Comments on: Iron Man review:

By: Sean

Sean — Tue, 13 May 2008 22:21:31 +0000

re: “I am Iron Man”- good call. Definitely adds an additional layer of heroism to the character, and it does show character development in a way that’s not hackneyed or labored.

I’d love to see a Captain America movie follow a pared-down version of the canon. Why not start with Cap and Bucky slogging through the war, freeze Cap down, give him a brief bit of fish out of water time and then ring in the bad guys? A bit of Band of Brothers-style WWII action could be visually stunning and add some depth to the character.

By: Gregg

Gregg — Tue, 13 May 2008 00:10:33 +0000

I took the “I am Iron Man” thing as him as finally, fully, accepting responsibility for himself; he’s spent his entire life sheilding himself from the consequences of his actions by putting layers of denial between him and the people who are ultimately hurt by his weapons. To do the same thing as Iron Man would be against the change in his character. It was surprising, bold, and made sense given Tony’s story arc.

Switching gears for a moment: assuming that there’s going to be a Captain America flick since several folks have apparently spotted his shield sitting on Tony’s worktable in one of the scenes, how would you pitch a Captain America movie? It’d be next to impossible to do as is in the Marvel canon, I would think. I’d be curious as how you would do it.

By: Sean

Sean — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:51:07 +0000

Thoroughly enjoyed the movie, and my only problems with it are fundamental problems I have with the character.

Loved Downey’s performance, as he turned Tony Stark from a prick to a jerk. That says a lot, truth be told; the charisma worked nicely, as did his compatriots’ desire to protect him from himself and a world where being a jerk doesn’t always pay off. The whole “There’s no art opening, no charity, nothing to sign. There’s the next mission, and nothing else” thing gave me chills, as it put purpose to Tony’s actions beyond being an immense tool and boosting his company’s stock prices.

SPOILER SPOILER

So… what’d you think of the “I am Iron Man” thing at the end. Yes, it was needed to make the Sabbath thing work. Still, changes the dynamic from “Yes, Stark Industries has an in-house superhero and I don’t have to cop to my actions” to “I’m a rich guy who does extralegal things because they’re right, damn the consequenses.” Sort of dug it, all considered. It’s much closer to the crusading industrialist I’ve always felt Tony Stark should be rather than the scheming, guilt-ridden profiteering asshat he is.

By: Gregg

Gregg — Thu, 08 May 2008 18:40:32 +0000

Don’t worry about not knowing the character’s background – the film will take care of everything. Iron Man’s status as a B-lister in the Marvel Comics universe might have helped it out, since there wasn’t the baggage that the die-hard fans would freak out over if not brought in and dealt with. The producers kept what worked, chucked what didn’t, and ran with it. Be sure to note the few alcoholism notes, though, as it’s pretty obvious that’s where they’ll go in the sequels.

The film is, incidentally, quite family-friendly. Killings are mostly offscreen and/or implied, and all the other violence is of the cartoony sort.

It did bother me that Gwyneth Paltrow wore insanely high heels during her chase scene.

By: Julie Neff

Julie Neff — Thu, 08 May 2008 16:04:16 +0000

You know this will be family movie night for we 3 geeks.

I am quite keen to see it in spite of only being aware of this particular character via osmosis, compilation covers and video games.

Why?

Suddenly, RDJ = HAWTNESS. Trufax.