Relentless firepower for boys and girls of all ages

Rating: 8/10 (16 May 2008)

A few years ago, after the debacle that was the "Batman And Robin" movie, there was a lot of discussion about who should be the next actor to portray Batman. It was considered by many that George Clooney came up short in many ways and fatally contributed to the negative feeling about that movie. (Not an opinion shared by me, by the way, but my feelings on "Batman And Robin" has changed a lot in the years since it's release. A discussion for another time.)
Who should it be? Clint Eastwood in an adaptation of "The Dark Knight Returns"? Keanu Reeves in a movie directed by the Wachowski Brothers? Kurt Russell? Brad Pitt? All of those names were mentioned.
I remember commenting to my Brother that they should go with somebody like Robert Downey Jnr. Laugh? I thought he would never stop.
Robert Downey Jnr??? A man who had been arrested several times for drug related offences. A man who had snorted his talent up his nose. A man dropped from a prime slot in a Woody Allen movie, because the insurance company refused to insure him. A man whose career was effectively over, barring cameos in television series' and the odd movie gig.
Yes, I said. Robert Downey Jnr. A really good actor, when his mojo is on. A man who had lived duality. A man who could portray the irresponsible playboy Bruce Wayne, but also the darkness required for a serious Batman?
Of course history shows that it did not happen, but I was not too unhappy. "Batman Begins" was a killer movie, Christian Bale was great and I don't think that Robert Downey Jnr. playing Batman would have made it any better or any worse.
This brings me to "Iron Man". Robert Downey Jnr. playing an irresponsible playboy and a vengeful, costumed superhero. (I still have my crystal ball, and am available for readings, if anybody is interested.)
Robert Downey Jnr. makes "Iron Man". He really does. "Iron Man" would not have been half good without him. He is funny, sarcastic, sexy and charismatic, and just about dominates every scene that he is in, whether in costume or not. I read one comment that said "Iron Man" would have been just as good if it had been called "Tony Stark" and Iron Man had never made an appearance at all. I don't think that I would disagree with a word of that. If I had to make a small criticism I would say that Robert Downey Jnr. is so good, he diminishes everybody else on screen at the same time as him, and these people are certainly not chopped liver. (Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Terence Howard.)
I thought that "Iron Man" was a great film. Action packed and fast moving. A big, bright powerhouse of a movie. Everything a hardware obsessed superhero movie should be. Relentless firepower for boys and girls of all ages. I liked the pointed subtext about science being corrupted by the military. Technology can be used for good or bad, a theme faced by Albert Einstein in real life and Tony Stark in "Iron Man".
Bring on "Iron Man 2". I can hardly wait.