Man oh man, I want to embrace the upcoming Thor movie in the worst way, and for three main reasons: First, I dig superhero movies, even though I never had a fondness for Marvel or Thor. Second, I’m keen on seeing how an unorthodox choice for director – Kenneth Branagh (Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) – stacks up to the gold standard of Nolan and Favreau. Lastly, even though they cast the guy off the Brawny paper towels package as Thor (and his beard and superhero mullet look super lame), the rest of the cast grabs my interest. Yeah, I’m talking about Anthony Hopkins (The Rite), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), Colm Feore (The Chronicles of Riddick), Stellan Skarsgård (Angels & Demons), Rene Russo (Yours, Mine and Ours) and Kat Dennings (Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist). Marvel regulars Samuel L. Jackson, as Nick Fury, and Clark Gregg, as Agent Coulson, show up in Thor, as well.

Check out the trailer after the jump and let me know your thoughts. Thor hits theaters on May 6, 2011 and will also be available, sadly, in 3D.