The PodCasting Couch - Thor/Top 4 Current Actors

The Podcasting Couch takes a look at the new Marvel Comics superhero movie Thor and discusses their top four actors working in Hollywood today. E-mail thepodcastingcouch@gmail.com with any questions or comments!

Search for 'The Podcasting Couch' in iTunes, go to http://boxseattv.podbean.com/ or listen below...

Podcast Powered By Podbean

FILM - THOR REVIEW

I’ve written and spoken often about how important expectation is to the success (or otherwise) of films in this hype-heavy, instant-reaction world we live in nowadays. This is a film world where people get excited to see still images from a film – something I’ve never understood – and hype has the ability to make or break a film. You go in expecting Spiderman and you get Spiderman 2, Sam Raimi is a directing god. You go in expecting Spiderman 2 and you get Spiderman 3, and you’ll be cursing out Sam Raimi on internet message boards for the rest of time.

So as I went into the cinema to see Thor, I was aware that the hype had been middling in the lead-up to the film’s release. The promotional pictures had been gaudy and ridiculous, the trailer was uninspiring and the fish-out-of-water humour was in danger of derailing the whole operation. All I was hoping for, as someone who has never read a Thor comic but desperately wants this whole Marvel cross-film pollination to succeed, (I’ll never get sick of superhero films) was a three-star movie that regular punters would go and see.
I think Thor is better than a three-star movie. Thor is a very funny, sometimes thrilling epic action fantasy elevated by fantastic acting performances from all involved and surprising direction from an unexpected corner in Kenneth Branagh. It was flaws – boy does it have flaws – but for not one second of it was I bored. On that level, Thor has overcome my expectations and is much, much better than the lacklustre hype for the film would indicate.

The plot: Thor (Chris Hemsworth) has been exiled to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) after foolhardily destroying a precarious peace between his home realm of Asgard and the ice realm of Jotenheim. On Earth, he meets scientist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and her friend Darcy (Kat Dennings) after being hit by their car. As turmoil begins to envelop his home realm, he must learn humility and selflessness if he is ever to return a hero. If the Green Lantern is DC’s Star Wars, Thor is Marvel’s Lord of the Rings.

Thor is played by Chris Hemsworth, he of Home and Away and opening-scene-of-Star-Trek fame – and the steely, selfless determination he displayed in that scene is completely abandoned here. It’s abandoned to great effect, however as Hemsworth plays every beat he is asked perfectly – brash, arrogant, charming, powerful, humiliated, whatever, he nails it. I think it’s the sign of a great acting performance, especially in a movie like this, that you can’t picture anyone else in the role for a long, long time. Robert Downey Jnr IS Tony Stark, but anyone could (and will) be Daredevil. On a higher plane, Heath Ledger IS The Joker, but someone else could conceivably be Batman – despite Christian Bale being so excellent in the role, he hasn’t defined it. Chris Hemsworth IS Thor. He’s totally at home in the skin of this character (and this character’s weaponry, awesomely), as good with a romantic moment as he is with a hammer and even more surprisingly at least the second funniest character in the film. All of this, and he even looks perfect for it.

Everyone else is equally good, especially Tom Hiddleston as Thor’s ‘mischievous’ brother Loki. Both the character and the acting are executed beautifully here – Loki is the kind of villain I like – one with actual motivations, sympathetic origins and most importantly, an arc – and Hiddleston does a great job. He’s able to give away so much at times and so little at others through just the use of his eyes – he’s a powerful performer and perfectly cast. Kat Dennings as the comic relief Darcy is excellent, I loved the Warriors Three and Lady Sif (spin-off!) and Anthony Hopkins and Idris Elba are reliable as ever – though I’m fairly sure Hopkins was coasting.

