Thor 001: Has Marvel Earned Its Wizards?

<h2>Minute One: From Titles to Typing</h2> <h3>In the first minute of Kenneth Branagh’s 2011 film <em>Thor</em>...</h3> <ul><li>We start with the titles for Thor. The title screens for both Paramount Pictures as well as Marvel Studios remind us we're still in a different era.</li> <li>While they play, Patrick Doyle’s fantastic first track “Chasing the Storm” gets our juices pumping.</li> <li>This helps us transition to Puente Antiguo, New Mexico on a moonless night. Does this have anything to do with <a href="https://trustory.fm/marvelmovieminute/im2125/">the end of last season</a>?</li> <li>It may be moonless, but it's noisy. Night insects chirp and a distant vehicle idles.</li> <li>Inside the vehicle, three people work on very scientific equipment. Well, two of them. One just sits there in the darkness.</li> <li>But who are these scientists? Well, we meet Jane Foster played by Natalie Portman and Erik Selvig played by Stellan Skarsgård.</li> <li>But why isn't Jane a nurse? It's the first big change from the comics.</li> <li>Turns out Jane’s not a nurse but an astrophysicist and has a screen up on which displays information about the Van Allen Belt.</li> <li>We like that Branagh wanted to start on Earth and not in Asgard with Thor. It grounds the story for us.</li> <li>Branagh favors dutch angles because of time as a youth spent reading comic books.</li> <li>Also, Branagh and his cinematographer seem to really like handheld camera work.</li> <li>As we said back in the first episode of <em>Iron Man</em>, you have to earn your wizards. Marvel certainly has done that.</li></ul> <p>With all of that, there’s a surprising amount of things to discuss in this first minute. Tune in!</p> <p>Join the conversation with movie lovers from around the world on <a href="https://discord.com/invite/yW72E6M">TruStory FM’s Discord channel</a>!</p> <h3>Film Sundries</h3> <ul><li>Watch this film: <a href="https://tv.apple.com/us/movie/thor/umc.cmc.hgkuacmdh6wxtlwtwpuju43">iTunes</a> • <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Thor-Natalie-Portm