The Invincible Iron Man (2007)

When a cocky industrialist's efforts to raise an ancient Chinese temple leads him to be seriously wounded and captured by enemy forces, he must use his ideas for a revolutionary power armor in order to fight back as a superhero.

Directors:

Patrick Archibald, Jay Oliva,

Writers:

Avi Arad (story), Greg Johnson,

Stars:

Marc Worden, Gwendoline Yeo, Fred Tatasciore

2 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Marc Worden	...	Tony Stark / Iron Man (voice)
Gwendoline Yeo	...	Li Mei (voice)
Fred Tatasciore	...	The Mandarin / Additional Voices (voice)
Rodney Saulsberry	...	James 'Rhodey' Rhodes (voice)
Elisa Gabrielli	...	Virginia 'Pepper' Potts (voice)
John McCook	...	Howard Stark (voice)
James Sie	...	Wong Chu (voice)
Stephen Mendillo	...	Boyer (voice)
John DeMita	...	Agent Drake / Additional Voices (voice)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
George Cheung	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Chris Edgerly	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Paul Nakauchi	...	Additional Voices (voice)
Michael Yama	...	Additional Voices (voice)

Storyline

Billionaire inventor Tony Stark digs up far more than he bargained for. He unleashes an age-old prophecy that foretells the resurrection of the Mandarin, the emperor of China's darkest and most violent dynasty. When his best friend James "Rhodey" Rhodes has been kidnapped, Tony travels to China to investigate, he is captured and badly injured by the Jade Dragons, his life only saved thanks to a Chinese shaman and Rhodes' skills as an army medic after a piece of shrapnel damages his heart. In order to confront the destructive force in this ultimate battle, Tony creates an armored suit infused with high-tech weaponry. To stop the evil that he himself has raised form the earth, Tony must become his greatest invention ever which becomes known as "Iron Man"! The newly born champion must travel to the four corners of the earth to battle the Mandarin's henchmen, the Elementals four magical warriors who harness the power of the elements earth, water, wind, and fire with deadly chemistry.

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Plot Keywords:

the mandarin | china | battle | prophecy | billionaire | 

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Taglines:

A Lone Warrior. A Suit of Armor. Our Only Hope. IRON MAN.

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Genres:

Animation | Action | Adventure | Fantasy | Sci-Fi

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for action violence and some sensuality

Details

Official Sites:

Lionsgate [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 January 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Vasember

Company Credits

Production Co:

Marvel Studios, MLG Productions 3, Marvel Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

83 min 83 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Dolby (Dolby 5.1)

Color:

Color Color (NTSC Color)

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

Tony says the life-support device makes him "look like Frankenstein." Frankenstein was the creator, not the monster (though this is a common mistake).

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Quotes

Jade Dragon Member: Li Mei, look at it. It is undeniable. The prophecy continues to unfold. He is the Iron Knight. He is destined to battle the risen Mandarin.
Li Mei: It cannot be him!
Jade Dragon Member: What is the matter? It is a good thing. The Mandarin can now be defeated.
Li Mei: We do not know who will be victorious, only that one will die.

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Connections

Version of Iron Man (1966)

User Reviews

Invincible refreshing take

One thing I would commend about Marvel Animation is that they are willing to learn from their mistakes. After the mediocre Ultimate Avengers animated movies came this one, The Invincible Iron Man.

This movie is everything Ultimate Avengers was not. Instead of a team, it focuses on one character. Instead of dumbing down an existing storyline(Ultimate Avengers was essentially "The Ultimates" story dumbed down to appeal to older children) Marvel chose to create a new storyline and place more emphasis on character drama than on wham bam action.

1) The story. Definitely a new take on the origin of Iron Man. After being exposed to so many "alternate dimensions" and alternate origins for Marvel universe characters, I was willing to accept this movie as another of such alternate stories. The story was very well written with a clear beginning, middle and end. The magic Vs technology sub plot was nicely fleshed out but thankfully did not overwhelm the character interplay. There were a few far fetched moments but they are forgivable due to the short length of the movie.

2) The characters Really, it is the characters that truly shine here. Being more of a character drama as opposed to an action movie, the interplay seen in the script is realistically played out. The dialogue is fluid and believable to the point being on par with many good live action dramas. Acting was excellent. Neither over the top nor underwhelming, but just right to convey the emotions of the characters

The only problem was the acting of one of the main characters, Li Mei. Her accent seemed inconsistent and her emotional range was rather limited, even in most emotionally charged final battle of the movie. If Marc Worden had not done such a good job of acting on his part, the whole romance sub plot between Tony and Li Mei would have fallen flat.

3)The action Sharp, fast and to the point. There is no beating around the bush or too much talking in the fights. The action scenes are well choreographed but are few. Like i said, this movie is more a character drama than an action show. There are 3 main action scenes involving Iron Man in total.

4) The Animation Marvel has definitely improved in their animation from Ultimate Avengers. The characters still retain that level of movement fluidity but the level of art detail has been increased. The backgrounds are really a sight to behold and the character designs have a distinct Asian flavor to them. No animation short cuts were present, lending to a very impressive viewing experience. The cel shaded CGI animation used for the Elementals and the Iron Man suits are on par with many big budget animated movies and it allows more fluid interaction of the characters during fight scenes. There was only one scene where there was a jarring clash between the CGI and 2D animation but the rest were beautifully rendered.

There could have been better closure to the story and i do hope for a sequel.

Overall, Invincible Iron Man was a very refreshing new take on the origin of a well loved Marvel superhero. Favoring complex character drama over action was a good move, though not many would agree with me. It would be a little too much for kids to enjoy though, so don't bother wasting this movie on them. For fans of more action oriented animated movies with less character development and interplay, i direct you back to Ultimate Avengers.

Get this movie if you're in the mood for something deeper than the usual "hero Vs villain" stories.