Actually, a big part of the difference is that I have finally accepted that I thoroughly dislike Loki. I'm sorry, Loki's Army, but it's true. Now, before you hack my blog or something, please know that I find Tom Hiddleston amazing. He's one of the best young actors around right now, and I really enjoy his performance as Loki, not to mention in the other things I've seen of his. And he seems like a really cool person, with all his charity work and everything. Also, I can appreciate what a brilliant villain Loki is. He's a great villain. So great that I find him despicable and horrid and absolutely unlikable. Now that I've stopped trying to force myself to like Loki, I think I actually enjoy him more. He certainly made me laugh a lot more during this viewing.
I don't have a lot of new things to say, other than that. But I do have two questions rattling around in my brain after this second viewing.
Second, who braids Thor's hair? In this movie, he's got a couple of little braids on each side. Does he braid them himself? He's kinda got big, muscly hands, and the image of him braiding his own hair is amusing me greatly. If he doesn't, who does? Frigga? Jane? Some random barber? Is there a hiring protocol, or do they take volunteers? I'm having a terrible time finding any photos of the braids, but in this you can kinda see one.
So anyway, yeah, I totally love this movie now. I'll end by linking to this article from the BBC that discusses the ways that Shakespeare has influenced superheroes. I once compared Thor (2011) to Hamlet, so wanted to share it :-)
It's great to hear you loved the Dark World the second time around! As you know, I absolutely loved the movie.
ReplyDeleteInteresting thoughts on Loki. While I like him as both a great villain and as a character, I completely understand why you don't like him. He is a rather dastardly villain because he is the ultimate Mischievous Trickster.
Those braids are strange, and that is a good question as to who does them. :D
-James
I'm so glad I loved it this time too! Because I really wanted to love it the first time, and then got all angsty over it. So much happier now.
DeleteThe funny thing is, it's not Loki's trickyness that I dislike, exactly. I mean, he's kind of a con man, and I have a total fondness for con artists. But unlike Sawyer on Lost or Hooker and Gondorff in The Sting, he has no niceness in him at all -- he's even mean to Frigga. Blech.
That's great that you made up your mind about Loki, and are able to enjoy and dislike him simultaneously. I think it's actually impossible for someone to have a completely negative opinion of him; at the very least you have to appreciate his brilliant villainy. ;) Personally though, I can see a lot of good (albeit muted) qualities in his character.
ReplyDeleteWell, he DID help Thor avenge Frigga's death, which was helpful. But self-serving. But he gets a lot of my favorite lines in all 3 movies. In this, I think my fave of his was, "Trust my rage." Lovely moment between the two of them. I'm not sure I've ever loved Thor so much as I do when he says, "I wish I could trust you." That's all of his wonderful loving-brother-ness all in one phrase, one look. I'm going a little teary-eyed just thinking of it.
DeleteYeah, the one thing that stands out in this movie that proves Loki's soul is that he loves Frigga. Even though he tells her she's not his mother, you can tell he only says it because it's technically true, and he needs to win the argument. Really, he loves her as his mother. And of course, he does use the avenging situation for his own purpose as well, but I say he still get points for that one. He's at war with himself, and so far the evil side has been winning, but reading between the lines I can see there's a good side there. :)
DeleteThat is a great moment. I also love the line, "Satisfaction is not in my nature." I adore the dynamic between him and Thor in this movie -- pretty amazing from either viewpoint. :D
Yeah, the scenes with Thor and Loki together were far and away the best parts of the movie. I'd watch the two of them bicker and pester each other for two solid hours and never be bored. A Thor and Loki road trip, anyone?
DeleteI think what frustrates me the most is that Loki has chance after chance to redeem himself, to come to the light side as it were, and he turns them all down. He's bent on everyone agreeing that he's the baddest because he knows he can't beat Thor at being the goodest, I think. What he fails to see is that he could match Thor if he tried. But he doesn't want to, so I end up rolling my eyes and shaking my fist at him.
Oh, I do agree with that, his reaction is getting disproportionate to the original offense that turned him bad. He logically should have turned back to the good side in this movie, and, of course, gone back again eventually, but with an understandable reason. I don't see any logic behind what happens at the end of the movie, it just seems like they're making him bad now because that's what he's "supposed" to be, and that is annoying.
