Film: Thor

The blockbuster season starts with a "mighty" bang as Marvel Studios bring us their latest comic book adaptation, directed by Kenneth Branagh.

Thor is the all conquering God of Thunder who wields his imposing hammer with complete confidence that he can defeat any foe. This confidence borders on arrogance and an act of agression enrages Thor's Father Odin (Anthony Hopkins) so much that he casts his Son out of the realm of Asguard to live as a mere mortal on Earth.

Of course Thor's troubles soon follow......

Chris Hemsworth is perfectly cast in the leading role, he looks as Thor should and puts in a charismatic performance. As well as Hopkins there is terrific support from Tom Hiddleston as Thor's brother Loki, Natalie Portman as Jane and Ray Stevenson as old ally Volstagg. Look carefully and you'll also spot Idris Elba as The Gatekeeper.

Anyone familiar with the comics will have an idea of how the story pans out but it's all done very well and it's laced with some nice "fish out of water" type humour.

It's a perfect way to kick off the Summer movie season and the best superhero film in a long time.

Ric's Rating: 90%

Book: Thor by Wayne Smith

Forget the Norse God of Thunder with the upcoming blockbuster movie, this is……

The supershock novel of Dog versus …….Werewolf !

This book is much more than the above tagline suggests. It’s more of a study of the relationship between Dog and Man than a horror, told entirely from the Dog’s perspective.

Some years ago I saw a so – so horror film called Bad Moon and I was so intrigued by the concept of a family Dog protecting his “pack” from a supernatural Beast that I made a point of seeking out the book it was based on, it is quite rare. I wasn’t disappointed.

Thor is a German Shepherd, a natural guard dog, but he is usually a gentle giant who takes great pleasure from the love and fun that his family provide.

However, when Uncle Ted comes to stay all of Thor’s natural instincts tell him that something is amiss and he must use all of his guile to protect the family from the threat that only he knows is coming.

Thor is a fantastic leading character, a true Hero who acts through love, loyalty and devotion, even in the most trying of circumstances.

Being a dog owner myself I recognise many of the characteristics displayed and Wayne Smith explains these and the Dog’s thought processes in a charming eloquent way that will appeal to anyone who has ever owned or had a close relationship with Man’s Best Friend.

The human characters are great too. The parents who struggle to rationalize their beloved dog’s behaviour. The kids, especially Brett, who is the only one that realises what is going on are excellent too and we have the conflicted Uncle Ted who is well aware of what he has become.

This is riveting stuff and if only it had one or two more action scenes it might have achieved a perfect score but that’s a trifling complaint because this is a remarkable and moving book that will live long in the memory of anyone lucky enough to read it.

Unfortunately Wayne Smith seems to have dropped off the radar, a pity.

Ric's Rating: 95%