This sequel also ranks as more enjoyable than Iron Man 2, in my opinion. I think where the second installment under-used Mickey Roarke’s character and just generally didn’t exceed any sequel expectations, this third film delivers more one those points, as well as adding more humor, making it simply more fun.
When it comes to the comic book hero movies, Iron Man certainly ranks up there as the most cool tech-oriented of the lot. It also works best in the CG effects area in a more realistic sense. And they use some really cool stuff in Iron Man 3. This sequel also ranks as more enjoyable than Iron Man 2, in my opinion. I think where the second installment under-used Mickey Roarke’s character and just generally didn’t exceed any sequel expectations, this third film delivers more one those points, as well as adding more humor, making it simply more fun.
A formidable terrorist called The Mandarin has Tony Stark’s number- he tears his life asunder. Tony must then gather his wits and begin a journey of reconstructing his life, and take revenge.
So, yeah, the first thing I noticed here was that there is a lot more humor. The general tone is simply more fun. I laughed more, I said “Wow, that’s cool” more often than I did in the second one, I think. Maybe it’s just that the second Iron Man movie was a bit of a let down as far as sequels go. Not that it was bad at all, it just didn’t exceed any expectations. We got the sequel I think we kind of expected, and that’s it. With Iron Man 3, we get a comic book movie that has some really big action sequences, lots of iron Man suits, and much more humor. And even a surprise or two – at least for me, as I never really read the Iron Man comic books. Maybe more informed people won’t have the surprises I got.
As one might expect, the effects are great. Some really cool stuff going on here. It’s pretty bad ass to see Stark leaping through the air and have a suit fly up, open like a second skin, and wrap itself around Stark – yes, all in mid-air. Sweet.
And indeed, all the actors are great. Many returning faces, of course, like Robert Downey, Jr., Gweneth Paltrow, Jon Favreau, Don Cheadle, and Paul Bettany doing the voice of Jarvis. Added this time around are Sir Ben Kingsly as the Mandarin, Guy Pearce as Aldrich Killian, the head of A.I.M., a sort of rival company to Stark Industries that has devized a serum called Extremis that will do some serious shit. Though there are some changes here from the comic book series it is based on, it’s still really cool. I hope the purists can see past the changes. You never know how they’re going to react, and rightfully so. I’ve been a purist about some things myself. The purists keep the “re-imaginers” in check. Sometimes.
Some interesting developments here, like Stark having anxiety about his experiences in New York during the events that took place in The Avengers movie. We get to see a little bit more humanity in Tony via panic attacks he experiences. I like that they show a certain vulnerability in him, even though he still shakes it all off with smart ass remarks. Again, more humor.
Written by Shane Black and Drew Pearce, and directed by Black, the action is in pretty decent hands. Black wrote the Lethal Weapon movies, which we know start out good, then with each film gets older and less relevant. But Black later wrote the adaptation and directed Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, which is worth seeing if you haven’t. Pearce has this and this summer’s super awesome-looking Pacific Rim under his belt, so that’s not too shabby.
And that’s really what I liked about Iron Man 3. The action and effects are cool, but there was just more fun being had here. Is it perfect? No, but a sight better than the previous one. Absolutely a film to be seen on the big screen. I did not see it in 3D, and I know it was only converted to it, so don’t bother, I say. About four kittenhands here. Downey, Jr. is at his wise-cracking best. I had fun, and I think you will, too.
~ Neil T. Weakley, your average movie-goer, happy the summer movie season has started on an up note.