A great direction for the MCU after Avengers

Rating: 8/10 (31 July 2014)

There is a moment in Iron Man 3 which will be a big influence on whether you enjoyed the movie or not. At the time of its release, this midway twist proved to be quite polarising, with many critics and fans revelling in the clever direction of the story, whilst others despaired at a Hollywood mishandling of an iconic character. Either way, Iron Man 3 will have you talking about it by the end.
And so you should; because, even setting aside the divisive twist, this is a hugely entertaining comic book movie infused with a wonderful sense of humour, a breakneck pace and some truly spectacular action sequences.
The story revolves around Tony Stark/Iron Man facing a new threat known as The Mandarin whilst juggling his relationship with Gwyneth Paltrow's Pepper Potts and keeping Guy Pearce's creepy scientist at bay. It seems like there is a lot going on but by keeping the focus squarely on Tony, director Shane Black is able to keep the narrative from becoming incoherent, and more importantly, retain its sense of fun.
Downey Jr. is completely at home in the role of Tony Stark. He throws out one liners and insults with such ease yet achieves a sense of vulnerability not yet seen in the character. It is his most assured performance as Tony and one can only hope that he doesn't stop here. But it is not just Downey Jr. on form here, as Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, and most notably Ben Kingsley deliver fantastic performances
With the success of Avengers Assemble, and the decision to make this movie the first of Marvel's 'Phase Two', it would be understandable if Black was feeling any pressure, but it certainly doesn't come across on the screen. It may have been tempting to try and better Avengers Assemble by going bigger, flashier and louder; but wisely, Black chooses to rein in the more ridiculous aspects of comic book movies, and delivers a film which is more concerned about the man inside the suit, not just the suit itself. That is not to say there is not a lot of action; there is and it is eye popping, but in between the explosions and stunts, we get a chance to spend time with Tony and see what makes the snarky billionaire tick. The fact that it proves to be just as exciting and interesting as the segments with the suit is a testament to both Black's script and Downey Jr.'s performance.
A bold and surprising take on one of the most popular movie characters since Jack Sparrow. Filled with exciting action, hilarious one liners and one or two unexpected plot turns, Iron Man 3 will have you grinning throughout its 2 hour runtime.