My problem with this film – that I enjoyed thoroughly – is with the women. In combining the Shakespearian tendencies of Kenneth Branagh with the geek-sensibilities of comic book lore, Marvel has mashed together two drastically male-dominated areas of literature. As a result, Natalie Portman has been given absolutely nothing to do besides look pretty and giggle at Thor’s abs. She’s spectacularly smart, of course – but book-smart – and does absolutely nothing of note in the film besides get Thor to fall in love with her. No wonder, given his most immediate options are Kat Dennings (too young) and Stellan Skaarsgard (too Swedish). Couldn’t she have been given a bit of spark, a role to play in an action scene, a rapier wit, a far nerdier persona, anything? At the moment, she’s just the most gorgeous girl on the Street in the Middle of the Desert. Rene Russo as Thor’s mother is similarly inconsequential. Her part could have been played by a lamp and I wouldn’t have noticed.

The action scenes move wildly from thrilling to incompetently confusing and Branagh is still finding his feet as an action director – but there’s enough imagination in here to keep me satisfied. I particularly enjoyed whenever Mjolnir was involved. Thor uses the hammer in creative and powerful ways – he’s a genuine force to be reckoned with and you get a real sense of his power when that hammer is in his hands.

Other flaws include the cameo from a Future Avenger which feels shuttled in from Marvel studios rather than organic to the plot, often risible dialogue and the completely unnecessary 3d post-conversion, which is a complete waste of time. I’d recommend seeing it in 2D if possible, because I found the 3D glasses unnecessary, uncomfortable and annoying where I was. On the flipside, though, Branagh knows how to work with actors, and it shows. The film is long without being too long, gets the action/dialogue/laughs/exposition balance right and sets up any future movies wonderfully, without feeling like an Avengers preview.
Thor is a fun ride. Turn your brain off, sit back and enjoy the show – because this one more than lives up to the hype.

15/20

Hail of bullets:
- Zachary Levi (TV’s Chuck) was the original casting for the Robin Hood-esque Fandral (the Dashing) and I kind of wish he had been cast as he would have been perfect, but Joshua Dallas is fine. The other two members of the Warriors Three are less interesting, but fun.

- Jaimie Alexander, who plays Lady Sif, is out-of-nowhere gorgeous and charismatic. Apparently she is most famous for Kyle XY. She should be more famous.

- I would be first in line for a sequel, that’s a good sign.

- The Avengers stuff – including the cameo mentioned above and the post-credits sequence – is there purely for the geekiest of nerds. I knew about all the elements of Marvel mythology involved and what they were referring to, but the relatively geeky folk I saw the film with were clueless.

- I didn’t have my iPhone with me (preview screening), but if I had I daresay I wouldn’t have checked it once. So iphone check count: 0. Laugh count: double figures. Entertaining film.

- If Captain America is this good (don’t f*** it up, Joe Johnston), we are in very good shape for the Avengers.

THE PODCASTING COUCH EPISODE FOUR - NO STRINGS ATTACHED

In the latest episode of the podcasting couch, the team discuss the Natalie Portman/Ashton Kutcher romantic comedy No Strings Attached and chat about their top four romantic comedy films of all time.

To listen either go to http://boxseattv.podbean.com/ or search 'the podcasting couch' in the itunes store!

FILM REVIEW: BLACK SWAN

Surprise! I'm secretly Annette Bening.

So I figure the mark of a good film is that it stays with you. You should leave the cinema thinking about it – and it should at least occupy some space in your mind in the following days.

So when I sat down to think about the Darren Aronofsky psychological ballet thriller (love that description) it occurred to me that this was, in fact, the first time that I’d really thought about it all day – and I saw it yesterday.

After discussing it in detail on a new podcast I gave it a score of 16/25 – which would equate to roughly 12.8 out of 20 – but getting further away from it I think I might like it even less than that.

Here’s why, after the jump;

I’ll start by admitting that Black Swan is not really my kind of film. I’ve always found Aronofsky a heavy-handed director, ballet is something that eludes this mainstream monkey, and only the best psychological thriller/horror carries much weight with me. So Black Swan was starting off a big handicap.

