Far from a brilliant film but still a bright, breezy and enjoyable summer blockbuster

Rating: Null/10 (11 September 2008)

Growing up, Tony Stark was always good with machines  very good. This pleased his father, who was equally as skilled and had built his internationally successful weapons company up from the ground with the sole aim of arming his country to help them win the wars they face. When his father died when he was still young, the company went into the safe hands of friend and partner Obadiah Stane but, at 21, Stark came back onto the scene as head of the company and, it must be said, something of a playboy with a deserved reputation for loving woman and having a general cavalier attitude to life. However a weapons demonstration in the Middle East changes that when he is captured by terrorists and made to build them weapons. He escapes by building himself a mechanical suit and blasting his way out, but the experience has changed him and on his return to the US announces that the firm is dropping out of arms manufacture  an announcement that dismays Stane and the board, but not as much as his other plans would.
Iron Man was more or less the first big film of the summer and, unlike the blockbuster season of 2007 it was a good start because Iron Man pretty much did everything that a Blockbuster should. It is big noisy fun, with good action sequences, comedy and effects and it is yet another superhero movie  which is the only thing about it that gave me cause for concern. The thing is, as good as some of them are, we also have lame ones where the focus is on the effects and nothing else. Iron Man is not the new Batman films but nor is it anywhere near the level of Fantastic Four, if anything it is like what one would want Fantastic Four to be like. I say this meaning that Iron Man has a solid plot (although the "developmental" film is generally the "easiest" one to get right), fun characters and a good sense of humour thanks to the character of Stark  I mean, I like Batman's tortured psyche as a subject but Stark would be a lot more fun to hang out with.
Towards the end, the plot suddenly moves past the developmental plot line and gets to the "conclusion". It is noisy and not as exciting as I would have liked but it is good enough to satisfy those who want to see their money up on the screen. For me the rest of the film was stronger as it focused on Stark, who is nailed by a perfectly cast Downey Jr. His acerbic sense of humour and real lifestyle of excess helps the film and he is an enjoyable centre piece who remains a presence even when he is just a CGI effect on screen. Paltrow looks good and fills the undemanding role well despite me personally not liking her that much. Bridges was a solid presence for the most part, even if not that much is made of him, while Howard is a good name to allow the series to continue with stars on board. I didn't think that Favreau would be up to the task since this is really his first big budget action film but, while not anything special, he did a good job and perhaps it helped with the humour to have him on board but we shall see if he returns with Iron Man 2 (which I'm assuming is a given as a project).
So OK we have the Batmans and other good films this summer but for simple popcorn enjoyment, Iron Man holds its own. Don't look for a lot of soul searching (Stark's change of heart is more a plot device than a subject for exploration) but if you would solid action, some good laughs and a generally enjoyable product then this will fill that need till the next one comes along.