---
title: "Thor: The Dark World: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/thor-the-dark-world/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/thor-the-dark-world"
critics_score: 62
critics_reviews: 22
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Thor: The Dark World (2013): what the critics said

Critics' score 62 from 22 reviews: 11 positive, 8 mixed, 3 negative.

Most critics come away mildly pleased with Thor: The Dark World, and nearly all of them say the same thing about why: Tom Hiddleston’s Loki. The praise gathers on him, on the humour, and on the sibling back-and-forth between Hemsworth and Hiddleston, which several reviews call the film’s real emotional centre. The London-set final battle is picked out more than once for its invention and its jokes, and Hemsworth gets credit for landing the comedy.

The reservations cluster just as tightly. Christopher Eccleston’s Malekith is called thin, bland or forgettable by review after review, and many find the plot busy, derivative and low in stakes, with the Asgard scenes dragging. The spread is wide, from a four-star notice at Empire to outright dismissals. The Guardian finds the direction clumsy, The New York Times finds it witless, and The Times gives Loki a five-star performance inside a two-star verdict.

## Empire — Chris Hewitt

Rating 4/5. 22 October 2013. 

Marvel delivers another confident blockbuster that mixes darker tones with consistent humour and inventive action. The final London-set showdown is a highlight for its creativity and laughs.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/thor-dark-world-review/)

## Screen Daily

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 23 October 2013. 

A gloriously entertaining film delivering spectacle, action, humor, and fun, with strong performances and brisk pace.

[Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/thor-the-dark-world/5062762.article)

## Slant Magazine — R. Kurt Osenlund

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 6 November 2013. 

The sequel pads its battle-to-battle structure with humor, visual artistry, and emotion, flipping the fish-out-of-water dynamic and elevating Loki's role for laughs and poignancy while delivering epic imagery.

[Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/thor-the-dark-world/)

## Total Film — Neil Smith

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 24 October 2013. 

The sequel keeps the fun of the original while adding some grittier elements, with Loki providing the best moments and witty banter. The film never stays dark for long and zips along entertainingly.

[Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/thor-the-dark-world-review/)

## Evening Standard

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 21 November 2013. 

Loki steals the show with his subversive wit and charm, making the rest of the film watchable despite its flaws. Hemsworth delivers the laughs effectively amid the spectacle.

[Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/thor-the-dark-world-3d-film-review-8916382.html)

## The AV Club — A.A. Dowd

Rating B-. 7 November 2013. 

Thor has become too mature and square-jawed to be interesting, and the villain is bland, but the film improves on action staging and comedy while making the Loki-Thor sibling dynamic its emotional core.

[Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/thor-the-dark-world-1798178611)

## Variety — Justin Chang

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 22 October 2013. 

The film is a buoyant if derivative ride that benefits from humorous approach and strong setpieces in Asgard, though the material feels recycled and stakes low.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/2013/film/reviews/thor-the-dark-world-review-1200751252/)

## Little White Lies — Adam Lee Davies

Rating 3/3/3. 29 October 2013. 

The critic finds it a consistently enjoyable but uneven and derivative comic book sequel, praising its humor, visuals, and Tom Hiddleston's Loki.

[Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/thor-the-dark-world/)

## RogerEbert.com — Simon Abrams

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 8 November 2013. 

The film is more busy than exciting with too many subplots and characters, but it is a step in the right direction thanks to the strong chemistry between Hemsworth and Hiddleston.

[Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/thor-the-dark-world-2013)

## The Independent

Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 4 November 2013. 

The film lurches between grand spectacle and self-parody in a jarring manner. Tom Hiddleston's Loki stands out as a far more compelling figure than the lead character.

[Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/thor-the-dark-world-review-tom-hiddleston-shines-in-latest-marvel-epic-8915372.html)

## Time Out — Tom Huddleston

Rating 3/5. 23 October 2013. 

