Ironing out the issue of Downey as Hero, the stark reality is? He rocks!

Rating: 9/10 (18 May 2008)

After nearly a year of self-imposed exile (still think I'm right about Norbit's casting), the Bajan cine-phile is back!
The translation from Vietnam of the 60's to Afghanistan in the 21st century is an almost flawless juxtaposition with Stark's character remaining initially a devil-may-care genius and played with sardonic perfection by Robert Downey Jr!
Robert actually has a deliberate shift from playboy to hero when he asks Pepper a dangerous favour, he makes a passionate explanation why he needs the favour and you realise the character of Stark is not as Devil-May-Care as before...
Casting the guy who put soul into "Heart & Souls," or making Ally McBeal far more interesting than the anorexic twerp of Callista Flockhart is top notch move - his real life trials and tribulations make him easy to accommodate Stark's tortured addictions only hinted in for the first chapter... I hope in reality Robert stays clean (For me his only flop was "The Singing Detective"), us '65-ers have to stick together!
Terence Howard's interpretation of James Rhodes -aka- "Rhodey" is more of a shuck & jive sidekick than was played in the comics, but by the end of the picture, his character was more what we came to know over the years.
Aspects of the original Iron Man and the Bob Layton version came through loud & clear as well as the Ultimates Marvel incarnation, it was easy to forgive the lack of "Happy" Hogan...
Jeff Bridges as Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger was actually plotted better than the comics, his presence in the dead-tree version simply as a foil for Tony was sudden as I recall - but here as the virtual 2nd father of Tony made huge sense. Rather than a villain, I think he feels rejected for saving a company from dropping out of the top 5 in the Fortune 500!
Yet Tony is guilty from seeing in Kandahar and elsewhere what his weapons artwork has done to disrupt others' lives, rather than perpetuate it and having been at the end of his own medicine - he decides to make amends and thus Iron Man's purpose!
The technology displayed such as the mini-guns in his shoulders or the telemetry on glass is magnificent, it can be hilarious when he tried repulsor boots at ten per cent power, instead of using one per cent in the 1st place, LOL!
If Stark no longer does weapons, then he will have to be cutting edge in medicine or other similar applications like mobile or laptop technologies, which was hinted by placing a child version of himself near a young Bill Gates. This, despite the use of Apple desktops and laptops throughout the whole film!
I hope that Pepper and Tony do NOT get involved, the Moneypenny/Bond frisson is much better for the flow of the project, especially if it goes beyond 2010!
The movie has many fantastic one-liners like "Good Dog," addressed to Butterfingers, the semi-dopey robot trying to help save Tony's life; or?
(Trying to create a miniature Arc Reactor like Tony's pacemaker, Stane hires a battery of scientists and is clearly frustrated when no results are forthcoming...) STANE: What do you mean it's impossible? (Angrily points to huge machine) Stark built a tiny version of this out of scrap metal in a cave, for crying out loud! SCIENTIST: Sir, I am not Tony Stark!
The flight sequences in the movie make "Top Gun" look like "Top Dud" and have you on the edge of your seat! The movie also does a good job in laying the groundwork for Avengers, Captain America, S*H*I*E*L*D and even interaction with other Marvel Universe people. As always, Stan Lee's cameo was a guffaw-maker - this time compared with Hugh Hefner!
This film is not only worth its weight in GOLD but IRON too!