Reviewing Iron Man
by site creator Chuck Moore
I'll open very directly with my opinion of this film... I really enjoyed Iron Man.
Start to finish, I consider it one of the better comic related films I've seen. There were moments after seeing it where I had to stop and really consider whether or not I would put it alongside Batman Begins as the best of the best for this genera. In the end, after careful consideration (at least 4-5 minutes last night), it didn't quite hit that mark but came close. That said, I feel the fact that I had to spend time considering if it were in that company told me just how much of a success the film was with me as a viewer. I'll have to see if that opinion holds during a rewatch or over time, but my initial impression was that this film is absolute, must see, comic goodness.
I think the film certainly deserves the success it's seeing. Today, Marvel released the numbers and Iron Man blew away most expectations. It earned $100.75 million during its opening weekend domestically from 4,105 theaters and $104.2 million since debuting Thursday night, averaging $24,543 per site. Internationally, the film has also earned $96.7 million in 57 countries since Wednesday putting its total worldwide at $201 million after just five days. This is 10th biggest film opening ever, the 4th biggest for a superhero based film and the 2nd biggest for a non-sequel film. Not only was this good news for Marvel, it also gave their stock a nice kick today as the "House of Ideas" set dates for four upcoming films and confirmed a series of sequels the details of which can be found here.
I, like many of you, enjoy comic based films immensely. For me, I have to add the words "when I see them". You may notice that I don't write a lot of movie reviews for this site. It isn't so much a lack of desire to talk about films (as I think our site's movie hubs prove). It's more a matter of my simply not getting out of the house and going and see them in a timely manner. That may stem from past disappoints (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Batman & Robin, Catwoman, etc). It may be due to my preference to see films in the comfort of my own home (the popcorn is usually better). Either of these facts may be true, but that doesn't quite explain why Ghost Rider and both Fantastic Four movies are still in my Tivo cue begging to be watched yet still unseen.
After Spider-Man 3, a film I honestly disliked and consider a YouTube film (everything I want to see from it I could have caught in two shot clips off YouTube), I'm a little gun shy about Marvel's treatment of their characters and, more importantly, the story that backs up those tales. Spider-Man 3 and X-Men 3's decimation of much of those stories respective comic histories didn't sit well with this fan.
In Iron Man, it would have been very easy for director Jon Favreau to go the Jerry Bruckheimer route and paint the film with sweeping scenes, load explosions and postcard-like images ignoring the storyline. Thankfully, Favreau appears to be a true fan on the Iron Man title and presented a very pre-Civil War homage to the character. I'm not a fan of the villain they've evolved Tony Stark to be in the comics, but I immensely enjoyed the hero presented in this film.
Here the story was moved forward a bit into the modern day political climate compared to the original story, but most of the essential elements were present. Pepper Potts (played by Gwyneth Paltrow) much to my surprise felt like Pepper Potts should feel. Jim Rhodes (played by Terrence Howard) did an admirable job bringing Jim Rhodes to life.
What about Tony Stark?
I've said from the moment of casting, Robert Downey Jr. is the PERFECT Tony Stark. The pacing of his humor, his look, his acting ability and, interestingly, his long, personal fight with substance abuse have combined to make him unusually well suited for the role. When Tony Stark turns a corner in his life, you are reminded of Downey's own history with redemption and it made the moment just a bit more real for me. Anyone who has watch Downey evolve as an actor over the years already knows his ability to show honest emotion and time the more humorous elements. None of that is lost within this script. If anything I found him a bit reserved at times and I look forward to more from him coming through in the role in the sequel.
One of the elements I liked most about the film is one I've railed against in past films. Here, the writers drew out the construction of the hero and stretched it through the film. That's an easy element to overdo. In Iron Man, that pacing turned out to be a very good story focus as this film could easily have been all missiles and bomb blasts. Here, the creation of Iron Man was as much the point of the story as the subtext of corruption and eventual conflict. The birth of the armor (both the first and second suit) was as entertaining (if not more) than the fight sequences themselves.
As far as story elements go, I winced just a little at the broad brush strokes used all too typically by Hollywood to paint terrorists in a single mold. They felt cookie cutter and disposable bad guys, but maybe that's what was needed here.
I respected the nods to Iron Man story elements like the Armor Wars storyline and others which popped up during the film. The humor was crisp and ever present through the story. Even the often overused movie device of the villain rising out of the heroes own past was a bit more palpable thanks to the acting skills of Jeff Bridges as Obadiah Stane.
The ending (which I will not reveal here) was a surprise and maybe just a small bit of an homage to Civil War. Same line, different character. The early look at S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives was fun to see, but I would have enjoyed more references to the rest of the Marvel Universe. With Iron Man turning up in Hulk, Thor growing out of the Iron Man sequel and an Avengers movie on track, I feel I will see more fleshing out of the Marvel world in future movies, but I would like to have seen more here. Similarly, I expected a bit more from the clip that followed the credits, but I'll leave that for another discussion (again trying to go light on spoilers).
All in all, this was a well crafted, tightly paced, exciting Marvel character film which left me looking forward to a sequel. I would recommend it to a friend.
Iron Man kicks off a landslide of comic and sci-fi related films (Dark Knight, Incredible Hulk, Indiana Jones, X-Files, Hellboy, Watchmen, The Spirit and others) which will carry us well into 2009. If this film is any indication of the quality that's yet to come, it's going to be a great time to get out into the theater. Uncharacteristically, I plan to be there opening weekend for each new film from this point forward. With Iron Man, Marvel won me back.
Page last updated on May 5, 2008