Almighty Thor (2011) – Review

Where to watch Almighty Thor

1 1/2 Stars

Almighty Thor is the newest mock-buster from The Asylum and SyFy. Essentially this movie was made to capitalize on the big budget Thor‘s theatrical release. That being said it’s not a total loss. The special effects are on par with a Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode from a decade ago, and some of the acting isn’t cringe inducing. The storyline is somewhat bland and with a purported production budget of around half a million dollars (by star Cody Deal) I really expected a little more from this.

Thor’s main objective in this film is to find his father’s magic hammer and stop Loki from acquiring it to destroy the Tree of Life, and alone with it the entire Earth. Unfortunately this quest mainly consists of Thor walking around from here to there with little purpose or need. There isn’t much that happens in the film, and there’s no strong tie of Thor to the humans that he claims he wants to save. The fight sequences are incredibly uninspired and underwhelming, with an obvious absence of thought out choreography that is weakly covered up by sloppy use of slow-motion.

The best thing Almighty Thor has going for it is star Cody Deal. Cody actually tried out for the part of Thor in the big budget Hollywood version, so landing his first break with this role is more than just coincidence. I could imagine seeing him in some great 90’s throwback action flicks. But Cody went a step further with this SyFy original release. He live tweeted on its inaugural showing and put himself through the media ringer setting up interviews for himself wherever he could. Every actor should be this passionate about their work, and I have nothing but respect for the man. He currently runs a behind the scenes website for his trek through Hollywood, Hollywood & Beyond. It’s quite an interesting read.

Other actors you may recognize in the flick are Richard Grieco, best know as Johnny Depp’s replacement on 21 Jump Street, as the bad guy Loki. Patricia Velasquez who played the love interest of Michael Bluth, Marta, in TV’s Arrested Development. And wrestler Kevin Nash. None of which bring anything spectacular to their characters.

Anyone who watches SyFy originals or Asylum films regularly will most likely not feel ripped off after viewing, for those that don’t, and if you make it more than ten minutes into the film, you might want your time spent back.

Director: Christopher Ray
Stars: Cody Deal, Richard Grieco, Patricia Velasquez, Kevin Nash