I've always wondered how comic book series keep readers interested over months and years of issues, whereas the movies made from them usually go stale if not after the first release, then surely by the next installment. The second unremarkable Iron Man hinted that the series might be losing power. Happily this is not the case with IR3. Even star Robert Downey, Jr.’s egotistical, malevolent banter gets freshened up.
While the weather is barely warmer than most Octobers and the trees are seeing the first budding leaves, summer has officially begun in the movie theaters. So pack up the wife and kids and get inside this weekend to see summer's first blockbuster. It is too bad we can’t watch on the large screen of a wonderful outdoor theater. Iron Man 3 is the perfect film for such a venue. Once you could pack up the wife, kids AND the dog, along with the beverage of your choice, and enjoy two features from the comfort of your automobile. Sadly, an entire generation has grown of age without this magnificent experience, done in by the lucrative profiteering of urban sprawl and the fiendish infection known as Daylight Saving Time.
Iron Man 3
As you know, Downey is Iron Man and Iron Man is Downey and as long as he’s firing on all cylinders the movie flows with the raffish panache we would expect. Downey is clearly the star and Gwyneth Paltrow still glows at 40, or so Entertainment Tonight says. The plot takes a page from Rocky IV with Tony Stark (Downey) getting his comeuppance and then finding his inner grownup by rubbing elbows with some Tennessee rustics and admitting how his carelessness impacts those he loves. Along the way there’s a great scene on the set of Gremlins and some comic relief with Gandhi. The villain, always the key to such films (see Iron Man 2) is tolerable and well played by Guy Pearce.
Everything isn't quite perfect. Stark's reliance on The Suit gets a little weary toward the end and I still can't figure out how he fuels his rockets (I'm sure some scifi geek will let me know.) But the parts we want to see, the action and special effects, show a multi-million dollar budget - what didn't go to Downey - wasn't wasted.
The final showdown aboard an oil rig hearkens back to James Bond, but with a lot more explosions and super heroes. This is the kind of movie you can hold over the kids, making sure they mow the yard AND use the weed eater before loading them up in the SUV. Since I have problems with night blindness and over-stimulation, I resisted the 3-D version, but the allure of depth might be just the things to keep the kiddies in their seats. It's sparkly summer entertainment, too bad it can’t be viewed under the stars as movies like this should be and for that I give it three abandoned drive-ins out of four.
This week's Overlooked Film of Significance: Charlie Bartlett - Downey tones down the 80-megawatt charisma in a serious film about teenagers.
I saw Iron Man II by accident. The family was out of town, and since it was summer, there was nothing I wanted to see, but I wanted to see something. The humor from Downey's over the top ego was a pleasant surprise. Later I watched Iron Man I on netflix. Lorelle asked me what it was about, and I said, "It's a popcorn movie about egotripping."
ReplyDeleteThe megalomaniacal humor gives the Iron Man movie something other comic book movies don't have. I like the XMen movies fine, but they don't exceed their genre. The only other movies of that ilk that succeed in making characters complex enough to escape the 2-dimensional superhero curse are the first two Spiderman movies. I loved the incompetent teenager character, something everyone, especially comic book consumers, can relate to.
Thank you for reading.
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