A Movie Reflection by Ken - 'Thor'

Once again, a superhero movie has opened the summer blockbuster frenzy. This year, however, will be a little different. From Thor on, there will be at least eight more comic book titles to fly, evaporate, ignite, disappear or transform on the screen, including Green Lantern, Captain America and X-Men: First Class.

In short, my "Summer of Geek" has begun.

With a mighty hammer swing, the God of thunder Thor unleashed his box office power last week, pulling in $66 million on its opening weekend. Some comic consumer critics have charged that Thor is not known by many moviegoers and while this may be true, it should not stop you from seeing this visual wonder.

Let's get you prepped first. How much do you know about Thor? Although the character is fairly well known, his story is not. So I have provided you with the following synopses.

The following explantion is approved by geeks everywhere: Thor (played by Chris Hemsworth), the Norse God of Thunder, is cast out of the realm of Asgard by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) after his arrogance re-ignites an ancient war. Thor is sent to Earth as his punishment, where he must live with the far-from-perfect humanoids without benefit of his mighty hammer.

Thor's abilities would far outshine the greatest earthbound army but, without the source of his power, he must learn the true meaning of being a warrior in order to regain his noble stature in the eyes of his father.

If this doesn't make sense, try this:

Non-geek translation: Thor is from another planet, acts like an idiot and restarts a war with an ancient society. Pops gets mad and sends him to earth as his punishment, but doesn't let him take his hammer, which holds all of his power. He has to make good despite this handicap in order put his dad in a better mood. Only then can he go back home.

In order to set the stage, this film must start from the beginning. I would compare it to the original X-Men movie. There is a lot to introduce and talk about. Luckily, Thor's cast helps the process go by without too much pain.

The cast is supported by Academy Award-winners Hopkins and Natalie Portman, but it's relative newcomer Hemsworth who must carry the show.

Last seen in America as George Kirk in 2009's Star Trek, the Australian soap opera star has taken the Norse God of Thunder and managed to make you hate his childlike antics, laugh at his arrogance and self-indulgence, and care when he realizes what he must be.

Thor is a fun comic book movie. It might not be as fun or pleasing as Iron Man, but it isn't as dorky or juvenile as Sucker Punch. You can probably skip the 3D versions and save the extra $3 since the special effects were done in post-production rather than being shot in true 3D. (In other words, Clash of the Titans effects ... yuck.)

It's PG-13 rating is for the on-screen fight scenes and a couple of intense thematic elements. Parents, if your kids have watched Star Wars, any version, they will be fine with Thor.

So, grab your hammers, my human friends, and raise them to the Norse God. Be careful, you  just may hear thunder from above.

Ken's Ranking - 3.5 stars - The skies are clear for thunder. Grab your hammers.