IRON MAN (no spoilers)

Rating: 8/10 (2 May 2008)

*Ok. I have to admit, I am not a HUGE Iron Man reader, or The Avengers, really, either. So if you are a purist, then I have no applicable idea as to how the movie compared to the series. HOWEVER, I have read a few Iron Man/Avengers story-arcs, so I am not completely out of touch with the character itself.*
I have some serious questions that need to be answered here:
Q: Why Robert Downey Jr.? A: Because he's AWESOME. Downey Jr. is what you might call...A REAL ACTOR. Unlike so many less-than-exceptional actors that have been playing superheroes since, well, the dawn of time (a few exceptions can be made, yes, feel free to list them in rebuttal comments), Downey Jr. captured the highs and lows of Tony Stark as perfectly as he was allowed to. It was clear that he was held back a bit by director Jon Favreau, who has a tendency to do such things to actors. Sometimes it works (i.e. "Elf") and sometimes it hinders a bit, as is the case for Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark. That said, Downey Jr. still conquered Tonk Stark with a mighty and powerful...OK, now I am just thinking of him naked.
Q: Why Gweneth Paltrow? A: Only God knows why she is in any movie. Ever. Wes Anderson did with her what he could. John Favreau gave up, I imagine, halfway through filming. Chemistry of a doorknob, that woman.
Q: Why couldn't they make the action sequences in Transformers more like the phenomenal and easy-to-follow, non-distracting action sequences in Iron Man? A: Because Michael Bay is a budget-waster and should be put on trial and convicted of murder for the crap-fest that was Transformer's action sequences. The vomit in my tummy threatens to erupt at the very thought of the upcoming Michael Bay remake of Hitchcock's "The Birds". John Favreau did an excellent job of maintaining my increased heart-rate and keeping me ever-so-slightly panicked, without over-doing the action to the point of disbelief.
Q: Where can I get a robotic suit like Iron Man's? A: In my wildest fantasies. Seriously, if it wasn't weird enough that I had all kinds of crazy superhero fetishes before, now I have to be into robots? Whoever did the character design for the Iron Man itself did a superb job. Say it with me, Joe, superb. From the first moment you lay eyes on it, it oozes with personality. If you can suspend your disbelief like I can, then you will get the maximum effect. I encourage this.
A few otherwise notable things:
The character and plot development was well thought out and although the plot was fairly predictable at times, it was no more predictable than your average graphic novel, which is what I like in a movie based on graphic novels.
This movie is entirely appropriate for most kids, as long as you don't mind your kids getting more anti-brown-people ideas placed in their minds by the media. The writers did a fair job at not making it an "us against them" situation, but it's still something to put on the discussion table with your kids after the viewing.
There is much, much more to this movie, but in the interest of keeping my "no spoilers" word, I'll just say that Iron Man isn't perfect, but it isn't crappy, either. I was expecting crappy. I ended up getting new images to, um, ponder in my "me" time...