'Iron Man 3' Review
Nominated For: Best Visual Effects.
Iron Man 3 is one of the most divisive Marvel films to date. This is in large part to being Marvel's first film post-The Avengers. The Avengers really raised the bar for everything to come from the studio now that the shared universe had taken shape. It was going to be nearly impossible for Iron Man 3 to meet these heightened expectations as it's difficult to tell a solo story right after a huge crossover event. In order for me to dissect my feelings about the film, I feel some spoilers are necessary so be forewarned, there will be spoilers in this review. Iron Man 3 is directed by Shane Black, who had previously worked with Downey in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and takes the reigns from Jon Favreau. This gave Iron Man 3 a vastly different feel to it's predecessors, Iron Man and Iron Man 2, as there wasn't any ACDC to be found, which I view as a creative decision symbolizing Tony Stark's character arc across the Marvel Cinematic Universe as he becomes more responsible (something that was further explored upon in Avengers: Age Of Ultron and looks to be a prominent part of Captain America: Civil War). Black and his creative team set out to bring Stark's story full circle putting him back in a metaphorical cave with a box of scraps and giving him some personal issues to overcome along the way. When it comes down to it, Iron Man 3 is a character driven story focused on Tony Stark. And that's the thing that I appreciate most about Iron Man 3 that I'll dive into more when discussing Downey's performance. Those expecting lots of action scenes with Stark sporting his armor were disappointed as there's only three major action sequences. While the action is relatively scarce in comparison to the entirety of the film, all the action is wildly entertaining. This includes the destruction of Tony's Malibu house, an incredible heroic sequence in which Tony must save about 15 people falling out of a plane, and the final fight between Extremis soldiers and Tony's vast Iron Legion. There's some fun scenes where Tony must use his wit and resources to fight Extremis soldiers and infiltrate the Mandarin's domain that were cool as well. The visual effects are wonderful as is to be expected from the studio at this point and it wouldn't be an Iron Man movie without some snarky sarcasm and quick one-liners, to which this film has many that still have me dying of laughter. I also really love the original score composed by Brian Tyler that I personally prefer to the inclusion of ACDC that's been a staple of the character in the previous films. When it comes down to performances, everyone across the board nails it for the most part. Robert Downey Jr. is definitively both Tony Stark and Iron Man at this point and never ceases to impress me. Downey gets to explore Stark's post-Avengers psyche where we learn he's now suffering from anxiety attacks and the Battle of New York left him with PTSD. Some complain about this but I think it was a logical step to make the character more compelling. I also like how it's left him in a place that's picked up well in Avengers: Age Of Ultron where he wants to "build a suit of armor around the world" and should be taken even further in Captain America: Civil War. Stark's new armor, the Mark 42, was visually an awesome experience. I enjoyed seeing the components individually latch onto Stark and culminate into a grand suit of armor, although it was too mustard for my taste. Gwyneth Paltrow is back as Pepper Potts and finds herself to be a deceptive damsel in distress at moments. Her chemistry with Downey is par to none and is a relief to see her kick some butt this time around. One thing that bothers me about her character is that there was a fake-out where she's presumed dead and survives due to the extremis in her blood stream. I think her death would have had greater ramifications as opposed to her survival since it doesn't seem keeping her alive has done the Marvel Cinematic Universe any favors. Don Cheadle returns as James Rhodes and this time around has been rebranded from the aggressive War Machine to Iron Patriot, a cool looking red, white, and blue suit of armor that isn't used much in the film. Cheadle's terrific in the role as we know from Iron Man 2 and has a fun buddy cop dynamic with Downey that keeps the lightheartedness alive in spite of the huge stakes present. Ty Simpkins is known by many as the "kid from Jurassic World" and is far less annoying in this film as an odd pairing to Downey that surprisingly works. Sir Ben Kingsley plays a more modern incarnation of the Mandarin or so Marvel wanted audiences to believe. With a huge twist no-one saw coming it was reveled that this supposed terrorist leader Mandarin was actually just a amateur British actor with a drug addiction. Fans were outraged by this twist and I was bothered by it upon first viewing but must admit it was a hilarious twist nonetheless. My frustrations with this have been significantly eased with the revelation that a real Mandarin does in fact exist as revealed in the Marvel's One-Shot All Hail The King. Yes, Guy Pearce is ANOTHER poorly executed Marvel villain as the suave Aldrich Killian, but I'd say he ranks among the upper half of the spectrum in comparison to others. Iron Man 3 is a nice resolution of the Iron Man Trilogy that goes full circle and functions as a great continuation to The Avengers and a decent launching pad for Phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. When it comes down to it, I personally enjoy Iron Man 3 despite the twists that drove fans bonanza. And while I'll admit it was a huge disappointment the first time I watched it in theaters, I've come to like it more and more with each successive viewing and can recommend it for those that temper expectations.
