Since setting a July 2013 release date for Thor 2 Marvel have been searching for a director to replace Kenneth Branagh, who decided against directing the sequel as he has other projects in the pipeline he wants to work on. Earlier this month we heard Game of Thrones director Brian Kirk was in talks, but now another director has entered the frame. Patty Jenkins.

According to Deadline Marvel will be making a decision soon and they may go with Jenkins, who directed Charlize Theron in Monster (for which Theron won an Oscar) and directed the pilot for AMC’s The Killing. Hiring a female director to take on a big budget sequel will be a surprise move, but a welcomed one.

Whoever takes on the sequel will have to pick up from where The Avengers finishes off, and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige gave EW a few hints about the direction of the next film:

Kevin Feige recently told EW that plans were developing fast for the sequel, which he said would “take Thor literally to other worlds.” While moviegoers will next see Chris Hemsworth as the hammer-swinging hero in The Avengers next May, Thor 2 would “primarily be the journey of that character, of he and Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and how the new dynamic with his father (Odin, played by Anthony Hopkins) is working out, as well as what are the broader stakes for The Nine Worlds,” Feige said.

This suggests both Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman will be back (if not there characters will be).

Don Payne, co-writer of the first film and one of the writers on Fantastic Four: Rise Of The Silver Surfer, is currently working on the script, and Marvel aim to begin shooting next April.

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Hot on the heels of Fast Five, Marvel’s latest superhero entry continues the momentum of Summer 2011. Kenneth Branagh’s Thor is a notable departure from the more reality-based Iron Man franchise; this movie spends half of its duration on Earth, but also introduces audiences to the Norse realm of Asgard. A star-making performance from Chris Hemsworth, a nicely balanced script, and an organic blending of S.H.I.E.L.D. mythology make Thor a blast to watch and one of the best films Marvel has made to date.

Who would have thought the guy from the opening scene of J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek had the ability to carry an entire film? But Chris Hemsworth has insane screen presence, easily holding his own against the gravitas of veterans like Anthony Hopkins as Odin, king of Asgard. Hemsworth is jacked, absolutely believable as a badass warrior with a terrible temper. Tom Hiddleston plays Thor’s younger brother Loki*, a jealous conniving trickster competing for their father’s affection. He does a great job as the villain here, and (SMALL SPOILER ALERT) he’ll be interesting to watch as an evil force in Joss Whedon’s The Avengers. I’ll go ahead and get my biggest complaint with the film over with now: Thor’s transition from hot-headed blowhard to humble servant struck me as rushed, with the screenwriters clearly trying to pick up the pace and get the action rolling again about halfway through the film.

Thor is important because it beats WB’s Green Lantern to the punch when it comes to epic space-themed superhero movies this summer. Asgard is a fantasy world, to be sure, but Branagh applies his Shakespearean experience to that world and grounds it with universal paradigms as old as storytelling itself: a king passing down his throne, betrayal between brothers, loyalty among warriors, and much more. These are themes we’ve seen countless times, and make it much easier to relate to relate to these events as they’re surrounded in otherworldly visuals. The production design of Asgard is fittingly regal, a vast empire filled with towering structures and CGI crowds. Alternating between impressive and slightly cheesy, the look of the movie is ultimately effective enough for an audience to accept the characters riding across a rainbow bridge and fighting Frost Giants.

But that’s only half of it. Once Thor is banished to Earth, he becomes a point of interest for Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster, a scientist searching for a link between worlds. There’s something of a love story tossed in, but Peter Parker and Mary-Jane Watson this ain’t. Portman works just fine, but this is not a standout performance for her. She’s gorgeous – no surprise there - so it’s easy to see why the god of thunder would fall for her. Kat Dennings plays Darcy, an intern seemingly more concerned with making quips than contributing to Jane’s research. Thankfully, even as a character so blatantly written as comic relief, Dennings never strays into annoying territory. She’s given just the right amount of one-liners, and her quippy delivery and cutesy persona is exactly what the movie needs to balance out the sometimes overly serious drama going on back on Asgard. The success of the film is largely dependent on how believably it transitions between the two worlds, and even though the love story isn’t the most compelling aspect of this movie, the film is equally effective regardless of the setting. Stellan Skarsgard is also a fantastic addition to the cast, playing Dr. Erik Selvig, the veteran father figure on this side of the universe.

