I have to admit that I was never a very big fan of Iron Man. Of
all the heroes in the Marvel universe, he was more on the fringe of my
affections as far as I was concerned. Although I actually had a Mego action
figure of Iron Man when I was a kid, along with the other heroes from both the
DC and Marvel universes (and I still wish I had that figure today, seeing how
valuable those 1970s Mego figure have become), my all-time favorite superhero
was--and remains--Batman. And in the Marvel stable, my favorites were Spider-Man
and the Fantastic Four. So Iron Man had never really been on my radar. Until now.
Once I heard that Robert Downy Jr. was cast as Tony Stark/Iron Man in the new
movie, I had instantly become intrigued at what he could do with the
character--and mainly Tony Stark; because, let’s face it: Pee Wee Herman would
look impressive wearing the magnificent Iron Man suits that were designed by the
film's talented production team, and superbly brought to life by the late Stan Winston's Studio
(there's a talented guy who shall be sorely missed). And, sure
enough, now having seen the film, Downey is indeed marvelous in the role. Having
done the devil may care playboy act in real life (and survived), Downey is the
perfect choice to play the hedonistic Stark.
Iron Man’s origins were set in the 1960s, which depicted him as an arms merchant
who was captured by the North Vietnamese. With his heart gravely wounded, Stark
not only managed to build a portable heart machine, but an Iron Man suit, which
he used to escape his captors. The film smartly updates this story to modern day
Afghanistan, with Downey as Stark building an Iron Man suit to gain his freedom.
Deeply offended at how his weapons are being used by all sides to cause harm,
Stark undertakes a noble mission to put a stop to it by becoming a one man army
and air force: Iron Man. Like Downey, I thought Director John Favreau (Zathura) was another interesting
choice for this project, and he handles the material very well.
Although it’s a
superhero origin story, Favreau still manages to make it soar--oftentimes
literally, as in the giddily fun scenes when Iron Man first takes flight over
the night skies of California--and he even injects a welcome sense of humor into
the proceedings. The able cast includes Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Pots, Stark’s
assistant/lifesaver/potential girlfriend; Terrence Howard plays Col. James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, Stark’s
friend and informant, and the sturdy Jeff Bridges as Obadiah
Stane, Stark’s business partner. All of whom were extremely good in their roles,
to the point where they seemed like far more than just supporting players.
Favreau understands what the geeks want, while still making this film accessable
to people like me, who have never read the Iron Man comics. It's a great deal of
fun, and that's really the whole point to the
film. Downey is enjoyable to watch, as always--he's one of these actors who never
gives a bad performance. And it's also nice to see a fortysomething as a main
character in a superhero movie for once. The two disc DVD has plenty of special features,
mainly on the second disc, which includes a seven part, detailed look at the
making of the film that is very well done. As I've stated before, Iron Man had never been on my radar, but,
thanks to this film, he is now. Bring on the sequel, because I can't wait
to see my newest favorite superhero in action again.
--SF
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