As the curtain rises on another summer movie-going season, I can't help but harken back to the year before and how two particular superhero movies-- The Avengers and Dark Knight Rises-- have changed the genre forever. For a comic-book-inspired film to work, something special must be present just to deliver a solid experience, let alone a great one. Some of the high-tech action of the former movie is present here, as is a little of the social commentary that marked the latter, but Iron Man 3 isn't trying to top either. But it still has that one special ingredient in spades: a memorable hero. Putting aside The Avengers and simply looking at the three Iron Man movies, it's easy to make the claim that they're more about Tony Stark's (Robert Downey Jr.) character development than about metal-on-metal action, although there's plenty of that to satisfy fans. Stark has far more scenes sans-metal suit than ever before, and believe it or not, it works to the film's benefit.
Iron Man 3 begins not long after the smackdown depicted in The Avengers. Stark is suffering from a serious case of insomnia and anxiety, constantly tinkering with new versions of his suit while his girlfriend, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) sleeps without him. When an attack from a terrorist calling himself The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) places Stark's good friend Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) in a coma, he vows revenge on live TV, even going so far as to revealing his address and inviting the Mandarin to bring it on. Obviously, this isn't a smart move. The Mandarin answers the call, and the resulting destruction leaves Stark for dead and Pepper in the hands of the terrorist's henchman, Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce). Killian, long sore after Stark rebuffed his business proposal over a decade ago, has figured out the ultimate breed of terrorist. And not even the efforts of the newly-monikered Iron Patriot (Don Cheadle) may be enough to stop this threat.
One of the minor irritants of Iron Man 2 was that the main story often took "timeouts" to provide setup material for The Avengers. Not so here, where S.H.I.E.L.D. and the other Avengers are set aside to provide these characters more opportunities to shine. The story is better paced and more tightly focused here, and there's a twist involving one character that many will not see coming. Hardcore Iron Man fans may take issue with this particular turn of events (much the way some reacted to the ending of Dark Knight Rises), but who cares? Movies are more interesting when they're allowed to occasionally deviate from the printed page.
Clearly, all movies of this sort must deliver the goods when a climactic battle arises, and that's where Iron Man 3 runs into some turbulence. Don't get me wrong, the action here is high-octane, well-choreographed, and creative (thankfully it all doesn't come down to the familiar motif of Iron Man once again facing a guy in a stronger, fancier suit), but it's hard to ignore the fact that it's founded on a contrivance that an eight-year-old might find flaws with. There's also the nagging question of where the other Avengers are during this crisis and why S.H.I.E.L.D. isn't keeping closer tabs on Tony Stark. The events of New York are certainly mentioned often enough to make us wonder. Perhaps the events in the other heroes' upcoming movies will run concurrently? We'll see. Still, these inconsistencies can (and probably should) be forgiven in the name of fun, and it's important to realize that summer blockbusters like this work best when we care about the individuals involved.
Once upon a time, acting mattered little for superhero films. With this series, however, a single performance constantly elevates it. Robert Downey Jr is at his charismatic, sarcastic best, and his work in these movies is rightfully cited as the main reason non-fanboys gladly line up to see them. Ben Kingsley dominates every scene he's in, as does Guy Pearce as the oily, snaky Killian. Much like the first Iron Man, this movie provides some interesting variations on the standard Bad Guy formula. Paltrow's role has been significantly expanded, which is more than can be said for Rebecca Hall, who is so lively here that she deserves more screen time than what she ultimately receives. And Cheadle seems more at home here than in Iron Man 2. Finally, it's worth nothing that while the story introduces a young boy (Ty Simpkins) as Stark's sidekick, this subplot is anything but annoying. Downey has a lot of fun playing off the "mismatched buddy" material in this portion of the movie.
Shane Black replaces Jon Favreau in the director's chair, but the transition is seamless. The tone strikes the right balance between being too serious and too jokey. In a way, the movie apes its star; always ready with a humorous one-liner, but equally efficient in getting the job done. If this is the final appearance for Downey in this iconic role, it's a respectable way to go out. Iron Man 3 doesn't have the "wow" factor that The Avengers did last summer, but I respect the filmmakers for not trying to outdo it. Instead, it's a slightly smaller, more personal story, and while it's not without its flaws, I imagine die-hards, critics, and casual movie-goers alike will be pleased with the result.
Rating: *** out of ****
No comments:
Post a Comment