Iron Man 3

Iron Man 3 is enjoyable and mildly funny but it is mostly messy. Here’s my main problem with this movie: it isn’t exactly awesome. The first Iron Man film was unadulterated awesomeness and the second wobbled under a lackluster script. The third film is entertaining yet under-accomplished. It does take off but a bit too late. The film opens with a clumsy 45 minutes but it ends with a climax that could easily be one of the best action set pieces we’ve ever seen in a summer blockbuster. There are several great moments here to satisfy the fanboys but as a film, it doesn’t exactly soar.

Most importantly, Iron Man 3 is a comedy first and a superhero film later. This is something that didn’t particularly go down well with me. I’m not very sure what jokes with Downton Abbey are doing here. It is one thing when you sprinkle (mediocre?) humor over a film to hide a bad story; there is another when you spitfire funny and memorable one-liners while providing high-quality entertainment. This is what separates a film like this one with a great superhero film like The Avengers. On a specific note, I prefer Joss Whedon’s humor to Shane Black’s infinitely more. I’d put a brake on the comparisons but when you’ve already seen the good stuff, why settle for less?

The embarrassing first act ends with a staggering scene, which tells us, this film indeed has a chance of being saved. The second act sees the inclusion of a kid that is basically every young one’s dream come true: Be a superhero’s sidekick. Even if it is for a brief period, this will be enough to win over the teenagers. This includes me and is also my favorite segment of the film. But here’s the thing, then comes a grown man who tries to do the same thing and looks egregiously awkward. Whenever the film starts to show promise it falters soon enough until it is ultimately wrapped up well.

One of my favorite sequences is when Iron Man saves not one, but 13 people. Mid-air. This is vintage superhero material. Also, Robert Downey Jr. He could sleepwalk through 3 more Iron Man films and make it look amazingly cool. Gwyneth Paltrow finally gets to kick butt and I hope The Avengers 2 has a good sub-plot reserved for her.

Ben Kingsley is amusing but I would safely say he’s probably the worst villain any superhero film could ever get. I want to watch Iron Man 3, not Tere Bin Laden. A superhero movie, not a farce. I do appreciate Shane Black’s take on the face of terrorism in the wake of the culmination of a certain manhunt, if only I wasn’t asked to laugh at it. Terrorism is NOT a joke. Guy Pearce, on the other hand, is excellent. He’s an incredibly underrated performer. I wish they had informed the audience about the identity of the villains before Tony Stark found out instead of succumbing to a shoddy twist. Sometimes letting the audience in on a joke works better than hiding it and having the punch line fall flat.

Albeit, I’m willing to overlook most of the film’s missteps for the absolutely thunderous climax. I’m sure I will get over my disappointment and enjoy this film more the second time I watch it (which will not be soon) because I know what to expect. Not a darker, deeper first chapter in Phase Two of Marvel cinematic universe but a quasi-comedic bigger and grandiose franchise-mongering threequel to suit a fanboy’s needs. It is better than the previous film, but that’s not saying much.

Now that the Iron is done with, can the real superhero please stand up? Bring on the Steel!

Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is narrating a story that starts of on the New Year’s Eve night of 1999. To know who he is narrating it to you must wait till the end credits end. Cut to present day. After teaming up with the avengers and saving the world once again. Stark is dealing with personal psychological problems. He gets disturbed sleep and has sudden anxiety attacks. It appears that he is in a desperate need of a shrink.

But, the evils of the world will not let him be. Enters Mandarin ( Ben Kingsley) a villain modeled on Osama Bin Laden who is attacking several places in the united states. One such attack sends Stark’s bodyguard cum friend Happy ( Jon Favreau) into coma. An open challenge to the Mandarin by Stark sets the action into motion and the need for Iron Man to come to the rescue.

Shane Black ( Director of Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and writer of Lethal Weapon) directs after a gap of almost 7 years. His writing partner for this film is Drew Pearce (He is also written the much awaited Pacific Rim) who makes his feature film debut as a writer. Shane spends almost 40 mins setting up the story and the characters. The new additions are Mandarin ( Ben Kinglsey), Killian ( a menacing Guy Pearce) and Maya ( Rebecca Hall). Children might get bored during the first 40 mins will wait for the action to begin. But when it starts it is one hell of a fun ride.  There are at least 3 huge action set pieces that will be worth your money.

Robert Downey Jr is in solid form and seems to be still enjoying playing Stark/Iron Man the fourth time around. Thank god he is not bored of it yet because we clearly are not. Ben Kinglsey owns the screen every time he appears.  He sets the bar high as far as villains of the Iron Man series are concerned. Then there is Guy Pearce to boost up the evil quotient.

Word of mouth –Iron Man 3 is the best in the series.

