Iron Man (2008)

In a year where the movie blockbuster has been taken to unparalleled artistic heights by visionary auteurs like Christopher Nolan and Guillermo Del Toro, what then are we to make of Iron Man, the latest big-screen adaptation from the seeming endless supply of Marvel Comic characters? Certainly it doesn’t have the same lofty ambitions as The Dark Knight or Hellboy 2, but since when is that necessarily a bad thing? Iron Man is joyful, unassuming, funny-as-hell, and pretty damn entertaining.

For anyone unfamiliar with the comics, this is the story of Tony Stark, American weapons manufacturer, billionaire industrialist and international playboy who, after being kidnapped, suffers a severe heart injury when a piece of shrapnel is lodged in his chest and is forced under duress to replicate one of his most destructive missiles, but instead creates a metal power exoskeleton suit, escapes his captors, and decides to no longer devote his life to helping the military industrial complex but to fight crime instead. As you do.

This may sound like your typical super-hero fare, but the stroke of genius that separates Iron Man from being just another mindless comic-book snore-fest though is the casting of Robert Downey Jr as Stark. Downey Jr is one of those rare actors who has led such a troubled yet fascinating life that he can’t help but bring a wealth of back story to whatever character he plays. Despite his much-publicised battles with heroin and cocaine addiction, and other assorted scally-wag behaviour, he has lost none of his charm and charisma, and his magnetic personality makes the film light up whenever he is onscreen. When Stark sits in the back of an armoured humvee, glass of whiskey in hand, answering the enquiries of a group of young soldiers as to whether or not he went 12 for 12 with that years Maxim cover girls (“Yes and no. March and I had scheduling conflicts, but luckily December was twins”) you genuinely believe that this could be an anecdote from his own personal experience. In that respect, Downey Jr is perfect in the role, the only potentially superior choice would have been Wu Tang Clan member and celebrity Iron Man fan boy number one Ghostface Killah, who assumed Starks persona and named his first solo LP Iron Man after being diagnosed with diabetes and suffering dramatic weight loss (thankfully his cameo as an Dubaian sheik, which was cut from the theatrical release has been restored on the dvd, and his track “Slept On Tony With Dirt” appears on the films soundtrack so there is some justice in the world).

Jeff Bridges, Terence Howard and Gwyneth Paltrow fill out the other roles admirably, but make no mistake, this is Downey Jr’s movie and no –one elses. While the big finale is let down by some clunky CGI, and director Jon Favreau still appears to be finding his feet in the action genre, news of a proposed Iron Man trilogy can only be a good thing.  Give it a rustfree coating, and Iron Man 2 will surely destroy the competition.

Release Date: 27th October 2008
Director: Jon Favreau
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges, Shaun Toub, Leslie Bibb, Bill Smitrovich & Nazanin Boniadi
Certificate: 12A
Runtime: 126 minutes (approx)
RRP: £19.99

Matthew Kleebauer