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IRON MAN
REVIEW-A-PALOOZA |
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Movie Reviews by:
Jim "Good Old JR" Rutkowski & Larry "Bocepheus"
Evans
Directed by:
Jon Favreau
Written by:
Matt Holloway, Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby.
Starring:
Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow
Running time:
126 minutes
Released:
05/02/08
Rated PG-13
for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and brief suggestive
content. |
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 Movie Review by:
Larry "Bocepheus" Evans
(***½
stars out of 4)
"The film is filled with wonderful performances,
none better than Downey as Stark"
Marvel’s first movie of
the summer and the first film in the financing deal that has
the company calling the shots for adaptations of their
characters has certainly set the banner high for future
releases. The film tells the story of Tony Stark,
electronics genius and his transformation from self centered
billionaire weapons designer to superhero.
The film
begins as Stark is on his way from a demonstration of the
Jericho, a new missile defense system that could change the
way that wars are fought. We start in a Hummer where Stark
is dressed to the nines with a drink in his hand joking with
the troops before the convoy is attacked by Muslim
extremists. From that point we see the events that happened
previously where Stark is getting an award for his
technological breakthroughs. The sequence is well designed
by the producers to show Stark as a young genius who hung
with Bill Gates while in his teens so that non readers of
the comics can see that he is a big deal. The sequence also
introduces his business partner Obidiah Stane (Bridges) and
his military handler Jim “Rhodey” Rhodes (Howard). We meet
Stark (Downey Jr.) at a craps table at Caesars Palace where
he is playing instead of being at the awards ceremony. While
leaving the casino he is subjected to some harsh questioning
by a reporter (Bibb) that leads to the introduction the
following day to Pepper (Paltrow) Potts at Stark’s high tech
California home. The scene and the following ones on the way
to Afghanistan establish the Stark character before he gets
the electromagnet installed in his heart that keeps the
shrapnel from killing him.
Stark
awakens to learn that he was not only attacked by Muslim
terrorists (led by Faran Tahir) but has bits of shrapnel
close to his heart that is being held at bay by an
electromagnet and a car battery. The insurgents want him to
build the Jericho weapon for their use. He is given an
assistant, Dr.Yinsen (well played by Toub) and enough
equipment but as fans of the comics know he builds something
else. The initial suit is used to free him from captivity
and drops him in the desert. Stark’s escape is also nicely
put together by Favreau by combining action with pathos and
will lead to his change in attitude.
Once he
gets back to the States he improves the suit and the
technology that keeps him alive while deciding to change the
direction of his company. From there we see the second set
of armor (silver and sleeker) and watch the flight tests
(and some great scene stealing scenes by of all things, a
fire extinguisher robot) before Tony takes his armor out for
a spin in a bravura scene. That leads us to an even more
impressive armor that is seen on his first outing as a
superhero back in Afghanistan. From here we learn who was
behind the attack on Stark in the first place and see that
Stane isn’t as nice a person as Tony thinks.
The
final scenes show Stane as the Iron Monger trying to kill
Pepper while she is under the protection of the new agency
SHIELD (seen in the form of Gregg). As was the case in the
climax of Superman Returns Tony is less than 100 % (Stane
has taken his new power source) but he comes after Stane
anyway. The aftermath of the climax is used to give this new
superhero a name (well, no one names himself) and has Stark
meet the press and give an answer that wasn’t exactly part
of the script to a question. That answer easily sets up a
few scenarios for the next film (which we will see in 2010)
and leads us up to the post credits sequence of Sam Jackson
as Nick Fury.
The film
is filled with wonderful performances, none better than
Downey as Stark. He fits the character like a glove. We know
of his substance abuse problems (we see Stark with a few
drinks in the film) and it adds to his persona. In most
films he comes across as one of the smartest people in the
room and Stark is the smartest person in the room in every
room he happens to wander into. Bridges exudes oily charm as
Stane especially when we learn his true nature. Paltrow does
the role of Pepper well as does Howard in the role of Rhodey.
A Beautiful Mind’s Paul Bettany also does a great job as the
voice of Jarvis, who here runs Stark’s home.
Iron Man
also looks great due to the cinematography of Matthew
Libatique, the production designs of J. Michael Riva and the
armors designed by Stan Winston. And as for the script it
isn’t normal to see four writers names but for Iron Man
Marvel hired the teams of Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby and Art
Marcum & Matt Holloway to each write a version of the film
then picked what they wanted from each after the scripts
were in. It’s not a normal thing to do but Marvel pulled it
off. Favreau also shows that he can handle a film such as
this with ease.
Is this
one of the best superhero films ever? I would say it is one
of the best. Before seeing Iron Man my list included Richard
Donner’s Superman, Tim Burton’s Batman, Steven Norrington’s
Blade, Guillermo del Toro’s Hellboy, Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man
2 and Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins. This film joins
that list with ease.
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 Movie Review by:
Jim "Good Old JR" Rutkowski.
(***½
stars out of 4)
"This is what a superhero movie should be: an exciting, quick-witted
adventure built to entertain."
It’s not enough that Marvel Comics is now able to ride the current wave of comic
book superhero blockbusters by starting their own production company, and it’s
not enough that they’re comfortable pumping something like $180 million into
their first effort. What truly reveals where we are right now as a moviegoing
public is that Marvel felt their best bet to launch their new studio was with a
character not really known at all outside fanboy circles, a character who may
not be marginal but is far from an icon. But in a decade ruled by comic book
adaptations and colorful sci-fi adventures, even someone like Iron Man could
become a guaranteed hit. The geeks haven’t just inherited the earth, they’ve
invaded it.