Having said that, it was also low on the scale of my favourite word – expectation – so there was room to be surprised. But after the 104 minute running time I found myself checking my watch, only occasionally interest and rarely compelled by this strange little genre film.

Natalie Portman stars as Nina Sayers (a good movie name, by the way) a high-strung, controlled, uptight ballerina hoping to become the new star of the company run by cock-of-the-walk director Tomas played by Vincent Cassel. Her life begins to spiral out of control as the pressure exerted by Tomas, her mother and a rival ballerina played by Mila Kunis.

From that fairly standard set-up comes a movie that is anything but, to give it its due, and what is real and what is Nina’s imagination becomes harder and harder to recognise as the film moves along.

The film has been called everything from trash to high art, but the reality is its really somewhere in between. A glorified B-movie (not that there’s anything wrong with that) with excellent technical work from everyone involved – the trash base collides with the high art ambitions constantly.

The biggest problem with the film is Aronofsky. We are completely drilled with black and white imagery to the point where it becomes irritating, as if Aronofsky doesn’t give any of us credit to get it. What’s more, this black/white dynamic doesn’t serve any purpose. It’s there as an incredibly basic signifier of Nina’s journey but doesn’t add anything to it. It’s just there to look cool but by the time I was over it (a good, ooooh, ten minutes in?) it had lost all impact.

That’s the brickbat, here’s the bouquet: the ballet scenes are outstanding. Filmed with a kinetic energy that surpasses anything else the film can manage – they’re very beautiful and scored to perfection by Clint Mansell. Matthew Libatique’s cinematography is impeccable throughout as well – and everything comes to life when we’re on stage.

The script is patchy, to say the least, and never really reaches above its roots as an allegory to achieve the level of character needed to elevate the film. Vincent Cassel’s character is basically there to constantly underline whatever point Aronofsky is trying to make while Winona Ryder and Barbara Hershey do what’s expected of them in the roles this kind of film is contractually obligated to include.

The other performances are excellent; specifically Mila Kunis as Natalie Portman’s rival Lily. Kunis must have put no less effort into her ballet training and she pulls off this loose, easygoing character with the warmth and charm that makes you understand why Portman is so mistrustful (and jealous) of her. She missed out on a Best Supporting Actress nomination but this film has proven to directors and studios that she can pull off a role in a dramatic film with ease.

Portman fares slightly less well, but only slightly, doing a very good job of a character that by its nature restricts how much an actress can really do. She plays the dualities of the character nicely, is incredibly brave and committed to the role and when given the rare opportunity, manages to own the screen. Vincent Cassel also deserves credit for never quite overplaying a role that a lesser actor would chew scenery with.

Overall I think Black Swan is not quite the film it wants to be – never quite deserving of the artistic merit it strives for nor trashy enough to be completely entertaining. Much like Mila’s last name, it’s neither one thing nor the other.

A FEW RANDOM THOUGHTS

-                I don’t know much about ballet, but can someone tell me exactly what we see about Tomas’ production of Swan Lake is quite so edgy? It seemed almost exactly as I’d expect a production of Swan Lake to be.

-                There are scenes here that are distractingly reminiscent of Aronofsky’s previous, superior film, The Wrestler.

-                Winona Ryder: Still not a good actress.

-                I generally have a bad stomach for violence, especially horror violence, but there’s really not much to be worried about here. Or maybe I’m being desensitized.

-                The much-ballyhooed sexual scenes are like reading Zoo magazine, sexy at first and then disturbing, before becoming merely uncomfortable.

-                One of Aronofsky’s next films is The Wolverine, which will no doubt have an actual wolverine in every scene to drive home the ‘message.’

OVERALL SCORE: Yesterday, it was 12.5 out of 20 and I’ve drifted on that but only slightly. Should you see it? Yes, because it tries things and I can imagine it being a thrilling experience if you’re into that sort of thing. But I can only give it a 12/20.

OVERALL RANKINGS FOR THE YEAR

The King’s Speech 17/20

The Fighter             15/20

Black Swan             12/20