The Marvel Cinematic Universe should take notes from this

Rating: 8/10 (24 September 2013)

I will not say that 'the Wolverine' is not without flaws. The attempts at humor are awfully out of character or out of tone for the rest of the movie. The scene in which Wolverine is forced to take a bath is cringingly bad. And there's debate on whether the 'return of the upright chopsticks' is a goof or not. The pitch-perfect F-bomb from 'X-men First Class' is recycled here, and on occasion Wolverine is not just a ruffian but a straight forward jerk.
And the entire third act is so out of place, it's almost like you're watching another movie.
However, having this said, 'the Wolverine' redeems a lot what went wrong in the X-men franchise. It was a bold move to take the super-hero movie out of the action-adventure cliché and use the concept for a character study with noir qualities. It was darker and more profound... like 'Iron Man 3' attempted to be and failed at. Comparing the two movies would be in place.
In both movies, it is explored what remains of the 'man' if the superpowers are taken away. Iron Man is not able to use his suit, Wolverine's healing factor is trimmed down. Wolverine knows the stakes are up and acts accordingly, Iron Man remains his old witty self and considers his loss of power merely as a temporary set-back.
Another point is comparison is the way both characters handle trauma. Wolverine is torn by guilt, for having to kill Jean Grey in 'X3'; Iron Man is traumatized from being an Avenger (though far worse things have happened to him). Wolverines guilt-complex is envisioned by visions of Jean, that evolves as the events in the movie progress, leading up to redemption. Iron Man has PTSD that is just there, ruining the pace of the movie, and going no-where.
Both movies go all-out ridiculous in the third act. But, apart from that, 'the Wolverine' does right what 'Iron Man 3' does wrong.