because the movie maintains it's calm and somber tone until they break Loki out.

Also, due to it's runtime, its pacing was kinda weird. It starts off rather slow, which is fitting for a movie telling the story it's about to tell, but then, as soon as the Dark Elves show up again, it kicks up too quickly.

Overall, though, I really did enjoy it. It's not great, but it's good enough to be part of the already impeccable MCU. Thor is just below RDJ as their best cast hero and Loki, as always, delivers big time.

 

[SuperBatman]

Quick question: What was the final post-credits scene. I only stayed for the mid one. Just curious.

Spoiler

it was pretty much Thor returning to Jane and then there was a shot of the frost giant monster on earth chasing the birds

 

[Feenix]

I have a question. Does anyone know if the press screening was different than the release? Because someone before said that

Spoiler

when Loki changed into Odin, it was only the face you could see and nothing more, leading people to believe Loki was possessing Odin. But in the version I saw, Odin's entire body changed into Loki's

 

[Krystal]

Well the comedy didn't hurt the movie for me. Honestly, this goes all the way back to RD's humor in the first Iron Man. Comedy, particularly of a screwball nature, is kind of woven into the MCU's DNA at this point, for better or worse. And for example, as I found Malekith such a poor villain, stuff like Thor having to take the subway during the final fight or Darcy making out with Ian while a giant Ice Monster terrorizes downtown London made it far more enjoyable, because Malekith was such a non-entity for me that I didn't care that much about Thor hitting him with the hammer. The madcap zaniness elevated what would have been an otherwise rote climax (IMO).

As for more backstory for Malekith improving him? Possibly. But I think the approach was all wrong. Not only did he have motivation, but he was boring. The best bits of the movie, which will surprise no one, are when Loki is on screen. I don't even think Loki is a great "villain" per se (he's not threatening in the least), but he is a great character and charismatic to watch. Christopher Eccleston is a decent actor (though not my favorite Doctor), but he was given nothing to work with. Malekith is just too monotone and one-note.

What could have been given more breathing room is Thor's relationship with Odin about becoming king, as well as Thor's relationship with Jane before **** hits the fan, especially with his mama involved. All of that could have been given more depth. I think Malekith was a lost cause though.

I don't know if I should be happy or sad knowing that there never was a solid 9/10 movie from the script.
I want to believe that they prevented it from being a better movie by the way they edited it because then the deleted stuff would allow you to see what could have been.
But it looks like maybe there never was a 'perfect cut' out there.

Taylor really makes it sound as if the story was hurt by the quicker pace of the final edit.

Revised link (bottom of post #1643) where he expresses this.

http://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=176222&page=83

 

[DACrowe]

Spoiler

Jane, Eric, and Darcy are in the apartment. Then it starts raining, and Thor comes back. He embraces Jane. Then it cuts outside where that ice creature is chasing some birds...still on Earth as a result of the convergence.

Spoiler

it was pretty much Thor returning to Jane and then there was a shot of the frost giant monster on earth chasing the birds

Thanks very much.

 

[jmc]

I am really starting to wonder if they had cut out just a bit of the comedy stuff--left in the backstory of malekith and let the movie move just a little slower if the folks giving it 7 & 8s would have given it 8s and 9s?

Were the flaws inherent or were they due to the editing process? And if people would have liked a slightly more measured pace---would it have made any diffence to the final box office?---which is all Marvel cares about in the end.

This link (post #1643) seems to be the final word on Taylor's opinion of the editing question. I don't see how his words can be taken as anything other than he didn't get the cut he wanted. Would it have made for a much better movie? Probably never know...........


http://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=176222&page=83

The first act is littered with choppy editing. It feels like there are scenes of character development that are missing or shortened too much, and some scenes which feel like they drag on too much. It kinda feels like Man of Steel in that sense. The difference between the two is the comedic elements tend to cover those editing issues, at least it did for me. I do question just how re-watchable the movie is going to be however.

 

[DACrowe]

I don't know if I should be happy or sad knowing that there never was a solid 9/10 movie from the script.
I want to believe that they prevented it from being a better movie by the way they edited it because then the deleted stuff would allow you to see what could have been.
But it looks like maybe there never was a 'perfect cut' out there.

Taylor really makes it sound as if the story was hurt by the quicker pace of the final edit.

Revised link (bottom of post #1643) where he expresses this.

http://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=176222&page=83

It may have been. But for me, I wanted to see more of the middle act on Asgard before things went crazy. However, the movie's biggest problems come from the script. At least they do in my opinion.

 

[Krystal]

The first act is littered with choppy editing. It feels like there are scenes of character development that are missing or shortened too much, and some scenes which feel like they drag on too much. It kinda feels like Man of Steel in that sense. The difference between the two is the comedic elements tend to cover those editing issues, at least it did for me. I do question just how re-watchable the movie is going to be however.

On some other sites people were being attacked for saying that they hoped the movie would over two hours and that they wished for some good character stuff from the supporting cast.
One guy even insisted there simply was no Thor movie out there that could be over two hours without it becoming a long tedious LOTR type affair.

I know a movie doesn't need to be of any particular length to be good, but sometimes the script can be trimmed too much.

If it was scripted and filmed then at some point they felt it served a purpose so only cut what is not working or is redundant or is a pace killer--don't cut out good character stuff.

Anyway can't wait to see it.

 

[Leenie]

All I wanted from this movie was to be an improvement over the first one. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed the first one, and I feel that it needed to be what it was to establish the character onto the MCU and to introduce the character to the general audience. I don't really have any major complaints about the first one, honestly.

Well, Thor: The Dark World definitely IS an improvement over the first film, and I found it to be a lot of fun at the movies tonight. I loved it, honestly! It's my favorite comic book movie of 2013, which I didn't expect. I thought Iron Man 3 was great overall, but I enjoyed this movie more!

If there's one complaint about the film, it's Malekith. He looked cool and all, but there wasn't any substance to him. He was a pretty lackluster villain, in my opinion. Luckily, the special effects and the character designs for the villains kept my interest. The villains were so cool looking, especially Algrin/Kurse (seriously, what a BADASS character design!).

 

[Spider-Fan]

I think Kurse worked better in the film than Malekith, I'd agree. Malekith was a very standard villain, and he feels like a plot device more so than a character. Kurse, being a henchman, can get away with that much more easily, and he was awesome when he was in the movie.

 

[DJ_KiDDvIcIOUs]

I really enjoyed it. The pacing was good for me and the comedy was good too. I think all around Marvel is doing a great job with phase 2 so far. My friend that went with me who isn't a Marvel fanboy like me said he thought it was really good too.

Overall I give it a 9/10

 

[BigThor]

I'm loving all the positive reviews even the negatives, they got me that much more pumped to form my own opinions.

Man tomorrow really can't come soon enough!

 

[TheDreamMaster]

Just saw it, and it gets solid 8/10 from me. Loved the action, didn't mind the humor, and thought it managed to be a bit better than the first film.

Ok, so, it was obviously better shot and acted/written, but did

Spoiler

the kiss between Thor and Jane on Asgard remind anyone of the lake scene in Attack of the Clones? The similar scenery, plus Portman, I couldn't stop thinking it once I saw it.

 

[Tymminator]

The poll is closed...good grief.
8/10....probably 8.5

 

[def28]

Really dug it. Solid 8.5 for me. Awesome adventure flick. Audience ate it up and my friends/family also loved it. I have zero issues with the comedy except for the last battle which got uneven and distracted from the issue at hand. Otherwise it made the film more entertaining for me. Loved the darker aspects of the film as well. Now bring on Enchantress!

Can't wait for Guardians.