Poster © Paramount Pictures. Shown at reduced size for review and commentary.
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GenreAction & Fantasy
RatedPG-13
Runtime1 hr 55 mins
ReleasedMay 6, 2011
StreamingSee Where to Watch
DirectorKenneth Branagh
StarringChris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston
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Thor (2011)
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| iIMDb Profile | %Rotten Tomatoes |
| WWikipedia | LLetterboxd |
| TTMDB | +Add to Top 8 |
| Thor's Details | |
| Genre | Action & Fantasy |
| Rated | PG-13 |
| Released | 04/17/2011 (Sydney); 05/06/2011 (United States) |
| Streaming | See Where to Watch on this page. |
| Running Time | 1 hr 55 mins |
| Budget | $150M (reported) |
| Box Office | Updated daily from Box Office Mojo. See the numbers below. |
| Based On | Thor by Stan Lee and Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Thor's Interests | |
| General | The Rainbow Bridge, Frost Giants, New Mexico diners, smashed coffee mugs, a hammer stuck in the desert. |
| Music | Patrick Doyle. Big orchestra, big brass, very royal. |
| Movies | Henry V (1989). Branagh did the young-king-learns-a-lesson story first. |
| Television | Loki. Tom Hiddleston gets the spotlight he was always angling for. |
| Heroes | Darcy Lewis (Kat Dennings). Tased a god, kept her cool. |
| Thor's Crew | |
| Director | Kenneth Branagh |
| Writers | Ashley Edward Miller, Zack Stentz, Don Payne, J. Michael Straczynski (story), Mark Protosevich (story) |
| Producers | Kevin Feige |
| Cinematography | Haris Zambarloukos |
| Music | Patrick Doyle |
| Edited By | Paul Rubell |
| Production | Marvel Studios |
| Distributed By | Paramount Pictures |
Somewhere inside Thor there’s a Shakespeare play, and it took a wrong turn into a New Mexico parking lot. Kenneth Branagh clearly loves the Asgard half, all gold halls and Anthony Hopkins growling about kings. Then Thor lands on Earth and the whole movie shrinks to one dusty street and a diner. The romance with Natalie Portman’s Jane happens over a long weekend and gets sold as love for the ages. And the camera tilts so often you’ll start tilting your head to level it out. What saves it is casting. Chris Hemsworth is genuinely funny as a god who has no idea how a pet store or a coffee mug works, and Tom Hiddleston’s Loki is so good he walked off with the next decade of Marvel. 987,674 IMDb ratings average a 7.0, which is kinder than I am. A 5.6 because the leads are great and the movie around them is tiny. $58 says you try the mug smash at a diner and it goes worse for you than it did for him.
What works: Hemsworth’s fish-out-of-water comedy and Hiddleston’s Loki, who makes a jealous little brother feel like a real tragedy.
What doesn’t: The Earth half feels small and cheap, the romance is rushed, and the constantly tilted camera gets distracting fast.
Who it’s for: Marvel completists and anybody who wants to see where Loki started before he became the main event.
Spoilers
Loki learns he’s a Frost Giant that Odin adopted, and he lets go and falls from the shattered Bifrost bridge into space. Thor gets his powers back by offering his life to protect the town, then destroys the bridge to save Jotunheim, cutting himself off from Jane.
Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is about to be crowned king of Asgard when Frost Giants sneak into the royal vault and ruin the big day. Ignoring his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins), Thor storms off to the frozen realm of Jotunheim to pick a fight, dragging along his brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), Sif (Jaimie Alexander) and the Warriors Three. Odin is furious. He strips Thor of his powers and sends him to Earth, where he lands in the New Mexico desert right in front of scientist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), her intern Darcy (Kat Dennings) and their van. Kenneth Branagh directs. One hundred fourteen minutes, hammer not included.
Anyone who knows where to buy a horse. Thor already checked the pet store.
| Chris Hemsworth | Thor |
| Natalie Portman | Jane Foster |
| Tom Hiddleston | Loki |
| Stellan Skarsgård | Erik Selvig |
| Kat Dennings | Darcy Lewis |
| Clark Gregg | Phil Coulson |
| Colm Feore | Laufey |
| Ray Stevenson | Volstagg |
| Idris Elba | Heimdall |
| Jaimie Alexander | Sif |
| Rene Russo | Frigga |
| Anthony Hopkins | Odin |
- (cur | prev) 14:30, 17 October 2026 DataBot +120 Numbers refreshed: Rotten Tomatoes 77%; Rotten Tomatoes critics 77% (292 reviews); movie.guru score 5.6 → 6.0.
- (cur | prev) 12:00, 17 October 2026 DataBot +2,000 Profile created from Wikipedia and Box Office Mojo: cast, crew, release dates, budget, official trailer.