Thor

Thor, the movie about the Norse god based on a popular series of comic books written by J. Michael Straczynski, is a new take on what happens once more if you piss off Anthony Hopkins. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I mention Straczynski because he's a veteran writer from old TV shows as well as the popular Babylon 5 show, and I follow his work. Thankfully, they gave Joe a writer's credit.

I had read a few of the old Thor comic books in the seventies, and found the character quite annoying. There wasn't much conflict since this is, after all, a God. Straczynski's take on the character is a 180-degree turn.

Thor falls under Odin's wrath (Odin, of course, is Hopkins, looking very regal) when he disobeys him in his arrogance. He's the very powerful son of the King because of his hammer, an instrument that Odin throws somewhere onto Earth's desert. And Thor, stripped of any power he has, is thrown near the same place. Thor, thoroughly human now, is picked up by scientist Jane (Natalie Portman) and her working crew, and it's with her that he learns values and a little humility.

It's a well-told story with a great deal of humor. Portman is fine as the bumbling, dressed-for-the-desert scientist. And Chris Hemsworth, who played Captain Kirk's father ever-so-briefly in the re-imagining of Star Trek, plays Thor. He has a deft comic touch.

I did not picture Thor with less than long blond tresses and with a beard, as Hemsworth sports, but it's a good look. You can't argue with success. Everything about this movie works.

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