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Hollywood hasn't always been entirely sure how to adapt comic books onto film. So much of the source material strived for social relevance by addressing the issues of its day, but people can be forgiven for concluding that fun escapism should be the chief goal of any adaptation. Who wants to take civics lessons from a guy bitten by a radioactive spider, after all?
The results have been somewhat schizophrenic, as the genre is inhabited by both carefree efforts like Fantastic Four, and somber, believable films like Batman Begins. Iron Man is one of the few capable of effectively splitting the difference. It manages to be an enjoyable distraction without becoming mindless entertainment.
It does this by focusing less on the suit, and more on the man inside. This man is Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), a billionaire weapons manufacturer who is, by all appearances, the most brilliant engineer the world has ever known. Downey plays Stark like a cross between Steve Jobs and Arthur Bach, and gets to deliver a wide array of one-liners. He's the kind of character so good at what he does, and so unapologetic about knowing it, that his manner transcends arrogance and becomes style.
This changes in the film's opening minutes, which introduce us to Stark's unique personality, and immediately throw his life into chaos as he's injured and apprehended by terrorists in Afghanistan armed with the weapons he created. They want him to build them a version of his latest invention, the Jericho missile, and provide him with all the tools he needs. Instead, he constructs a giant suit made of iron, which runs off of a miniature "arc reactor" in his chest, placed there to regulate the shrapnel in his body.
Stark escapes, and returns to the United States a changed man, deeply moved and conflicted by the things he's seen. Determined not to be remembered only for the destruction he helped inflict, he constructs a more elaborate version of the iron man suit from his home to help him track down and destroy weapons of his which have fallen into the wrong hands.
Iron Man works for a number of reasons, but the most notable is surely the cast. Gwyneth Paltrow plays Stark's assistant, Pepper Potts. Terrence Howard plays Air Force officer Jim Rhodes, and Jeff Bridges plays Stark Industries second in command, Obadiah Stane. Director Jon Favreau has wisely resisted the urge to cast megastars in the film's primary roles, instead opting for actors who inhabit their roles without overpowering them. The decision pays dividends from the title card to the credits by injecting a little extra gravitas into every scene.
A few things about Iron Man set it apart from other superhero films. For one, it's funnier than any superhero film you've ever seen, and a good deal wittier than most. Chalk this up to Downey, whose debaucherous depiction of the title character feels effortless every moment he's on the screen. It's also surprisingly light on action. There's plenty of great visual work here to gawk at, but it spends as much time on the development of the suit as its use. The most remarkable thing about this, however, is that it doesn't hurt the film one bit.
It's probably no coincidence that the first film fully financed and controlled by the new Marvel Studios exhibits such an affection for the world it depicts. The love for the story and its characters is evident in every frame.
I'd be terribly remiss if I didn't note the little bit of comic book candy after the credits. Marvel tops off an already great film with an exciting indication of what's to come. The extra scene constitutes a gutsy promise to Marvel fans that, if Iron Man is any indicator, they are fully prepared to deliver on.
Though many films have been made from Marvel properties to date, Iron Man feels like the start of something new. It is a comic book film created by people who know and love comic books, and figures to go down as one of the best superhero films ever made.
The results have been somewhat schizophrenic, as the genre is inhabited by both carefree efforts like Fantastic Four, and somber, believable films like Batman Begins. Iron Man is one of the few capable of effectively splitting the difference. It manages to be an enjoyable distraction without becoming mindless entertainment.
It does this by focusing less on the suit, and more on the man inside. This man is Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), a billionaire weapons manufacturer who is, by all appearances, the most brilliant engineer the world has ever known. Downey plays Stark like a cross between Steve Jobs and Arthur Bach, and gets to deliver a wide array of one-liners. He's the kind of character so good at what he does, and so unapologetic about knowing it, that his manner transcends arrogance and becomes style.
This changes in the film's opening minutes, which introduce us to Stark's unique personality, and immediately throw his life into chaos as he's injured and apprehended by terrorists in Afghanistan armed with the weapons he created. They want him to build them a version of his latest invention, the Jericho missile, and provide him with all the tools he needs. Instead, he constructs a giant suit made of iron, which runs off of a miniature "arc reactor" in his chest, placed there to regulate the shrapnel in his body.
Stark escapes, and returns to the United States a changed man, deeply moved and conflicted by the things he's seen. Determined not to be remembered only for the destruction he helped inflict, he constructs a more elaborate version of the iron man suit from his home to help him track down and destroy weapons of his which have fallen into the wrong hands.
Iron Man works for a number of reasons, but the most notable is surely the cast. Gwyneth Paltrow plays Stark's assistant, Pepper Potts. Terrence Howard plays Air Force officer Jim Rhodes, and Jeff Bridges plays Stark Industries second in command, Obadiah Stane. Director Jon Favreau has wisely resisted the urge to cast megastars in the film's primary roles, instead opting for actors who inhabit their roles without overpowering them. The decision pays dividends from the title card to the credits by injecting a little extra gravitas into every scene.
A few things about Iron Man set it apart from other superhero films. For one, it's funnier than any superhero film you've ever seen, and a good deal wittier than most. Chalk this up to Downey, whose debaucherous depiction of the title character feels effortless every moment he's on the screen. It's also surprisingly light on action. There's plenty of great visual work here to gawk at, but it spends as much time on the development of the suit as its use. The most remarkable thing about this, however, is that it doesn't hurt the film one bit.
It's probably no coincidence that the first film fully financed and controlled by the new Marvel Studios exhibits such an affection for the world it depicts. The love for the story and its characters is evident in every frame.
I'd be terribly remiss if I didn't note the little bit of comic book candy after the credits. Marvel tops off an already great film with an exciting indication of what's to come. The extra scene constitutes a gutsy promise to Marvel fans that, if Iron Man is any indicator, they are fully prepared to deliver on.
Though many films have been made from Marvel properties to date, Iron Man feels like the start of something new. It is a comic book film created by people who know and love comic books, and figures to go down as one of the best superhero films ever made.