In Review- "Iron Man 3"

Iron Man 3

I have never been a comic book nerd. I think the only exposure I got to the world of Marvel and DC Comics was from my dad's superhero action figures. I distinctly remember the Dr. X one, a bald guy in his wheelchair.

It wasn't until "The Avengers" that I started to fall in love with superhero movies. "The Avengers" (2012) is funny, well written, with excellently developed characters who are lovable and unforgettable. I have seen that movie far too many times for it to be out less than a year.

I was hoping this superhero flick, written and directed by the same guy who did "Lethal Weapon" (1987), would have the same affect "Avengers" had on me. Not so much.

It still has the same wonderful characters, and brilliant actors who play them, but the plot is lacking in suspense and surprise- some key factors in the "Avengers" (SPOILER- Like when we don't know if Tony is going to make it out of the wormhole).

This film is building from "Avengers". In that film we see Tony's heart, and not the glowing one that powers his metal suit. He risks his life for his friends and the rest of the world. When all through Iron Man and Iron Man 2, we have known him to be the selfish and a cold-hearted playboy. This is how you do superhero character development. Not by turning your hero into a douche bag (**cough* Sam Raimi, Spider-Man).

The Plot (SPOILERS AHEAD) 

This movie, as I have said, takes place right after "Avengers". The world is saved from near disaster and all is well. But is it? Tony has now acquired severe anxiety attacks and cannot sleep, causing him to produce 42 Iron Man suits. He is under a lot of pressure now, having saved the world and all.

In comes a new villain, a terrorist (as if we haven't had enough movies about them). He has these broadcasts nationwide about how he is going to kill the president and how America is awful and all that.

Flashback! (ouch that hurt) Tony is in 1999, almost 2000 (it's New Year's), and he meets a fine-looking female (Rebecca Hall) who has found a way to get plants to regenerate themselves (like Wolverine plants), but they tend to explode when they do that... not super useful. Then we have the nerd in the corner (Guy Pearce) who pushes himself into a crowded elevator to tell Tony about AIM (not the email service), some new science-related project. Tony gives him the slip, sleeps with the girl, and continues living.

Flashforward! Turns out these two supposedly random people were super important. Yay! Nerd dude wants to get with Pepper Potts and sell Stark industries his gadget that can control a human mind. Yeah, thanks but no thanks, now super sexy nerd. But can you believe it, he's the bad guy. This is what happens when people get rejected by Tony Stark. In fact, the guy playing the terrorist (The Mandarin- we're not really sure if he's Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, Afghani- maybe that was done on purpose?) is a stupid actor who is doing this all for drugs! The evil genius behind this all is super-hot-nerdy/reject guy who has transformed himself and a whole army of forgotten misfits into fire-breathing, self-healing monsters. He has used the good looking girl from the beginnings' research to make his monsters. And he has kidnapped Pepper and turned her into a monster too! And he has the president! In comes Iron Man to save the day and everything goes back to normal. He ends the movie by replacing his glowy heart for a real one and saying that he is retiring (?) but he is always Iron Man. It sounded like he was going to take a break from the superhero lifestyle at least for a while.

The Cast

Robert Downey Jr. is a genius and is and will always be Iron Man. I'm not going to talk about that. I am also not going to talk about how wonderful Gwyneth Paltrow is, even if she is barely in this movie. My favorite character in this film was a little kid of maybe 10. Ty Simpkins played the young boy who helps Tony realize how much of a superhero he is. He helps him fix his suit when it breaks. He helps him find the bad guys. This kid is the best sidekick ever. The two of them even have witty banter. It's adorable.

The Message

It's a superhero movie so I know how it is going to end. He is going to save the world and get the girl (that's how the good ones end anyway). But you didn't have to be that obvious. I knew the plot twist, if you can even call it that, early on in the movie. You knew these random characters from the beginning had to come back and you knew the reject guy always gets pissed off and returns with a vengeance (see "Green Lantern"- actually don't see it, unless you just want to watch it for Ryan Reynolds, then I can't judge you). And Pepper could not have died because she's the best superhero girlfriend ever. But please, give me something to hold my breath for!

This movie is all about Tony's character development. He becomes the good guy, the nice guy. He realizes that he is not superhuman, like he thought he was. He also realizes that he has a heart- not a physical one, a metaphorical one. He is deeply in love with Pepper Potts, and he will do anything to keep her safe. We watch him grow during this film and it is such a joy! Yes, he's still Tony Stark, but he's an even better Tony Stark.

Overall

It's like someone forgot about the plot. They paid so much attention to developing Tony's character that they forgot to close the curtain around the plot twist. So it was enjoyable to watch our fav character grow, but no fun to watch him fight a fake terrorist and a predictable dragon-man.

I have to say though, it was my favorite Iron Man. And as I have heard from various sources, Robert Downey Jr. says he will not be doing another "I.M." movie again. But that's ok. We will have you for "Avengers 2"!

2.5 out of 4 Hearts