Funny man

Rating: 6/10 (15 June 2013)

Rash, egocentric and devoid of lack of self-esteem Tony Stark (his usual briskly ironic Robert Downey Jr) is the ultimate playboy superhero donning the super-powered armour, which makes him Iron Man. Picking up from where "The Avengers" left off, Stark suffers from abrupt anxiety attacks resulting from his near death fall from the trans-dimensional void with the increasingly self-assured Pepper Potts his main comfort, source of solace and - to an extent - his fixation. When a series of terrorist explosions start occurring through-out the globe, coordinated by the mysterious Mandarin (Ben Kingsley), Tony Stark fails however to take a less front-row seat and actively engages with his newest foe - inviting him to attack him at his seaside mansion (if he dares)...
Giving over the helm to the comedic talents of Shane Black has in many ways invigorated Iron Man after the forgettable and drab sequel, which misused all the charm of the original movie. Downey Jr is therefore utilised to his fullest with a tidy sarcastic performance the highlight of proceedings and reaffirming his undoubted position as the best comic superhero performance by a mile. However the jokey side of the new Iron Man seems to overwhelm proceedings, making the action or super-side of the story seem somewhat secondary to Downey delivering a wicked punch-line. The iconic Marvel super-villain Mandarin and key foe of Tony Stark is effectively reduced to a short-legged gag, which may have seemed great during script formation, but effectively dissolves any sense of epic, despite an onslaught of Iron Men Mark 1-26 in the grand finale (including a classical tidbit appearance by Igor), as the replacement villain lacks the credible kapow to enhance the kaboom.
The replacement baddie Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) is by no means poor, but once the automated army of super-armours enter the fray, the spectacle just lacks sparkle. The scope of destruction is pretty nice, but the impact level just isn't enough to resonate given the misplaced power level of his foe (compared, for example, to the Avengers). Despite the ongoing phase of comic book movies aspiring to be darker, complex and more realistic, the essential strength behind the whole phenomenon is the want of superheroes battling super-foes. Twists and turns can be welcome, but without a foe worthy of a movie the overall effort just ends up bland. All in all this submarine fails to really surface, instead serving as a vessel for Downey Jr.'s charm and remarkable timing. Actually Downey Jr. rarely even gets to don the Iron Man armour, mostly relying on his whimsical self to liven proceedings. Satisfactory popcorn treat, just somewhat self-defeating by shunning away from the heroesque qualities that should have dominated proceedings.