One of the things this movie does best is incorporate the characters and elements of S.H.I.E.L.D. into the story in an organic way. Katey Rich wrote a solid piece at CinemaBlend detailing the things Thor does better than Iron Man 2, and its treatment of S.H.I.E.L.D. is the standout achievement in my opinion. Clark Gregg’s Agent Coulson discovers Mjolnir (Thor’s hammer, which Darcy hilariously mispronounces continuously throughout the movie) and forms a compound around it, setting up for a confrontation with Thor when he comes to retrieve it. Personally, I’m glad the actor has a bit more to work with here than in previous films. The only slightly negative S.H.I.E.L.D. comment I have was the totally unnecessary cameo of Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), who not only has about three lines and never fires a single shot, but basically just appears so audiences will recognize him when he shows up in the upcoming SuperTeamUp movie The Avengers in 2012.

Though the film is well balanced, the action is a bit uneven. The battle scenes on and around Asgard are much more cartoonish and outlandish than the ones set on Earth; I’ll take the practical effects used in the explosions in the Destroyer sequences over the digital effects used during fights with Frost Giants any time. The graphics are decent overall, but the crazy color scheme of the world of the gods got a little too outrageous for my tastes as the movie progressed. Also, the 3D is pretty worthless, so save your money and see the 2D version if one’s available in your area.

Marvel has accomplished their goal with Thor: the film hasn’t even hit American theaters yet and it’s already made nearly $100 million overseas, seemingly assuring a direct sequel. But more importantly for Marvel, Thor will serve as a gateway for its lesser known “magic-based” characters to find a home on film. After watching a movie about Norse gods, it should theoretically be easier for audiences to digest a movie about a powerful sorcerer like Dr. Strange, for example. But in the meantime, we can be content that Thor is a well-directed, visually interesting (far of those canted angles, eh Branagh?), exciting entry into Marvel’s quickly-expanding film library. Until next time…

*I’m just going to go ahead and assume Thor is a prequel to The Mask, since Loki is the spirit locked in the mask that gives Jim Carrey his crazy powers in that movie.

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Anyone ready to believe this 112 minute exorcism themed flick is going to be different than the others? Hear that? Neither do I. This is one of the faults of The Rite. For the most part, it is fairly predictable and lacks innovation within the characters.

Now there are other faults as well. Especially with the continuity of our lead character. Fortunately, this flick has a savior and this entity comes in the form of Anthony Hopkins. Just as Michael Jordan has carried the Chicago Bulls to championships, Hopkins carries the cinematic load and miraculously brings this up to a satisfactory ranking within the subgenre.

Michael Kovack (Colin O’Donoghue) is the son of an undertaker (Rutger Hauer needing something to do apparently). Together they continue the family business. A business Michael has grown tired of. Next best option, go become a priest (Duh). The story picks up when Michael is nearly finished with seminary school. Then all of a sudden he begins to doubt the existence of God. A concerned professor in Father Matthew (Toby Jones) urges Michael not to throw away his beliefs so haphazardly. He encourages him to explore the occupation of being an exorcist before deciding on his future. Michael reluctantly agrees and he’s off to Rome to study at the Vatican.

Under the tutelage of Father Xavier (Ciaran Hinds) Michael further questions the church’s teachings on whether people are truly possessed by demons. He believes they just need to log some serious time on a therapist’s couch. Father Xavier asks Michael to speak with a priest who is considered the Mr. Miyagi of exorcist training in Father Lucas (Anthony Hopkins). From there, the borderline eccentric Father Lucas performs treatments on the suspected possessed while Michael shadows him. Even with all the contorting and bone crunching of patients, along with assorted dialects coming out of their mouths, Michael still keeps to his atheists ways. But of course, there is a challenge of faith on the horizon.

