Thor (2011)

Rafer Guzman Let's hope Branagh was well-compensated, at least. To quote his favorite author: No profit grows where is no pleasure taken.

Tom Charity Thor is on much safer ground here on Earth. The tone is immediately different: more relaxed; comic, not cosmic.

Anthony Lane There is pleasure to be plundered from some of the battle scenes, especially when Thor is confronting ice monsters with blood-red eyes, and from the culture clash that resounds when he descends to present-day Earth...

Roger Ebert The story might perhaps be adequate for an animated film for children, with Thor, Odin and the others played by piglets. In the arena of movies about comic book superheroes, it is a desolate vastation.

David Edelstein A giant notch up is Hiddleston, who'd make a good Edmund in King Lear: You register the chip on his shoulder rather than the villainy.

J. R. Jones This is eminently missable, though the mosaic design of Asgard, Thor's mythical realm, is pretty cool.

Peter Rainer I approached this new lollapalooza with an open mind that was quickly addled by loads of back story and front story and an ear-splitting avalanche of special effects.

Chris Vognar Nothing against the buff, blond God of Thunder, but Thor just doesn't have a built-in wow factor among the nongeek brigade.

Tom Long Essentially, when the movie comes down to Earth it's pretty good. But when it spends time across the universe -- and it spends a lot of time across the universe -- it's pure geek fare. Which may thrill geeks but leave others yawning.