A deeply silly, noisy action movie drowning in CGI but enormously entertaining, with strong action sequences and humor.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/thor-the-dark-world)

## Los Angeles Times — Michael Phillips

Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 6 November 2013. 

The sequel offers the same old threats of galaxy annihilation spiced with fairly entertaining fish-out-of-water jokes, but it is hampered by repetition and lacks visual dynamism in battles.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-thor-review-20131107-story.html)

## The Hollywood Reporter — Leslie Felperin

Fi1m's normalised score 45/100 (inferred from the text). 22 October 2013. 

The film is uneven, with long draggy stretches on Asgard that feel like filler and a ramshackle script, but it perks up whenever Loki appears and finds its balance in the final London battle.

[Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/thor-dark-world-film-review-649886/)

## The Times — Kate Muir

Rating 2/5. 1 November 2013. 

The film is uneven, with an unconvincing villain and tedious plot despite upping the comedy. Tom Hiddleston’s Loki receives special praise as a five-star performance amid the two-star overall verdict.

[Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/comedy/article/thor-the-dark-world-bg0zv9zcd90)

## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 3 November 2013. 

Alan Taylor’s direction is butterfingered and the film fails to impress as a workmanlike Marvel sequel. The critic singles out Stellan Skarsgård’s mad scientist streaking at Stonehenge as the best thing about it.

[Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/03/thor-the-dark-world-review)

## The New York Times — Jeannette Catsoulis

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 7 November 2013. 

The film is witless and lacks humor, with battle scenes lacking heat and coherence and a central love story that fails to engage, though Hiddleston provides some relief.

[Read the review](https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/2013/11/08/movies/thor-the-dark-world-brings-back-marvels-alien-superhero.html)

## /Film — Germain Lussier

Rating 7.5/10. 22 October 2013. 

The critic praises the film's humor, strong character relationships especially between Thor and Loki, and non-stop action, calling it one of the best Marvel films to date. The villain Malekith is noted as underwritten and forgettable.

[Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/528570/thor-the-dark-world-review-laughs-and-character-make-this-one-of-marvels-best/)

## The Wrap

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 22 October 2013. 

The film is entertaining enough with plenty of excitement and panache, making it more fun than the first Thor. Director Alan Taylor strikes the right balance of action, humor, and character moments while delivering the goods above and beyond its predecessor.

[Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/thor-dark-world-review-stirring-mighty-return-thunder-god/)

## Collider — Matt Goldberg

Rating B-. 7 November 2013. 

The critic finds the film overly enamored with otherworldly production design and a thin villain plot in the first half, leaving Thor himself sidelined. It improves markedly once focusing on the Thor-Loki dynamic, delivering fun, quips, and a unique climactic battle.

[Read the review](https://collider.com/thor-the-dark-world-review/)

## Paste — Michael Burgin

Rating 7.8. 7 November 2013. 

The review praises the strong cast, especially Tom Hiddleston's Loki and Chris Hemsworth's Thor, along with the lush production design and humor that make the space opera enjoyable. It notes that while the plot has some incoherent elements, the film remains outlandish, silly, and surprisingly fun overall.

[Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/thor/post-186)

## Den of Geek — Simon Brew

Rating 3/5. 22 October 2013. 

The film starts as a busy muddle with too much exposition and jumping between genres and characters, but finds its feet in the second half with strong humor and performances. The critic singles out Kat Dennings' Darcy for praise while complaining that Christopher Eccleston's Malekith receives too little development and screen time.

[Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/thor-the-dark-world-review-2/)

## The Playlist — The Playlist Staff

Rating C. 22 October 2013. 

The review finds the film entertaining in spots with good humor and action but ultimately haphazard and unsatisfying due to an under-developed villain, thin script, and lack of distinction. It is called the most deeply flawed Marvel movie since Iron Man 2.

[Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/review-marvels-thor-the-dark-world-with-chris-hemsworth-natalie-portman-tom-hiddleston-20131022/)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/thor-the-dark-world.md