If you have seen any of The Exorcist sequels, prequels and/or remakes, the pattern found here is about the same. Difference with this one, the tone of the story manages to keep a fairly tense atmosphere the entire way through. There is a natural attraction to where these stories are going to lead to. The damning part of that feeling is they all eventually lead to the same place. Take this as a mild spoiler warning, but for a brief moment, the audience will think that evil could win for once. As in truly win. Not some clichéd wink at the camera by a surviving victim. But to no avail, the tease was just a tease. Actually, it was a decent tease, much like a lap dance. It’s enjoyable and you’re glad you sat through it. Let’s be honest though, there is always some frustration in that scenario, and the audience will have to deal with that feeling here as well.

Mentioned above was how Anthony Hopkins played savior. He was tremendous in his role that required a wide-range of emotions. Initially, one may think he was out of place being in this type of flick. And perhaps he was in another world in a few scenes. Bottom line though, the guy embraced the character and was so focused in delivering one of the more consistent performance these green eyes have ever seen in an exorcism themed flick.

In contrast, the way the script handled the Michael Kovack character was the ultimate clichéd bullsh*t. First off, the storyline of his character is littered with development holes. Which then hampers the ending of the piece. O’Donoghue’s acting is barely serviceable and the direction of his role is too obvious. I was half-expecting the voices from the Mystery Science Theater television show to loop in and begin making fun of the character. That’s how pathetic his role was handled.

Overall, The Rite is a tense piece that will get a few cheap jumps out of the audience by wisely placing sound effects in all the appropriate spots. The script flashes instances where it could have enhanced the creativity of the stale exorcist lore. For whatever reason, the lack of belief in trying something new, was not part of the master plan. If one has NOT taken in a bunch of these flicks, this one will draw you in. As for veterans of this realm, it’s a leap of faith whether this can satisfy your mental-horror hunger.

And can we stop introducing every sci-fi and/or horror flick with the “Based on true events” jargon! Almost as bad as Eli Roth begging for audiences to like The Last Exorcism. (You’re better than that Eli).

RATING: 3 out of 5

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Marvel and Paramount have released the first official trailer for Thor. If you managed to catch the Comic Con trailer released earlier this year then you will know what to expect, as it is a shorter version of that but with a few more money shots thrown in for good measure.

Watch the trailer below:

In the film Thor, a powerful but arrogant and reckless warrior, is cast down to Earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and forced to live among humans as punishment. Once here Thor meets a young scientist, Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), and learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world (Loki, played by Tom Hiddleston) sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.

Thor, directed by Kenneth Branagh, will be released May 2011.

What do you think of the trailer?

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The guards of Asgard haven’t been doing their job properly as the 5 minute Thor trailer from Comic Con has landed on Earth. As the trailer hasn’t been released officially it might not be around for long, so check it out while you can.

Thor finished filming in May and has 1 year of post-production in total, which is probably why there aren’t many flashy effects shots in the trailer. What we do see, however, is very cool and gives us a sense of where director Kenneth Branagh is heading. I can also see the Thor world fitting well with Iron Man, which I was unsure about before.

What do you think of the trailer?

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The Los Angeles Times debuted a new image from Thor today which gives us our first look at the Hall of Asgard. We see Chris Hemsworth as Thor kneeling before Odin (Anthony Hopkins) as Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Frigga (Rene Russo), Hogun (Tadanobu Asano) and Fandral (Josh Dallas) look on. If you look closely at Loki on the left you can make out his horned helmet.

Thor will have a panel at Comic Con later this week, so we may get some footage appearing online at some point.

Thor spans the Marvel Universe from present day Earth to the realm of Asgard. At the center of the story is the mighty Thor, a powerful but arrogant warrior whose reckless actions reignite an ancient war. Thor is cast down to Earth by his father Odin and is forced to live among humans. A beautiful, young scientist, Jane Foster (Portman), has a profound effect on Thor, as she ultimately becomes his first love. It’s while here on Earth that Thor learns what it takes to be a true hero when the most dangerous villain of his world sends the darkest forces of Asgard to invade Earth.

