Film Review “I Am Thor”

“I Am Thor”

Starring: Jon Mikl Thor
Directed by: Ryan Wise
Rated: Not Rated
Running time: 1 hr 24 mins

Our Score: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Jon Mikl Thor was a bodybuilding, steel bending, brick-smashing rock star in the 70’s and 80’s whose theatrical band THOR hit the scene alongside Metallica and Kiss, but never achieved the gold record status of its contemporaries. After a brief but memorable film career saw him starring in cult classics like “Rock n Roll Nightmare” and “Zombie Nightmare” Thor all but disappeared. Tracing the rise, fall, and rebirth of a determined performer “I Am Thor” paints a fascinating and sometimes unbelievable portrait of this larger-than-life icon.

Anybody who grew up in the 70’s and 80’s had to have caught a glimpse or at the very least heard of Thor at some point during their adolescence. Whether it was tales of his abilities to bend steel or break cinder blocks with a single blow being told around the school yard to possibly catching a late night showing of “Rock n Roll Nightmare” or maybe you were fortunate enough to purchase a copy of Thor’s 1978 release “Keep the Dogs Away”. Whichever it may have been Thor was there. “I Am Thor” is more than just your basic rise, fall and rise again type of documentary. Instead you get an unprecedented look at Thor’s career told directly from the man himself Jon Mikel Thor. From his early beginnings as a body building champion in Canada and the subsequent evolution of the Thor character over 30 years the viewer experiences it all. Packed with both new and vintage footage the film had everything I like in a documentary of this style.

Yes the rise/fall/rise story line is becoming a bit tiring at this point as this film is certainly not the first to adopt this format nor will it probably be the last however, these type of films which showcase one person or a group of peoples undying dedication to themselves and their fans are what keep me coming back for more. “I Am Thor” is a diamond in the rough just waiting to be discovered.