The Definitive Guide to Living in the Capital , Cairo , Egypt

There are several promising
superhero flicks to be released in cinemas this summer, starting with Thor. Luckily for Egyptian cinemas, the
film was released in Cairo prior to its May 6th release in US
cinemas, which gives us a head start on checking out one of the most anticipated
films of 2011.

Based on a Marvel
Comics character by the same name, Thor is
set in 960 A.D., where the mighty Thor (Hemsworth) is soon to be the king of
Asgard and has no intentions of stepping aside for any of his enemies. His
arrogant actions lead his world to an unnecessary war. As his irresponsible
behaviour poses questions as to his ability of being a good king, his father Odin
(Hopkins) strips Thor of his godly powers and casts him down to Earth to live
among the mortals.

There, he meets Jane
Foster (Portman), a beautiful young scientist who is intrigued by his unusual
presence. As Jane tries to help him on his quest to return back to his own world,
Thor learns what it really takes to be a true warrior in his world, which is
being invaded by evil powers in his absence.

The plot in Thor is more than impressive despite
being a little bit predictable; the storyline of the Gods versus men has been
made into films over the last few decades – most recently in Clash of the
Titans. Thor starts out in the gods’ world
filled with fantasy action, ancient rulings and interesting characters, only to
make an unanticipated switch to reality on Earth.

Despite its perfect
cast full of star power, Thor’s
script is obviously weak. There’s a lack of memorable lines provided; instead
we get very clichéd jokes and predictable quotes– all solid proof of a lack of
fresh material. For such a promising cast, the screen writers should have made more
effort.

Hemsworth is a
clever casting choice as Thor; as he has the looks, character and the right
accent for the comic character hero– even fans of the comic books won’t be
disappointed. Hopkins’ part is brief but powerful, while Portman gives a rather
bland performance as Thor’s love interest; she doesn’t really show any emotions
and seems to be merely following the director’s orders. Despite their limited
onscreen time, the rest of the cast are quite outstanding – especially
Idris Elba as the Gate Keeper.

The action element of
the film is not as prevalent as we’d have expected it to be: there are basically only two major
action scenes in the whole film.

Thor may
not meet your expectations: it’s not a bad film by any means, but it doesn’t deliver
the promised thrill ride after the years of anticipating this film. The film lacks
the ferocity, energy and jaw-dropping elements that we had been expecting. Audiences
may welcome a sequel to Thor; but only to make up for the gaps in this one!