But even non-geeks will find reason to celebrate the arrival of “Iron Man.” This
is what a superhero movie should be: an exciting, quick-witted adventure built
to entertain. It’s far from perfect - the script is plenty scattershot (the
result of having four credits screenwriters, several more uncredited, plus
extensive rewrites on the set) and the story never raises itself beyond the
too-familiar origin story template - but it’s all handled with a lot of verve by
cast and crew that its very style is energetic.
The movie is directed by Jon Favreau, the actor/director who showed off his
fantasy storytelling skills with “Elf” and the underrated “Zathura” and now
makes his finest feature yet. Here, Favreau doesn’t just understand what makes
comic movies tick - he understands what makes this one tick. He knows what sets
Iron Man apart from, say, Spider-Man or Superman. Like those characters, Tony
Stark brings a certain American optimism to his exploits. But there’s also a
bitterness alongside that optimism, a cynical anger that motivates the
character. Even more than Peter Parker, Tony Stark’s personal life is a massive
complication, from his struggles with alcoholism (a key point in the comics,
only hinted at in this movie) to issues of guilt (he’s essentially a war
profiteer who learns a harsh lesson and seeks penance). Yet through it all,
Stark maintains his smarmy playboy demeanor, and Favreau is smart enough a
filmmaker to let this dry, sarcastic tone carry the picture.
He’s also smart enough to cast Robert Downey, Jr., in the lead role. Downey is
so right as Tony Stark that it’s impossible to imagine anyone else in the part.
Some folks have mentioned the curious connection between actor and role -
factoring in Downey’s infamous battle with drug addiction, both he and his
character have essentially climbed their way out of dark periods, eager to make
up for lost time - but the real issue is that few actors working today are as
good as Downey at crafting such restrained wit punctuated by an ice-cold
rock-and-roll attitude. Simply put, Downey is made of cool, and when it comes to
taking a self-absorbed womanizer and making him someone worth cheering, who else
could pull off such a task?
Favreau then overloads the supporting cast with equally impressive talent.
Terrence Howard plays Stark’s beleaguered right hand man, Jim Rhodes. Gwyneth
Paltrow is Pepper Potts, Stark’s secretary and possible love interest. Jeff
Bridges is Obadiah Stane, Stark’s sly business partner. Any one of these actors,
when placed next to Downey, could be considered an incredible “get.” To cram all
of them into one film, in top roles, is to ensure than even if all else fails,
at least the characters will be fascinating.
All else does not fail. The origin story behind Stark’s transformation into Iron
Man is one that diverges most from 1960s-era Marvel Comics’ studies in
science-gone-awry. Unlike other heroes who gain superpowers by accident, Tony
Stark is the self-made man; his superpowers come from his super-powered suit of
armor. And unlike other heroes who are either apolitical, Iron Man is rooted
deeply in current events; his earliest adventures were anti-Communist heroics
set in and around Vietnam, ideas which are upgraded for the movie to a terrorist
storyline involving Afghanistan.
Tony Stark is in the country selling the U.S. military on his latest design of
smart bomb when his caravan is bombed and he’s captured by a band of vague
baddies (the movie never says “terrorists,” but then, it doesn’t have to) led by
the wicked Raza (Faran Tahir). They want him to build a missile for them, and he
reluctantly agrees - but he’s really building himself a massive, weapons-clad
suit to aid in his escape. It works, and Stark, an inventor with a head for
mechanics as well as business, gets the itch to build a sleeker, better suit.
Having seen how the weapons his company built have landed in the hands of
warlords, the rookie hero vows to rid the world of such death machines.
The film’s politics are shady at best - the script falls back on iffy Arab
stereotypes (with one exception, they’re all either ruthless terrorists or
powerless villagers in need of American salvation); Stark’s anti-weapon
motivations come with plenty of holes (it’s never clear if Tony disapproves of
American misuse - or even use - of his weapons; is he upset that these devices
are made to kill, or that they just wind up killing the “wrong people”?);
several of Iron Man’s fight scenes show a hero unconcerned with ending lives (so
it’s OK for Stark’s weapons to kill folks, as long as Stark’s the one pulling
the trigger?).
But it doesn’t matter. Such thoughts never enter our heads while the movie’s
unspooling with a story that zips along at a breezy pace that not once feels
like a full two hours. Favreau and company keep everything moving forward; it’s
a movie that never slows down, even when it slows down. The film expertly
reworks the origin tale into a ripping adventure that’s dependent as much on
character as it is on plot.
It’s only when we enter the final half hour when things start to get a little
too loose. A connection between Raza and a second villain quickly unfolds yet
winds up shifting the focus just slightly off from where it should be, and the
whole thing ends with a massive battle between Iron Man and a second mechanical
supersuit (developed and operated by that second villain), which seems a little
less complicated a finale than a movie this good deserves. It's a little too
"Robocop 2" for my taste.
This is not to say, of course, that the movie fizzles in its final act. On the
contrary, the fight sequence seen here is as thrilling, as exhilarating, as
popcorn-munching fun as anything else that came before it. Favreau knows how to
make an action movie sing, even when it comes down to a simple fight scene where
people trade comic book-level dialogue at each other. And, heck, if “Iron Man”
can be a giant heap of fun when it’s not working, then you can imagine just how
good things get when it is working.
So in the pantheon of comic book inspired films, Iron Man never reaches the epic
nature of Richard Donner's Superman. Nor does it achieve the comic to film
perfection of Spiderman 2. It's just a little too predictable in its screenplay.
But make no mistake. This is one of the very best films of this type in quite
awhile. It also deftly announces Marvel's presence in the movie making business.
Oh and it also has the funniest Stan Lee cameo yet. The summer movie season is
off to a great start.
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IRON MAN ©
2008 Marvel Studios, Fairview Entertainment, Marvel
Entertainment
All Rights Reserved
Review © 2008 Alternate Reality, Inc. |
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