Iron Man 3 had a tall hill to climb right from the get-go. Comic book movies, for better or for worse, tend to expand in scale as a means of elevating the stakes. Loftier threats, bigger battles – you never want to give the impression that you’re treading on familiar ground.
But how do you top the scale of a superhero epic like The Avengers? Heck, how do you even explain the absence of the other five superheroes? (And whatever the hell that guy with the bow and arrow is…)
Well new director Shane Black, along with co-writer Drew Pearce, did about the smartest thing they could do – they scaled back. That’s not to say there aren’t any of the extravagant action set pieces the series is known for. On the contrary, there’s plenty. The movie just doesn’t rely on them to the same extent, even when compared to Iron Man 2.
There’s no plot for world domination, no supernatural portals to other worlds, just a man confronting his demons and kicking a little ass for good measure. And I must say, it’s refreshing.
We’re first met with a quick introspective voiceover – delivered in the way only Tony Stark could – before flashing back to Switzerland 1999 where our playboy hero is introduced to a new form of genetic programming capable of regenerating limbs, and you know… a few other comic book constructions (when will people learn limb regeneration always leads to supervillains!).
The catch – subjects exposed to this particular therapy have a tendency to spontaneously explode. If you think that’s not coming back later, you’re new to this.
Back in the present Tony struggles with his experiences in The Avengers, throwing himself more and more into the development of a new Iron Man suit as a means of coping. This particular story thread ends up forming the backbone of the film and is actually the first of a series of smart moves by Black and Pearce.
By not only acknowledging the events of The Avengers but also incorporating them into the fabric of the story, the film actually does a pretty effective job of stepping out of the shadow of its lofty predecessor.
It’s not long though before Stark is confronted with the newest terrorist threat on the block, a mysterious sociopath known as The Mandarin who likes to hijack the airwaves in order to go on lengthy diatribes about U.S. history and foreign policy. Needless to say it doesn’t take long for Stark and The Mandarin to make it personal, which sends our hero off to do a little soul searching.
Iron Man 3 is really at its thematic best when it’s exploring the evolution of the scientists introduced to us in those first few scenes in Switzerland.
Rebecca Hall’s character seems wholly unnecessary until she rattles off a stunning monologue about how the purity of an idea inevitably becomes corrupted over time. Like many of the best comic book movies, it’s a theme that connects both hero and villain together, peppering the proceedings with a little more depth than your typical action fare.
The villains themselves are somewhat of a mixed bag. The Mandarin is played fairly effectively by Ben Kingsley, but I could see how fans of the comic book series might take exception to his characterization by movie’s end. From the standpoint of the movie itself it doesn’t make much of a difference, but for some reason comic book fans don’t take kindly to changes in their favourite characters and I figured I should at least mention it.
Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) on the other hand seems to undergo a She’s All That like transformation between the Switzerland opening and the rest of the film. It’s as if two of the more popular scientists made a bet that they could turn him into a knockout before science prom (otherwise known as the Nobel Prize ceremony) and he just did not take it as well as Rachael Leigh Cook did. Other than that though he made a pretty good – if not a little conventional – foil for Iron Man.
In fact, for the most part Iron Man 3’s flaws are fairly minor. The film’s a tad on the long side and could have used around 20 minutes of cuts. The ending is a little neat for my liking, though such is the case for most comic book movies. And they still haven’t found much to do with Gwyneth Paltrow’s Pepper Potts character. While she’s given a little more to do in this one, she’s never been a particularly strong character and the film dragged a bit whenever she was on screen.
Regardless, Iron Man 3 boasts some truly dazzling special effects, stylish actions sequences, and a number of genuinely funny moments to boot.
Oh and somehow I’ve managed to go this entire review neglecting to mention that Robert Downey Jr. is in the movie, and is actually quite good. We shouldn’t take these things for granted. In any case, it looks like summer has found its first real blockbuster.
Oh and if you’re wondering, yes – stick around until after the credits.