Stark learns more harsh lessons about power and responsibility

Rating: 7/10 (21 May 2013)

The plot here is definitely stronger than the second one. The previous film had a rich setup that seemed to go nowhere in the last act, whereas this starts out with a pretty basic theme that becomes more complex as the narrative progresses. There's a definite 'Manchurian Candidate' vibe at work, here. The people in power have their puppets, but Stark has no-one to hide behind; everyone knows who he is and what he's done, and that brings on its own stresses and pressures that the story takes its time to work through.
One plot development that sadly wasn't fleshed out enough to convince me is the suits You have the newly acquired ability to control and command them via remote assistance, and yet you destroy them as soon as the threat is vanquished?! I know he wanted to concentrate on Pepper, but surely that involves USING the suits less, not canning them completely? Introducing such a new facility only to dispense with it pretty arbitrarily makes it feel more like a deus ex machina than a realistic element that fits seamlessly with Tony' s background. Plus, it's also too convenient in the service of the plot that the suit he ends up with for the majority of his endeavours just happens to be a model that's not working properly!
Still, there's more going on here and more to think about than in the tired second instalment, so on those terms, it's a definite improvement.