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Iron Man 3
| Released |
25 April 2013 |
| Director |
Shane Black |
Starring
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Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Sir Ben Kingsley, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak |
| Writer(s) |
Drew Pearce, Shane Black |
| Producer(s) |
Kevin Feige |
| Origin |
United States, China |
| Running Time |
129 minutes |
| Genre |
Action, sci-fi, thriller |
| Rating |
TBC |
|
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Iron Brew.
Last year’s Joss Whedon-helmed The Avengers raised the bar to impossible heights for superhero flicks, proving to be the perfect popcorn movie, as well as an intelligent piece of filmmaking. Using it as a springboard, this threequel hones in on a much more personal style of storytelling, and without managing to trump Whedon, falls very close to the mark. The Iron Man’s (Men?) have always innately possessed the superhero film secret formula; offering spectacular visual delights, breathtaking action set pieces and bringing a sense of humour to a genre generally lacking in one. Most of this is down to Robert Downey Jr (indeed, RDJ was once touted by Marvel paterfamilias Stan Lee as the man born to play Tony Stark) and here the role comes as natural as ever. Downey is equal parts pathos and charm, while the character is also given some emotional depth to work with.
Some time has passed since aliens obliterated Manhattan and our fast-talking industrialist is suffering from panic attacks and nightmares of the intergalactic wormhole that almost claimed his life. Bouts of insomnia leave Tony obsessively working on his various exoskeleton suits, which causes friction with girlfriend and newly appointed Stark Industries CEO, Pepper Potts (Paltrow), who finds herself increasingly drawn to biogenetics genius Aldridge Killian (Pierce), whom Stark once snubbed. Meanwhile, Col. Rhodes AKA War Machine (Cheadle) is in pursuit of a malevolent global terrorist called The Mandarin (Kingsley) and Stark decides to join the good fight when one of his attacks hits a bit too close to home.
It’s immediately clear that writer/director Shane Black’s script is the real winner here; Stark is often required to think outside the suit and as well as his usual relentless sardonic quippery we also have a clever back and forth routine between himself and a budding young inventor. Kudos also to the casting folks for finding Ty Simpkins, a child actor that isn’t unmercifully annoying. Each character is fleshed out suitably, with Kingsley providing some of the most intriguing quirks – though the less said about The Mandarin, the better. Even Paltrow is given something to do other than stand around looking worried. Midway through, Black presents us with a ludicrous Deus Ex Machina – it’s a sublime twist that only works due to his supreme confidence in the material. From here the plot is allowed to become fully cohesive for its explosive final act, replete with jaw-dropping visuals. Although the Mandarin storyline feels somewhat detached for the first half of the film, Iron Man 3 can take you by complete surprise – rare for the genre it stems from – and given that so many action films are crafted from the same mould, it’s refreshing to see Black take a few risks.
In the annals of superhero films, Iron Man 3 ranks near the top and continues to uphold The Avengers gold standard. Make sure you hang about post-credits for an ingenious cameo from a particularly temperamental associate of Stark’s.
- Cathal Prendergast |
