There's no use in denying it, I'm going to be in the seat for every Avengers-related movie that hits the big screen. I've never been a big fan of Thor, but I was impressed enough with the first movie that I did not want to miss out on The Dark World.

 

Loki has been returned to Asgard after the events in The Avengers. His antics have caused problems throughout the 9 realms which leaves the people there in need of Thor and his elite team who bring peace to the lands. The dark elves come from a time before Thor, before Asgard even. Before they were defeated by Thor's grandfather they possessed a dark weapon called the aether. When used properly it has the power to destroy everything within all 9 realms.

 

As the realms come into alignment it is Jane who stumbles across the hidden aether infecting herself with a power that will consume her and awakening the slumbering elves to fulfill their destiny of destruction. Thor will have to defy his father, join with the traitorous Loki, and travel the Dark World in order to find a way to destroy the dark powers. As the boundaries between the realms thin, portions of Earth are sucked into the Dark World even without the destructive force of the aether.

 

I might as well just come right out and say that I loved this film. It's exciting, it's entertaining, it's emotional, and there's more to it than a throwaway story. The acting is outstanding, the visuals are breathtaking, and the battles... hm, I think I might have to talk about them at greater length. As portals open up between the realms Thor and the villains find themselves transported here and there during the battle. It's already a big scene with a lot going on so when these guys started bouncing back and forth I feared it would become another Transformers 2 with so much attention given to making it big and chaotic that it dissolved into something senseless. Not so. The director seems to know when to go crazy and when to pull back and let us latch on to a character or event. I would say that you do need to pay attention, but having done so myself I never felt lost.

 

Emotions come as we witness the unfortunate deaths of certain characters. These moments are played well and bring about a sadly beautiful funeral ceremony. It's not powerful enough to draw too many tears, but it does succeed in making the viewer care about the lives of these people.

 

Someone called this the new “Loki movie.” I'm floored by how popular Tom Hiddleston has made the character. In some ways he outshines even Chris Hemsworth who himself does a better job with Thor than I would have ever hoped for. I couldn't help but wonder if bringing Loki back for every Thor appearance would get old, but I have to say, so far I have been excited to see him again and find myself hoping we haven't seen the last of him just yet.

 

The CG animation looks amazing. It's getting harder and harder to pick out the animated moments in these big-budget flicks. What's practical and what's computer generated? I'd have to see it again and pay close attention to make a guess beyond the obvious.

 

If there's anything I could complain about it is that the elven villain doesn't feel as developed or as complex a character as I would hope for. He wants the realms to go dark and hates the Asgard, that's about all we know. Why does he feel such rage? Why is his ally willing to essentially give up his elvanity to become a monster in order to accomplish their goals? An extended version with deeper development is rumored to be a proposal on the table.

 

Bryan Tyler turns in a powerful score. He seems to get more sequel work than the first-run jobs, but if he keeps up with this level of quality we'll surely see his name on more part 1's and fewer part 2's and 3's.