Iron Man

MCU 2021 Marathon

MCU #1:

Iron Man was my favorite Marvel hero. As a teen I collected 1-150 with the main series. I doodled the Iron Man helmet during class at high school when bored.

So it was a huge surprise when this came out in 2008 and it was so freaking GOOD! Jon Favreau, the guy that had done Elf and Zathura (the Zumanji sequel) had just started a cinematic revolution? What!?!? (And Favreau is doing it again with The Mandalorian).

Robert Downey Jr. was made for the part of Tony Stark. The origin story was modernized and handled well. They included most of the early Iron Man suits from the comics. They took the time showing the more modern invention of the suit and the challenges of making it work (e.g. maneuvering with the repulsors).

I finally understood what Spiderman's fans felt like when Sam Raimi's Spiderman series became a massive pop culture sensation years earlier. Fantastic!

There are issues. Pacing mostly. Jeff Bridges is too much the stereotypical villain with an over-the-top fight scene at the end.

This was the beginning of the MCU world building effort which was more "slight-of-hand" in the earlier movies -- Stark's OCD making itself evident, that Shield guy at the party, and Samuel Jackson pinging Stark about Avengers in the end credits.

It began and ended with Iron Man. That makes me happy.

"I am Iron Man"

In my attempt to rewatch all the MCU-movies chronologically I began with the first Iron Man. To cut to the chase: it's still good. A couple of things astonished me, though:

First of all, a common mistake of the later Marvel-movies isn't made here. There is actually some sort of character development visible. Tony ends the movie as a totally different person. Of course, in an origin story it's easier to have your protagonist change but let's compare for a second: Is Ant-man really a changed man at the end of the movie? What about Star Lord? What about Thor? Black Widow? Hawkeye?

Then again, you have to give it to the director that he really made a well-paced, well-balanced movie. There is action, humour, drama, world establishing, all in great balance. The final fight isn't stretched too long and therefore doesn't get boring. You can't underestimate this in our age of 45 mins battles at the end of movies.

During my re-watch I also noticed how 'down to earth' this movie is if you compare it to some of the more recent MCU-entries. It just looks more real than them. It's set in a world that at least COULD be real which makes us care more for the characters and their actions. More explosions and obvious cgi-effects don't improve a movie. So the movie doesn't feel as bloated as some other superhero flicks.

Finally, Iron Man is still fun to watch and not just a vehicle to set up a franchise. If you've spent the last couple of years on the moon and haven't seen any of the MCU-movies, give this a try.

When it comes to ranking the Marvel superhero(live action) films, Iron Man is for me up there with the better ones. It looks fabulous, the whole film is very slickly made with top-notch special effects(which look like time and effort was really put into it), awesome-looking futuristic gadgets and Iron Man's suit will be a guaranteed delight to anybody who is familiar or loves anything to do with the superhero. There is a pulsating soundtrack that adds much to the tension of the first half of the story and the enormously fun action sequences, which are exciting and tense with expertly choreography. The script crackles with smart humour that doesn't go overload, all of which is laugh-out-loud funny, yet the hostage plotting that takes up the first part of the film is intelligently written and somehow avoids being over-serious or over-familiar. The story has enough to allow you to emotionally connect with Iron Man(who I've always considered one of Marvel's most interesting and multi-faceted characters) and has a clever mix of the comic's 1960s origins and the effects of contemporary war, which will provide plenty of nostalgia while also feeling relevant. Jon Favreau does a great job directing, he never loses control of the story and he doesn't do anything too fussy. Robert Downey Jnr's performance as Tony Stark/Iron Man is a power-house and one of his best, doing much with the smart dialogue while making the emotional side of the characters wholly believable. Gwyneth Paltrow is a good, loyal side-kick with wise-cracks that don't come across as annoying and Jeff Bridges is surprisingly very good in an against-type role. Personally, the only disappointments were the useless character of Christine Everheart and the somewhat rushed and over-blown finale that wasn't quite as thrilling as it could have been, other than that Iron Man was a classy addition to the Marvel cannon and a great film on its own. 9/10 Bethany Cox

With a B-list superhero, a risky lead actor, a genre that hasn't really done much other than say Nolan's Batman, this movie had a lot to prove. Wow, did it ever. It proved that superhero movies can be realistic, emotional, funny and have highly entertaining action. This is the movie to launch the MCU, and started the shared universe that DC comics and other franchises are following.