Iron Man 3 is one of the most divisive Marvel films to date. This is in large part to being Marvel's first film post-The Avengers. The Avengers really raised the bar for everything to come from the studio now that the shared universe had taken shape. It was going to be nearly impossible for Iron Man 3 to meet these heightened expectations as it's difficult to tell a solo story right after a huge crossover event. In order for me to dissect my feelings about the film, I feel some spoilers are necessary so be forewarned, there will be spoilers in this review. Iron Man 3 is directed by Shane Black, who had previously worked with Downey in Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang and takes the reigns from Jon Favreau. This gave Iron Man 3 a vastly different feel to it's predecessors, Iron Man and Iron Man 2, as there wasn't any ACDC to be found, which I view as a creative decision symbolizing Tony Stark's character arc across the Marvel Cinematic Universe as he becomes more responsible (something that was further explored upon in Avengers: Age Of Ultron and looks to be a prominent part of Captain America: Civil War). Black and his creative team set out to bring Stark's story full circle putting him back in a metaphorical cave with a box of scraps and giving him some personal issues to overcome along the way. When it comes down to it, Iron Man 3 is a character driven story focused on Tony Stark. And that's the thing that I appreciate most about Iron Man 3 that I'll dive into more when discussing Downey's performance. Those expecting lots of action scenes with Stark sporting his armor were disappointed as there's only three major action sequences. While the action is relatively scarce in comparison to the entirety of the film, all the action is wildly entertaining. This includes the destruction of Tony's Malibu house, an incredible heroic sequence in which Tony must save about 15 people falling out of a plane, and the final fight between Extremis soldiers and Tony's vast Iron Legion. There's some fun scenes where Tony must use his wit and resources to fight Extremis soldiers and infiltrate the Mandarin's domain that were cool as well. The visual effects are wonderful as is to be expected from the studio at this point and it wouldn't be an Iron Man movie without some snarky sarcasm and quick one-liners, to which this film has many that still have me dying of laughter. I also really love the original score composed by Brian Tyler that I personally prefer to the inclusion of ACDC that's been a staple of the character in the previous films. When it comes down to performances, everyone across the board nails it for the most part. Robert Downey Jr. is definitively both Tony Stark and Iron Man at this point and never ceases to impress me. Downey gets to explore Stark's post-Avengers psyche where we learn he's now suffering from anxiety attacks and the Battle of New York left him with PTSD. Some complain about this but I think it was a logical step to make the character more compelling. I also like how it's left him in a place that's picked up well in Avengers: Age Of Ultron where he wants to "build a suit of armor around the world" and should be taken even further in Captain America: Civil War. Stark's new armor, the Mark 42, was visually an awesome experience. I enjoyed seeing the components individually latch onto Stark and culminate into a grand suit of armor, although it was too mustard for my taste. Gwyneth Paltrow is back as Pepper Potts and finds herself to be a deceptive damsel in distress at moments. Her chemistry with Downey is par to none and is a relief to see her kick some butt this time around. One thing that bothers me about her character is that there was a fake-out where she's presumed dead and survives due to the extremis in her blood stream. I think her death would have had greater ramifications as opposed to her survival since it doesn't seem keeping her alive has done the Marvel Cinematic Universe any favors. Don Cheadle returns as James Rhodes and this time around has been rebranded from the aggressive War Machine to Iron Patriot, a cool looking red, white, and blue suit of armor that isn't used much in the film. Cheadle's terrific in the role as we know from Iron Man 2 and has a fun buddy cop dynamic with Downey that keeps the lightheartedness alive in spite of the huge stakes present. Ty Simpkins is known by many as the "kid from Jurassic World" and is far less annoying in this film as an odd pairing to Downey that surprisingly works. Sir Ben Kingsley plays a more modern incarnation of the Mandarin or so Marvel wanted audiences to believe. With a huge twist no-one saw coming it was reveled that this supposed terrorist leader Mandarin was actually just a amateur British actor with a drug addiction. Fans were outraged by this twist and I was bothered by it upon first viewing but must admit it was a hilarious twist nonetheless. My frustrations with this have been significantly eased with the revelation that a real Mandarin does in fact exist as revealed in the Marvel's One-Shot All Hail The King. Yes, Guy Pearce is ANOTHER poorly executed Marvel villain as the suave Aldrich Killian, but I'd say he ranks among the upper half of the spectrum in comparison to others. Iron Man 3 is a nice resolution of the Iron Man Trilogy that goes full circle and functions as a great continuation to The Avengers and a decent launching pad for Phase 2 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. When it comes down to it, I personally enjoy Iron Man 3 despite the twists that drove fans bonanza. And while I'll admit it was a huge disappointment the first time I watched it in theaters, I've come to like it more and more with each successive viewing and can recommend it for those that temper expectations.
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