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'A burly slab of bombastic superhero entertainment,' one critic writes about Marvel's 3-D take on the mighty Norse god.
By Eric Ditzian

Chris Hemsworth in "Thor"
Photo: Paramount Pictures

"Thor" made landfall in Australia over the weekend, as Chris Hemsworth and the cast of this Marvel adaption arrived for the film's premiere in Sydney on Sunday. Coinciding with the flick's debut is the release of the first wave of reviews from around the globe.

The early word is very good for fans of the Asgardian superhero. "The Marvel universe moves into the cosmic realm with 'Thor,' a burly slab of bombastic superhero entertainment that skitters just this side of kitschy to provide an introduction befitting the mighty god of thunder," writes The Hollywood Reporter in a typically positive review. "It's a noisy, universe-rattling spectacle full of sound and fury with a suitably epic design, solid digital effects and a healthy respect for the comic-book lore that turned a mythological Norse god into a founding member of the superhero team known as The Avengers."

Chris Hemsworth, who was introduced to American audiences in a small role in 2009's "Star Trek," is being dubbed a worthy live-action version of the Marvel hero. "[He] is just as good a fit for the character of Thor as Robert Downey Jr. is for Tony Stark, and that one thing goes a long way to making the film a pleasure to watch," says HitFix.

Many reviews have highlighted the way in which the film has stayed true to the often comedic nature of the source material. " 'Thor' is frequently hilarious, but the humor comes from a genuine affection for the occasionally silly tropes of the comic books, not misguided 'irony,' " writes Australian site The Vine.

Lest you think critical opinion has been uniformly positive, we should note that reviews have dinged the movie for a variety of reasons. "While some post converted 3-D has really impressed me ('Green Hornet'), 'Thor' didn't fall into this category," says Collider.com. "While watching, I never felt like there was a lot of depth."

Other reviews have taken issue with the rushed pace of the film and a subpar third act. But in general, the early critics agree: "Thor" is a worthy, if hardly perfect, tribute to the beloved comics character.

" 'Thor' is everything you might hope and expect it to be, equal parts good and bad. It is the type of movie I would have loved if I saw it at age 10 — and I'm sure this movie will play awesome to younger audiences," writes SlashFilm. "I still very much enjoyed it, but did not fall in love with it. It falls a couple steps shy of achievements of recent Marvel films like 'Iron Man,' 'The Incredible Hulk', and even 'Iron Man 2.' "

Check out everything we've got on "Thor."

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