Thor Movie Premiere

On Sunday 17th April 2011 Thor had its world premiere at the Event Cinemas in George Street Sydney Australia.

My girlfriend and I were EXTREMELY lucky enough to score some passes to attend the event!

To say it was a dream come true would be an understatement because I have been looking forward to Thor since I heard that they were doing a big screen adaptation. I was planning on just heading down to the cinema just to take some photos of the event and never planned that I would be able to watch it on opening night!

We headed down George St and could see the lights calling our names…well ok I could SEE the lights…and as we edged nearer to the cinemas we were confronted with a crowd…a rather larger crowd!

The crowd!

So we dove right on in, fighting the crowd for the best possible position however there’s only so far and so fast that you can navigate the masses of people so we tried for the best place to take some photos…

Here are some taken from the edge of crowd;

So we moved a little bit further down closer to the actual cinema and this is where is became even more crowded, Police and security in full swing directing traffic.

The man with the plan, Kenneth Branagh

Then came the moment which made my night…our moment to stroll down the red carpet! It felt totally surreal being the absolute centre of attention in front of all the media, really bright lights, and having a lot of people staring at us trying to figure out if we were anyone important…sorry folks nothing to see here!

So we turned around and took a photo of the path that we had just taken, looking back I should have asked someone to take a photo of us, but this photo turned out pretty well…look who’s being interviewed in the corner…Thor himself, Chris Hemsworth!

So we made out grand entrance down the red carpet and made it inside, feeling all kinds of special mind you, and then just kept on walking until I found myself in a media pit next to some photographers. Well what would you do? I made myself comfortable, pulled out the camera and just kept on snappers.

One of the photographers asked me who I was there to take photos of and I just replied that I was happy just to take some happy snaps, all the while just thinking that this is too much of a dream to reply honestly.

Here’s my very professional photo of the lovely Ada Nicodemou…well it’s professional if you crop out the other camera.

After taking a few photos we then ventured into the hallowed ground, the entrance to the Thor screening.

And the final photo of the night is when to took the escalator up to the cinema where there were a lot of people chatting and having a few drinks before heading in to watch the film.

I think I have been spotted taking photos…

So the girl and I had a drink and then headed to the cinema. We needed to surrender our cameras, phones, and any other recording devices that I had on my person (come on, when else can I say that phrase?) and were given the ticket stub for the return of our most valued possessions. Yes you know I am talking about my Desire HD!

Upon entry to the cinema I found my perfect seat and went to sit down only to realise that there was a copy of Empire Magazine on every seat! How cool is that? Plus to make things even better it was last month’s issue and I didn’t end up getting a chance to purchase it and thought I missed my chance! How’s that for cool?!?!

Then the film started.

And you know how I felt about the film…here’s the review!

Overall it was a sensational night which surpassed my expectations in every way, shape, and form!

Written by: Stoic Taco

Thor – “A film worthy of the Gods” Review

Tonight I attended the world premiere of Thor at Sydney’s Event Cinemas in George St Sydney!

The girl and I were lucky enough to score passes to attend the premiere and it was better than we could have ever hoped for! It was a brilliant night and I will post some pics from the exclusive access that we had before the film screening!

On to the review now,

Thor, directed by Kenneth Branagh (Hamlet, Frankenstein) and starring home-grown hero Chris Hemsworth (Star Trek) as the title character, the latest film from Marvel Entertainment and Paramount Pictures brings to life the story of the Mjolnir wielding God of Thunder.

Thor is an interesting choice for the big screen because he is not as well known as Spider-Man, Batman, or Superman to the average cinema goer, which presents a challenge – how do you make an origin story that covers the concepts of Asgard, Odin, Thor, and Loki? Well step number one is approaching Kenneth Branagh because he’s just done it!

Thor is a terrific comic book movie and achieves everything that you would hope an origin story would have. It provides the back story for the audience who may not been too familiar with the canon. It has awesome action scenes, worthy of the very comic book pages from which they could be lifted, and the sound is great. Turn it up, way up. There are moments of humour throughout the film which allows the characters to be more than a one dimensional plot point.

