Why Is Thor: The Dark World Such A Marvel Misfit?

PHASE TWO

Miracles

"This is so unlike you brother! So clandestine!"

Phase Two of the Marvel Cinematic Universe won't be complete until Ant-Man goes on his epic first adventure in July. Even with that mind, it feels like Thor: The Dark World is likely to become the lowest grossing movie in this phase of the MCU domestically (Ant-Man has a good shot at going lower, but it has summer weekdays that Thor 2 didn't have to boost its grosses). Thanks to this, it's been deemed one of the lowly entries of the entire MCU, to the point where Entertainment Weekly dubbed it the "Batman & Robin" of this franchise last year.

First off, nobody, and I mean nobody, should be dropping off comparisons to Batman & Robin lightly, and secondly, I find it hard to see how Thor: The Dark World is some kind of travesty in the filmography of the MCU. Is it a weaker entry than, say, The Avengers or Iron Man 3? Hell yeah, for reasons I'll go in-depth into shortly, but it's also a film that's got a lot of resourcefulness in depicting it's mystical spectacle, and Tom Hiddleston remains a most capable villain.

Oh hey, I mentioned the word villain, so why don't I take this opportunity to discuss the main antagonist of Thor: The Dark World, a fellow named Malekith played by Christopher Eccleston. I remember when Mads Mikkelsen was in talks for this role, but turned it down so he could play the titular role in Hannibal, which, at the time, I thought was a dumb move. "Who would turn down the role of a Marvel villain just to play the lead in an NBC drama" I pondered, which, in hindsight, feels like pure idiocy. Hannibal is an incredible and visually stunning program, while Malekith has all the depth of a puddle.

What's particularly peculiar is his primary flaw as a character, which doesn't stem from poor dialogue or his motivation being muddled. Actually, his motivation as a character is nonexistent! That's his main problem as the films main foe; the film doesn't even really try to set up why he's big, bad and threatening beyond "He wants the Aether!". Couldn't he have cool powers or an interesting design at least? Alas, the audience is not given even that, and Malekith winds up becoming not just one of the most poorly developed villains in the MCU, but one of the most forgettable characters in this series of films.

Honestly though, aside from that misfire of a baddie, Thor: The Dark World isn't just a colorful diversion, but a very well polished voyage into fantasy. The world of Asgard is such a compelling one from both a storytelling and visual (the design of the city receives a smart upgrade that retains the overall structure of the entity from the first movie, but adds more detail and heightens the brightness significantly) level that it's hard to resist more time being spent here.

I only wish we actually got to spend the majority of the story here, as the parts on Earth feel a bit lackluster when compared to the portions of the storyline spent in more fanciful lands. Call me crazy, but given the choice between spending time with Stellan Skarsgard's forced nudity laced antics and an Asgardian prison riot, I'm going for the latter every time. That prison, by the way, contains Loki, whose being imprisoned for his actions from his past two adventures (namely his antics in The Avengers). Tom Hiddleston comes back to play the character here and reminds us all why his portrayal of the trickster god has developed such an immense following all over the world.

In this particular Thor adventure, Loki is given some really effective scenes of gravitas when dealing with the relationship with his adoptive mother, Frigga (Rene Russo), but he truly excels in scenes of a lighter tone. Take the scene where Thor breaks him out of his cell so that he can help him save the world (business as usual for the God of Thunder); once freed from his containment, Loki doesn't sulk or rattle on about ancient prophecies, he bounds around in excitement. He's like a kid hopped up on sugar from the state fair talking at 80 mph about all the cool rides he went on, full of vibrant life and elation. In this exchange with Thor, Hiddleston gives the whole movie a new kind of energy that he brings to every one of his scenes afterwards.

It helps, of course, that Chris Hemsworth makes for a worthy fellow for Hiddleston to bounce off of. I like how authentic their brotherly bond feels, with their dynamic being chock full of equal parts quarreling and affection, a sort of attitude that still exists between the duo even after Loki has done things like unleash lizard aliens on Earth. The rest of Thor's Asgardians chums (namely Sif and Heimdall) don't get any more screentime once Thor, Loki and Jane Foster (still played by Natalie Portman) escape Asgard to confront Malekith, but extraordinary actors like Idris Elba make moments spent with them uber memorable.

As you can likely tell, Thor: The Dark World is far from the bottom of the MCU barrel (though its clumsy post-credits scene, involving a romantic sequence with Jane and Thor, is certainly one of the worst of its kind). The script does have notable flaws though, specifically in how it presents the origin of Malekith's conflict with the universe twice, not to mention how a surplus of characters leave some personalities, namely Asgardian residents like The Warrior Three, with very little to do. But to the writings credit, there are some nice subtle bits too, namely in how Odin's refusal to take away Thor's hammer at the end takes on a different meaning once you know the climax's twist. And of course, Tom Hiddleston, Chris Hemsworth and inspired action sequences (the finale with Thor and Malekith traveling through portals is the very definition of fun) keep the movie more than afloat, as well as make me feel its poor reputation with many is quite unwarranted.