DeleteOh, I think him on the throne of Asgard is entirely logical. Or, Loki-logical, anyway. It's what he's wanted for a long time. He said himself in The Avengers, "I was a king! The rightful king of Asgard!" He thinks this is where he should be, that he is owed this in some way. And Thor abdicating at the end of this one gives Loki kind of a right to it, except for the fact that he's an escaped criminal and all. But Loki sees it as his right. I do wonder what's happened to Odin, if he's in a coma thing again like in the first Thor, or what.
DeleteNow comes the hard part: waiting a few years for another one to be made so we can see what happens next.
You're right, it does make sense because it was what he always wanted, I just would have thought that after escaping he would have used his "death" to bide his time and come up with a plan instead of jumping on the throne at the risk of being caught... I just had the impression that Odin could've walked in at any moment, but that might not have been the case! Gah, I know, I'll never survive the wait to find out...
DeleteYeah, if it were I, I would go somewhere and start a new life. But that's not Loki. He also plans quickly and trusts his ability to fool anyone, and he's impulsive. Plus, could be he's hiding out in Asgard as that warrior he disguised himself as to talk to Odin, and biding his time right there where he can keep an eye on things.
DeleteI saw the title of this post and went "Aw, she did it. Great! :)".
ReplyDeleteYou're brave to say that before the world, that you now thoroughly dislike Loki! :) I don't exactly dislike him, there's something about him that makes me like - or want to like - him. I guess I like the picture of whatever it is that he was before he turned bad, whatever it is Thor is always fighting to bring back. But he's the bad guy. And I get why you dislike him. :)
That's too funny! That would be sweet if it was Frigga who does his braids...his own mother. Not anymore though. Gosh, that's sad.
Hee, it did feel a bit brave to declare that. And like you, I've wanted so long to like him, but it just isn't happening.
DeleteYes, Loki is a rather despicable character. Although for such great villain, I find it interesting that he often takes the side villain role. He's just kind of there to turn the tables and though a knife in the main villain's plans or the hero's plans. Either one, it doesn't matter, just whoever's in his way and whoever he fancies to hold a grudge against (though that only narrows it down to everyone :P).
ReplyDeleteYou do have some good points though. I really didn't get why Odin was so against Jane either. It's not like he had even met her.
Imaging Thor braid his own hair, is, heehee, rather amusing. I really don't think he would. Maybe he even insists that it not be done. Whoever does do it though, must be either very persuasive of influential over him.
Loki is the god of mischief, so he just wants to throw a monkey wrench in whatever else is going on. And really, he's the main villain in both Thor and The Avengers. He might be serving Thanos in the latter, but he's the one doing all the villainous stuff.
DeleteI'm wondering if Odin had a fling with a human back in the day, but gave her up after pressure from his parents or something, and now he thinks Thor should do the same. There must be some reason that he's being so... unreasonable.
It's 10:50 p.m., I've had 10 coffees in the last 48 hours, I have 10 blogging emails to respond to, a movie review to type, 2 chapters of Baskervilles to read...and I'm over here reading your Thor reviews, because, Thor. Thorapy. Lol
ReplyDeleteP.S. Have you seen Maleficent and/or you gonna review it? Because I'm reviewing it, and I was surprised I got to it before you did. :-)
Thorapy! I like it.
DeleteHaven't seen Maleficent. No desire to see Maleficent. Not particularly a fan of Angelina Jolie (I don't dislike her, but I don't watch movies just cuz she's in them either), not really a fan of Disney's Sleeping Beauty, and nothing about the trailers made me want to see it. I'll be interested to read your review and see what you thought of it!
Ah, okay. I get really nostalgic about Disney, and I was quite curious. But for what it's worth, you ought to try it. The writers took "true love's kiss" and turned it on its head, in a very good, totally appropriate way. Maleficent is so not evil, but I don't want to spoil any more than that. :-)
DeleteI get nostalgic about Disney movies I watched as a kid, but I didn't seen SB until I was in college, and the story has never really interested me anyway, even in just classic fairy tale books, etc.
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