The problem with the current crop of superhero movies is that once you’ve exhausted the A-list (Superman, Spider-Man, Batman), you begin reaching for the second string personalities who may be every bit as worthy, but do not have the same sort of populist street cred. Thor is one such superhero. (The Green Lantern is another.) Sure, build it and the fanboys will come, but will anyone else?

Thor takes place equally on Earth and the mystical Norse-god realm of Asgard, a glittering planet surrounded by vast, swirling nebulae. The Mighty Thor (Chris Hemsworth), son of king Odin (Anthony Hopkins), is banished to Earth to live as a mortal for inciting a war between his people and their most ancient enemies. On Earth, without his powers and his war hammer (the quest for which evokes King Arthur and Excalibur), Thor must discover that being a hero is not just about strength and courage, but equally about humility and compassion.

One of the appealing things about Thor is that he is not, at first, a likeable character. Unlike many superheroes who stride onto the screen fully formed, Thor is different. He is arrogant, brash and vain. His recklessness has not yet been tempered by maturity. This makes his classic, albeit modified, hero’s journey far more interesting than if he began as someone we were rooting for. While Thor, like Superman, is a supernatural figure hailing from a distant world, his temperament is diametrically opposite to that of the Man of Steel.

Chris Hemsworth, known to most American audiences only for his small role as James T. Kirk’s father in Star Trek, plays his part with the appropriate gusto. But the credit surely belongs to Thor’s writers (Ashley Edward Miller, Zach Stentz and Don Payne) and director Kenneth Branagh, who had to have been the last person anyone would have considered for a film such as this. Branagh, known for his Shakespearean adaptations, brings a literary gravity to the proceedings that another helmer might not have tapped, examining grand themes like honor, the imprecise line between magic and science, and the tempestuous relationship between fathers and sons.

Which is not to say that Branagh forgets he is first and foremost making a popcorn superhero movie. For all his Shakespearean high-mindedness, Branagh ensures there’s plenty of FX eye candy. Too much, in fact. Thor is more cartoon than live action movie, relying so much on its digital artistry that at times it resembles Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow, a film shot entirely against a green screen.

Thor is, by no means, a bad film, but it is not a great one either. It is fun and it is humorous and it kicks off the summer with a bang, but chalk this one up to the entertaining but instantly forgettable category.

© Copyright 2011 Brandon Fibbs. All rights reserved.

Directed by Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Stellan Skarsgard, Colm Feore, Ray Stevenson, Idris Elba, Kat Dennings, Rene Russo, Anthony Hopkins, Clark Gregg, Jaimie Alexander, Tadanobu Asano, Joshua Dallas
Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence.
Running Time: 115 minutes