Let's start with the number one reason why this movie is so good: Robert Downey Jr. I am so glad that Jon Favreau kept pressing the studio to make sure RDJ had this role because he completely nails it. He effortlessly portrays the cool, sarcastic, alcoholic, playboy that I don't even think he's acting. He's clearly not perfect as he is the guy we think is awesome but don't necessarily want to be. This role is basically synonymous with RDJ now because you can't think of Tony Stark without immediately thinking of RDJ. Iron Man wasn't a househeld name before but thanks to RDJ's performance, it is now.

The action in this movie is incredible as you get to see him fly around, take on terrorist cells and fight the main villain. What I even found to more intriguing is Stark's entire time building his suit, both in the Afghan cave and in his garage because it is amazing to see his genius at work, while still being snarky and basically a tool.

The writing and humor is also very good in this movie. I read that a lot of the lines, especially RDJ's were improv, which is able to keep this movie very fresh, not Rotten Tomatoes style, but it helps a lot by breaking the molds of superhero movies.

A couple complaints in this film is the pacing and the final villain. The pacing starts off very well, not really rushing into him being Iron Man, establishing his character very well before his abilities. Then the final battle comes around and it's basically just an evil version of his character, which sort of works with the problem of his technology getting into wrong hands, but the fact that it's just fighting a mirror is kind of boring. The final battle comes around pretty quick and it resolved fairly quick as if they are trying to wrap it up really quickly. I did like Bridges' Obadiah Stane with his intimidating yet charming persona but in the end he was just a reverse of Iron Man, not that interesting.

+ Robert Downey Jr + Fresh, new start for superhero movies + Writing and pacing (mostly) + Action and Humor - Final Villain

Final Score: 9.3/10

Iron Man, the huge kick off to the big summer blockbusters of summer 2008, a great start. I have to say that originally I had my concerns, when I saw the trailer, this movie looked way over done and Robert Downy, Jr. as the hero? The guy is a great actor, but as a super hero? I wasn't so sure, but I was able to see Iron Man today and all my doubts were put behind me as I watched. This is one of best comic book adaptations put to film in a very long time, since the original Spider Man I think. The effects were not actually too over the top, only when needed, but it gave that extra feel of a comic book. Robert Downy, Jr., I couldn't believe how well of a performance he pulled off, there still is a little question of his casting, but he pulled off Tony Stark seamlessly. This is a very entertaining action film and is such a great blockbuster that is sure to please any film buff.

Tony Stark, rich, handsome, incredibly wealthy, has it all. He also creates war weapons, when he goes to Afghanastan to introduce a new missile, he is captured and told to create the missile for the terrorists. But Tony has other plans, he creates a metal suit and escapes, he goes back home and announces that he wants to retire and close down Stark industries due to the violence he saw. But when he learns that the weapons of his are in the wrong hands, he realizes that maybe he could re-create a metal suit and become Iron Man, the incredible machine to save man kind.

Iron Man is a sure fire hit that I'm sure you won't want to miss. It has everything you could want for a comic book film: action, humor, a great cast, romance, and ultimate effects that just get you excited. Even the soundtrack gets you pumped up and ready to root for Iron Man. The only complaint, as much as the action was cool, I wish it wasn't the war on terrorism they used, I know it's part of the story, but it hits so close, that it may seem inappropriate. The climax, a little cliff hanger, but I'm already smelling a sequel for next year probably. But Iron Man is a fun movie that all ages could enjoy, Iron Man is the new Spider Man for 2008!

8/10