Kesha’s Wishes You Knew about ‘Thor’ Director Kenneth Branagh’s Killer Scenery

Vinyl hijackers called the Popcorn Snobs are playing catch-up on their theme, ‘The Taking of April A-Z,’ as they run this blog for the next 16 (or so) days.

Hi everyone, it’s Kesha and I’m returning today to share what happens when you put yourself in the director’s chair of Kenneth Branagh. You first find out that you don’t have to be a comic book fan or even a superhero movie lover to appreciate how badass Asgard -- the home of the the Nordic Gods in his fantasy adventure flick Thor -- looks on screen. It is futuristic but also has a classic vibe to it, as if it’s been there for many, many years.

You also learn that this modern-meets-classical style look is what Branagh intended early on while he was pitching Marvel executives to get the job on this film; an opportunity for which he used photos of work by architects Frank Lloyd Wright and Santiago Calatrava, as visual references.

You begin to see how Asgard was influenced by a combination of ancient civilizations, geometric shapes and modern architecture, as is the Bifrost bridge. Scandinavian wall art and the Beijing Olympic Stadium were among the sources that Kenneth Branagh pulled inspiration from to design this fantasy world.

You also understand why the visual effects team worked on Thor for 15 months to create Asgardian buildings, dynamic camera angles and related parts of the film’s establishing shots, which were 3D matte paintings. 

Did YOU know Kenneth Branagh was the main reason that many of the actors who star in Thor, including Natalie Portman and Idris Elba, chose to be involved with this film?