I always considered Thor as the least likely Marvel character to make it big in the popularity stakes on the big screen. For a start he's no Tony Stark, never short of a witty remark or a cocky wise crack just before kicking some ass. He is also no uncontrollable green monster and he doesn't have a cool suit like Spider-Man. Thor is a ripped Norse God with a magic hammer and long blond flowing hair.

Having said that I was pleasantly surprised with Hemsworth's interpretation of Thor in Kenneth Branagh's 2011 debut comic book movie. He also proved that he could hold his own with the Avengers when they assembled in 2012. Now with his third outing Hemsworth's Thor has truly arrived.

In The Dark World we see a more mature Thor. He is no longer the arrogant and impulsive youth who found himself banished to earth by his father Odin (Anthony Hopkins). He is now a true Prince of Asgard, leading the fight against evil with his band of dedicated warriors as they become the peacekeepers of the nine realms.  This is all in preparation for Thor to take on the responsibility of the throne.

The film sets the scene for things to come right from the start. Through a flashback sequence we are taken back thousands of years and witness Thor's grandfather the Asgardian King battle the dark elves who are ruled by the evil and ruthless Malekith (Christopher Eccleston). Malekith has his own weapon of mass destruction called the aether, a volatile liquid mass capable of transforming the universe into eternal darkness. But Malekith and his dark elves are defeated by the Asgardian army before the aether can be let loose and has been hidden in the bowls of the planet.

Fast forward to modern day Earth where astrophysicist and Thor's human love interest Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) has now moved to England and has unwittingly awakened Malekith from hibernation by discovering the aether in a vortex in a London suburb. Thor returns to earth to take Jane back to the safety of Asgard but she is more interested to know where he has been for the past two years! To help overthrow Malekith he is forced into an alliance with his treacherous brother Loki (Tom Hiddlestone), who if you remember was taken back to Asgard and locked up for the crimes he committed against earth.

This storyline may sound all too familiar 'Evil megalomaniac wants to rule the universe' but what sets this apart from the rest is the excellent scriptwriting and the film is littered with very funny and sometimes laugh out loud comedy moments. The film really comes alive when Loki is on screen and Tom Hiddlestone does a good job of portraying a character that the audience know will always double cross you in the end but you can't help liking him. Natalie Portman has more to get her teeth into in this sequel and plays a more integral part. We also see more from Thor's Asgardian warrior buddies, Volstagg (Brit actor Ray Stevenson 'Rome') the big bearded Viking, Fandral (Zachary Levi 'Tangled') the good looking Robin Hoodesque type and Sif (Jaimie Alexander 'Love and Other Drugs') the sexy Lara Croft lookalike. Idris Elba is also back as Heimdall the sentinel of Asgard who stands watch over the Cosmos and turns out to be a pretty cool dude. Top marks also go to Christopher Eccleston as the nasty Malekith (who you can just about recognise under the prosthetics) for creating a chilling complex villain.

For many of the actors the major draw to becoming involved with this film was due to the reputation of director Alan Taylor. Marvel's decision to bring Alan Taylor in to helm The Dark World was down to his spectacular award winning work on some of the most successful recent TV dramas. Taylor has been responsible for directing such huge hits as 'Boardwalk Empire', 'Rome', 'The West Wing', 'Mad Men', 'Six Feet Under' and 'Game of Thrones'.

The battle scenes are well choreographed and the special effects are excellent, although I don't think you necessarily need to see the film in 3D. I must admit there was a moment when Thor throws his hammer and as usual it eventually finds it way back to him (which I forgot about) and the hammer suddenly shot back out the screen and took me by surprise! A tad embarrassing as I did flinch a bit but I don't think anyone around me noticed.

As ever with all Marvel films you need to look out for the cameo appearances and also make sure you stay until the credits have run. This time there's a bonus special.

Four out of Five stars

In UK cinemas from October 30

Certificate 12A