It was an interesting choice to have Kenneth Branagh direct the film, given that he is best known (for both directing and acting) for his Shakespearean epics (Hamlet , Henry IV, and Othello) which could be perceived as polar opposites to traditional comic book films. But are they really that different? Not in Thor’s case. The story has all the traditional Shakespearean elements – murder, honour, family betrayal, envy, and a thirst for power. Who else would you ask to direct?

Chris Hemsworth faced a mammoth task of playing the role of Thor to a worldwide audience who may not yet be too familiar with his work, but this plays to his advantage. Mr Hemsworth embodies the role of Thor completely, from his dramatic scenes opposite screen heavyweight Sir Anthony Hopkins, to the action scenes requiring an intense athleticism which he delivers, and finally in his comedic moments.

Chris Hemsworth possesses a screen presence that is vital for the success in playing the God of Thunder! He grabs the audiences attention from the start and owns every scene that he is in. There is a moment in the film where Thor is in the company of his Asgardian friends but it is Thor that commands the viewers attention.

Natalie Portman plays Jane Foster, an astrophysicist who becomes involved in assisting the earthbound and mortal Thor in his quest. Ms Portman is given the opportunity to play a  different type of role and is quite refreshing in it. Given that we know that Ms Portman is a very talented dramatic actress it is also nice to see that she has no difficulty in playing an astrophysicist with a sense of humour and showing off an occasional teenage-girl-with-a crush smile.

Tom Hiddleston plays Loki, Thor’s brother. I went into this film knowing nothing of Mr Hiddleston’s previous work (Wallender, the same series that starred Kenneth Branagh) and was able to appreciate his performance on its own merit. I have to say that he played a great role and was able to play the part to perfection. In the interest in keeping this spoiler free I just want to say that Mr Hiddleston held his own when working with Chris Hemsworth and Sir Anthony Hopkins.

Who else, besides Sir Anthony Hopkins, would you have playing Odin? You need a world weary soul who can embody the battle hardened and peace seeking Ruler of Asgard. Sir Anthony has some great scenes in the film, especially with Chris Hemsworth, and delivers a wonderful performance.

For you comic book fans, Thor has a few references to other characters which will be sure to please…not that I will spoil them here…

The film is a lot of fun, full of action and terrific performances, and is an excellent origin story.

Overall, I rate Thor a 5 out of 5!

A film worthy of the Gods!

Written by: Stoic Taco

Thor – 28 April 2011

UPDATE!!

The Australian release is April 21st 2011!!

Yee hah!!

—————————————————————————————————————-

Greetings all,

According to the Event Cinemas website, Thor will be released on the 28th April 2011.

This is brilliant news for 2 reasons;

1. It’s only 7 weeks away…and I can only watch the trailer so many times…

2. It’s my birthday! That’s right, the Taco turns 30!

So what better way to celebrate than to head off to the cinema and check out the newest comic book adaptation from director Kenneth Brannagh and starring Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman!

Here are the latest Thor posters;

For those of who are unfamiliar with the story of the Norse God, Thor is the story of the fierce but arrogant warrior who is cast out of Asgard and exiled to Earth where he must live with the mortals. When the most dangerous villain of his world sends the warriors of Asgard to invade Earth, Thor must stand up and defend the mortals, and in the process learn what it takes to be a true hero.

Director Kenneth Branagh takes the reins of this fantasy-action epic, so you can assume that there will be some Shakespearean themes running throughout, and to be honest, that’s exactly what this epic needs! Something more than just mindless action and a few jokes, it should be complex and I have nothing but faith in Mr Branagh’s ability.

Starring fellow Aussie Chris Hemsworth (best known as George Kirk in Star Trek) and Natalie Portman (best known for….oh geez where to begin….) and the ever reliable Sir Anthony Hopkins as Odin. Who else do you want running Asgard besides Sir Anthony? Morgan Freeman I ‘spose…

The trailer looks EPIC! Check it out!

Is it just me or does Mr Hemsworth remind you of Heath Ledger a little?

Definitely looking forward to the 28th of April for this release!!

Written by: Stoic Taco

“I’ll have mine with ketchup and sour cream”