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Earlier this week an image from Thor was released which gave us our first look at Thor’s hammer, along with our first look at Tom Hiddleston as Loki.

The lighting in the image was a little bright which made the costumes look slightly cheesy, but now SHH has posted a second image of Chris Hemsworth as Thor and Sir Anthony Hopkins as Odin with better lighting, which improves the appearance of the Godly attire. Click here to check out the full shot!

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Hero Complex revealed a brand new image from Thor in an article confirming that Marvel plans to convert both Thor and Captain America for a 3D release (I suppose it could have been predicted). The image gives us our first look at Thor’s hammer, along with our first look at Tom Hiddleston as Loki.

While 3D conversions haven’t been that well received due to there rushed nature, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige wanted to reassure fans that they will be taking their time to do it right:

“I’d say there’s not a great feeling out there for conversion based on some of the films that may have succeeded financially but had their artistry come under fire,” Feige said. Feige, in London for “Captain America,” pledged that “an unprecedented amount of time” would be devoted to the conversion process. He also said the films will benefit from the fact that the 3-D choice was made early on with passion and planning and not in post-production, as was the case with a flurry of films that came on the heels of “Avatar” and its historic box-office success.

“In being able to think in 3-D from the start — and having every bit of our special effects rendered in true 3-D — we have the opportunity to do it right,” Feige said. “When you’re working with a director like Ken Branagh or Joe Johnston, they’re not going to settle for less than perfect image. They’re not going to settle for something that isn’t up to the artistry of everything else they’ve done on the film … they’re not going to put on some overlay in the last 10 to 12 weeks of post-production for a fiscal reason.”

Click here to read the full article. Directors Kenneth Branagh and Joe Johnston say they were skeptical of 3D at first, and the idea actually made Branagh cringe, but “then he started to pulse with the unexpected artistic opportunities.”

What do you think of Marvel converting Thor and Captain America into 3D? Also, what do you think of the image above of Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston and Anthony Hopkins?

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Entertainment Tonight has posted a behind the scenes video from their visit to the set of Thor. The video gives us our first look at Anthony Hopkins in costume as Odin, our first look at Natalie Portman as Jane Foster, and we see the results of Chris Hemsworth’s intense bulking for the role. He looks huge sat next to Natalie Portman, and she tells him so herself.

Last month Hemsworth revealed that he had finished filming Thor and the film would now have 1 year of post-production time ready for it’s release next May, although he will have to keep lifting multiple people throughout the day as The Avengers is set to start filming in February.

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Thor director Kenneth Branagh recently took time out of filming to take part in an interview with Hero Complex. In the interview he spoke about combining the modern world with Asgard on-screen, debunked talk that Sir Anthony Hopkins was being difficult on set, and praised the cast. Kevin Feige also mentioned that there will be some surprises in Iron Man 2 that set up an unexpected bond to Captain America.

“It’s going very, very well,” Branagh said Wednesday. “We’re in New Meixco now where we have a contemporary Earth part of our story. I guess we’re two-thirds of the way through the story and at this stage of the game what’s surprising and delighting me is the way the cast, the ensemble, has fused together. It’s kind of an interesting combination of very young and very experienced people and the double-up of that, it seems to me, is there is a lot of fire in the movie. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, it doesn’t try to be too solemn.”

Iron Man and Thor Branagh made a point to praise Hopkins as “an extraordinary actor with his Celtic passion and incredible technique” and said he has been a binding force for the film on the set and will do the same on the screen. The cast that plays Asgard’s royal family are “people who can embody larger-than-life characters but retain at the center a natural, recognizable, human dynamic … and these people run the universe.”

No word yet on when we will get our first look at Thor. I assume most of the ‘money shots’ will involve Godly duels, so it will be a while before the effects are trailer worthy.

Thor stars Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Stellen Skarsgard, Kat Dennings and will be released on May 6th 2011.

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