Rating: 4 Pulses
Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges
Directed by Jon Favreau
Rated PG-13
Iron Man is a loaded movie to review. Fans of the source material must be considered, but I try to keep my mediums separate and judge them as independent works. What concerns me are not the referential in-jokes to, nor the glaring plot omissions from, the original comics. What concerns me is how this adaptation stands alone as a film, within the limitations of cinema. Obviously, it’s a lot easier for me to say this having not read the comics.
That said, as a film Iron Man works amazingly well. The reasons are simple: competent storytelling and acting. While these aren’t typically the main elements in an action-heavy film, they make the action scenes more than mere eye candy (take note Michael Bay). The scene in which Tony Stark’s first iteration of the Iron Man spews flames from his arms on his Arab-esque captors is breathtaking.
There are plenty of other spectacular scenes; after all, that’s what superhero movies are about. But the film remains compelling, thanks to the top-notch cast. As Stark, Robert Downey Jr. lends credibility to his overconfident weapons company heir who becomes obsessed with creating a super weapon suit to end violence. With his understanding of such contradictory and harmful obsessions, Downey injects Stark with a flawed, human quality.
Gwyneth Paltrow sheds her anglophile tendencies to portray Stark’s unassuming and devoted assistant. As the only person that seems to care about Tony Stark, even during his womanizing, I-am-God phase, her calmly freckled demeanor serves as a barometer for Stark’s true character, a daunting task for a lesser actress. And there’s the Dude himself: Jeff Bridges plays Obadiah Stane. Stark’s mentor-turned-nemesis radiates bald evil with repressed glee.
Despite the hype surrounding Iron Man, I still had some misgivings about Hollywood scrapping the bottom of the comic book barrel. Who’s next, Aquaman? But with this highly enjoyable story of a man who makes a metal suit to fight evil, the hype won out. Check out Stan Lee as Hugh Hefner, and stick around during the credits for a surprise cameo that hints at the direction the already confirmed sequel will take.