Rating - ****

Ticket Meter – worth 250 bucks

With his face visible for most part of a super hero flick unlike the other mega super hero Batman, against whom every superhero has to be measured post the Dark Knight series, Iron Man 3 is a Robert Downey Jr show all along, Take him out of the film and there is very little that would actually be worth remembering. Iron Man 3 is a fanboys dream but disappoints as a film per se. 

Tony Stark is battling anxiety and inner demons of sorts, when a terrorist called Mandarin starts detonating human bombs across America while openly threatening the government. An ex admirer of Pepper, Tony's love interest, meanwhile has devised a means to control human brain. As Tony sets about saving the President, the world and his love Pepper from imminent doom, he also finds time to show off imporvements in his iron suit thanks to his obsessive "tinkering" in his downtime since fighting off aliens with the Avengers. 

Writers Drew and Shane make Iron Man 3 into a film that attempts to please all- it is a comic book take on superhere genre, with a flamboyant playboy for a saviour of mankind, it has a kid for a sidekick as an attempt to bring in the kids in the summers, it attempts to give itself a certain gravitas and depth aka the Dark Knight, all of this while catering to an audience that is definitely not living in the U.S. alone. Unlike other such summer blockbusters GI Joe and Fast and Furious, Iron Man 3 is not completely unrooted and clueless though. 

Moving in fits and paces, the script moves from breathtaking thriller unfolding into a menacing tale of evil vs good, while suddenly throwing it all together with insane mediocre humor that only plunges the film into frivolity unexpected of the franchise. There are jokes that even Americans would find hard to get, especially ones on the Down Town Abbey. Then there is the complete let down of the Ben Kinglsey Mandarin angle, the explanation to which must have sounded convincing on paper but falls flat on its face in the movie. 

Pearce as the heated up fire spewing villain of the piece is the only controlled menacing turn in a film where every one seems to have taken after the carefree panache of Tony Stark himself. Robert Downey as Tony is brilliant, he brings out the sense of searching within his self to his otherwise playboyish arrogant character making Iron Man enjoyable the third time round as well. With a lot less of his suit and lot more of his own self, we root for Tony and not the suit alone. Sadly, whenever the story seems to match up to his callibre, the pace drops and we end up witnessing a B grade superhero flick from the 80's hollywood. 

Iron Man 3 is not a bad film, hell it does giv ebang for the buck in the action sequences especailly when seen in imax 3D. What it doesnt is fulfill the hope that may be they would make it more edgier. Watch it if you are a fan. 

Iron Man 3 is the perfect vacation movie. There is lots of action, some silliness, some great jokes and a tiny bit of romance thrown in for good measure.

Rober Downey Jr. is fabulous as Iron Man. It takes conviction in the role and a certain amount of self confidence to get in and out of body suits of steel, make fantastic gestures with your hands that blow things up and fly off into the sky at will.  And he does it all with aplomb.

The story is typical- Iron Man has to fight the bad guy- the Mandarin in this case and then of course, save that saviour of the free world- the President of the United States (That man really needs to revamp his security systems given the number of movies in which his in in danger).

Go with the kids, put on the 3D glasses to see all the bits of fire and steel flying towards you, grab your popcorn and Coke and enjoy!

This movie marks the end of Robert Downey Jr's contract with the Marvel folks, and might be the last time we see him as Iron Man. And as if Men in Metal suits already didn't bring back childhood dreams, this fact makes it all the more special.

Something has to be said about the way Downey Jr makes each role his own - he has already done this with Sherlock Holmes as well. He seems to be an eccentric man, and these eccentricities are seamlessly transferred to the character. Also, playing the same character for the fifth time will usually lead to  overkill and fatigue. But Iron Man3 suffers from none of the usual ailments.

The movie starts with a similar premise as its prequel - there has been somebody wronged in the past, who has now returned to claim vengeance. Played by an extremely capable Guy Pearce (Memento), this 'blast-from-the-past' antagonist seemingly has invented some advanced technology which enables him to be much more lethal than Tony Stark's metallic suit. Aiding him in his quest is a Global terrorist (Ben Kingsley), who wishes to rule the entire world.

The plot is gritty, and Stark takes much greater hits than his past ventures. However, what makes it different from any other Big Bang action flick is the sublime humor that is interspersed in between. The comedy is so spontaneous (and sometimes situational) that it almost seems as Downey has improvised at the very last minute. This makes the film achieve a well rounded structure that will appeal to first time watchers as well as hard core afficionados.

Watch out for Stark's irreverent discussions with a young kid, and ofcourse for his and Gwyneth Paltrow's sparkling chemistry. Both the actors have seemed to age brilliantly well.

This film is paisa vasool stuff, and will not disappoint.