Cinematic Releases: Iron Man 3
Whose souls got sold to the devil at Marvel? How is it that
they keep making one awesome movie after the next? Iron Man 3 is super good. I
really tried to find something to hate about it, too. I was actively looking
for something. I'll tell you what I found and it's truly nitpicky. Actually,
I'm just going to forgo all that nonsense. Here's why it's great...
Each character was superbly balanced and had ample screen time to shine. Performances were pitch-perfect. I really don't need to mention Downey Jr., Paltrow, or Favreau. They continue to deliver admirably. Here, we finally get to see what we only got a taste of in Iron Man 2 -- Don Cheadle puts on a show for the audience and proves that he has a solid place in the Marvel universe. Guy Pearce portrays, what is in my opinion, the strongest villain in the Iron Man series so far. And, well, Sir Ben Kingsley as The Mandarin? Let's me just say Kingsley had perhaps the most technical performance of the ensemble and stretches his acting chops here in a surprisingly strong way. The cast is great!
If I were to have any one negative thing to say about the film, it wouldn't be a personal thing. I love the book ended pacing where it starts high, then goes on to explore Tony Stark on the ground level, before reaching for the skies again in a near non-stop action finale that fills almost the entirety of the third act. Yet, it never got boring. Some people, I understand, might have an issue with taking a dip in the warm simmering bath of character exposition through the center of a summer blockbuster, but I loved every second of it.
The tone, compliments of new-to-the-series-director, Shane Black, was meant for Iron Man. He brought the series back down to where I think it should have been from the beginning -- where brilliant comic writer, Matt Fraction took the character in the Invincible Iron Man run. Please, don't get me wrong. I've loved the films from the start. However, Black shows just how strong of a character Tony Stark can be on his own. The other films were Iron Man movies. This one is a Tony Stark movie. I felt much closer to this installment than the others because of not only the focus on Stark at his most vulnerable, but that it made me feel like I was watching a Matt Fraction story that never was come alive on the screen.
Alright, alright. I get it. You don't care about any of that. Here's what you came to read: it's the funniest entry in the series. The best ending of the series. The best villain of the series. The best action of the series. It's the best entry in the Iron Man series. Now go out there and make this excellent film all the money it deserves!
Each character was superbly balanced and had ample screen time to shine. Performances were pitch-perfect. I really don't need to mention Downey Jr., Paltrow, or Favreau. They continue to deliver admirably. Here, we finally get to see what we only got a taste of in Iron Man 2 -- Don Cheadle puts on a show for the audience and proves that he has a solid place in the Marvel universe. Guy Pearce portrays, what is in my opinion, the strongest villain in the Iron Man series so far. And, well, Sir Ben Kingsley as The Mandarin? Let's me just say Kingsley had perhaps the most technical performance of the ensemble and stretches his acting chops here in a surprisingly strong way. The cast is great!
If I were to have any one negative thing to say about the film, it wouldn't be a personal thing. I love the book ended pacing where it starts high, then goes on to explore Tony Stark on the ground level, before reaching for the skies again in a near non-stop action finale that fills almost the entirety of the third act. Yet, it never got boring. Some people, I understand, might have an issue with taking a dip in the warm simmering bath of character exposition through the center of a summer blockbuster, but I loved every second of it.
The tone, compliments of new-to-the-series-director, Shane Black, was meant for Iron Man. He brought the series back down to where I think it should have been from the beginning -- where brilliant comic writer, Matt Fraction took the character in the Invincible Iron Man run. Please, don't get me wrong. I've loved the films from the start. However, Black shows just how strong of a character Tony Stark can be on his own. The other films were Iron Man movies. This one is a Tony Stark movie. I felt much closer to this installment than the others because of not only the focus on Stark at his most vulnerable, but that it made me feel like I was watching a Matt Fraction story that never was come alive on the screen.
Alright, alright. I get it. You don't care about any of that. Here's what you came to read: it's the funniest entry in the series. The best ending of the series. The best villain of the series. The best action of the series. It's the best entry in the Iron Man series. Now go out there and make this excellent film all the money it deserves!
-JG