THOR

Norse mythology comes to life in Marvel's latest world about sibling rivalry and a superhero who must earn the right to be king.

Chris Hemsworth stars as the strong-minded warrior Thor, the god of thunder, who is about to inherit the throne of his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins), the king of gods. Impatient to prove his worth, Thor defies his father's wishes and initiates conflict with the Frost Giants. Odin therefore strips Thor of his powers and banishes him to Earth.

After being discovered in the New Mexico desert, by astrophysicist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), Jane's assistant Darcy Lewis (Kat Denning), and mentor Dr. Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard), Thor begins a self-transforming journey necessary to return to his home planet of Asgard. Meanwhile, Thor's duplicitous brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) takes throne and plots to kill him.

The strong cast includes the star-making performance of the charismatic Hemsworth who has the most humorous lines and a developing romance with Jane. There are also the very brief cameo appearances of Stan Lee trying to remove Thor's hammer lodged in a stone and Jeremy Renner, as Hawkeye, aiding the S.H.I.E.L.D specialty government branch with his archery skills.

While ensuring a fast pace flow, director Kenneth Branagh brings out the right balance between the action-adventure, drama and romance.

His direction along with the engaging special effects, Beau Welch's lavish sets and Alexandra Byrne's costumes deliver a final product that will please comic book geeks.