Rise Of The New Superhero...

Rating: 9/10 (26 May 2008)

After all of the troubles that Robert Downey Jr. went through in the late Nineties and through the better part of this advancing decade, it would take a larger-than-life character to get him and his career back on track. Thankfully, Tony Stark came along just in the nick of time, the way he does quite often to save the day in IRON MAN.
Much has been made of Mack-truck-sized plot holes, deviations from original character motivations and the like. What people seem to be missing is that for the first time in a LONG time, we have a summer movie that puts the "WOW!" Factor back into summer movie-going again.
Remember when the bar for special visual effects was raised by films such as CLOSE ENCOUNTERS, STAR TREK 2, and some little swashbuckler in space made by a bearded fanboy geek-turned-filmmaker named George Lucas? Well, all of the best things about the technology that we've always hoped for are here, in the form of CGI, animation and practical effects that blend so seamlessly and with astounding precision, that even the mind-bending effects of THE MATRIX series now seem passé.
But best of all, where movies of this caliber that excel in the special effects areas always come up lacking in terms of story-telling and acting, IRON MAN delivers the goods in every conceivable way.
Downey Jr. makes Stark a likable, roguish charmer - the kind of cool, laid-back, hedonistic party animal that makes his contemporaries like Bruce Wayne look like they're standing still. This is the kind of role he has always excelled at, and when the time comes for Stark to eat a great big helping of humble pie and experience the epiphany that transforms him into more than just an opportunistic death dealer, his real-life experiences seem to inform his performance with the kind of pathos and heart that will be hard to find in other leading hero roles this summer, (with the possible exception of that guy with the hat and the whip.)
Though a little more time could've been spent developing their roles, Downey has great support with the always excellent Terrance Howard, Clark Gregg, Jon Favreau (the director in one of his Hitchcockian cameos) and Leslie Bibb as the inescapable gorgeous-and-nosy gal reporter. Special mention should be made of Faran Tahir as the "McGuffin" baddie of the piece, and Shaun Toub as an unlikely but formidable and admirable ally named Yinsen.
The two most impressive co-stars, however, are Gwyneth Paltrow, who has to be the most unlikely superhero love interest since Margot Kidder, and Jeff Bridges, aging nicely into 'hot daddy' mode as Stark's partner and eventual nemesis, Obediah "Obie" Stane.
The chemistry crackles between Downey Jr. and Paltrow almost immediately, which is really important to make unrequited romance work and hold the audience's attention, when the rest of the time is comprised of myriad "stuff that blows up real good." Their banter and attraction could fuel a couple dozen limp-and-lifeless summer rom-coms, so it's a nice surprise to find it here.
As for Bridges, his dad would be bursting with pride. Jeff is specializing more and more in guest shots and character roles rather than those of his former "leading stud" niche, and each one has fit him nicely. Though a little more background on Obie would've been nice, this one is no exception. His rage at having to play second fiddle to his young protégé definitely comes through in their eventual confrontations, and that needs no further explanation or exposition to justify it.
As an independent studio, Marvel has redefined the paradigm for how to make a comic book adaptation work with IRON MAN. Let's see if any of their rivals are up to meeting the challenge...