Stars:
Robert Downey Jr.
Jeff Bridges
Gwyneth Paltrow
Terrence Hill
There are people out there that would say that if they didn't watch another movie about comic superheroes in their lifetime, then it's still too soon. Well, movies about comic superheroes are big money spinners and there will be more coming to the cinemas near you before you can say "Obadiah Stane".
Iron Man is the first of the four superhero movies slated for 2008 (the others being The Incredible Hulk, Hellboy 2 and The Dark Knight) and it does not disappoint. I've always been a big fan of Iron Man comics, so when I first heard about Iron Man being featured in the big screen, I was rather thrilled. I was also interested in who's going to play Tony Stark. Robert Downey Jr., it turns out got the role and while he was not quite what I had imagined Tony Stark would be, he nevertheless turned on a brilliant display as expected, totally dominating the proceedings and provided an added dimension to the movie.
The other characters were well cast, Jeff Bridges with a shaved head and a bushy beard plays Obadiah Stane who appears like a conniving entity from the start although without the usual boundless energy that he normally radiates. Tony Stark's Girl Friday, Pepper Potts, was elegantly played by Gwyneth Paltrow. Gwyneth as usual, delivered her lines with such immaculate poise that has long been her charm and trademark. She does however, appear to be even more anorexic than before and a few extra pounds would do her no harm. The role of Jim Rhodes went to Terence Howard, whose role was minimal here at best, but would be certainly be featured more prominently in Iron Man sequels (oh yes, there will be a sequel alright).
In typical Hollywood trend there were the expected deviations from the actual comic premise and characters. James Rhodes, Tony's pilot and best friend is a Colonel in the US Air Force here, Obadiah Stane is the CEO of Stane International but portrayed as the Number Two in Stark Industries, Jarvis is Tony's butler in the comics and appears here as a robot-assistant to Tony. Finally, the scenario of the origin of the armour changed from Vietnam to the Afghan conflict to better reflect the present-day political landscape. Following this, the character of Yinsen was understandably changed from Chinese to that of Afghan origins.
The story goes that Stark is captured by militants while on a trip to Afghanistan, and while being forced to manufacture a missile for the militants, he instead conjures up a crude piece of armour complete with jet boots and weapons to facilitate his escape. He returns home to discover a link between his arms manufacturing company and the militants, and proceeds to reinvent a better armoured suit, dons it and sets out to put things right.
What I had hoped for? A bit more of the action (it is after all a superhero story) and the better final battle. It may more satisfying to see the Iron Monger dispatched with a flurry of repulsor rays from a fully armoured Iron Man, rather than a battle-scarred superhero that's missing a glove and helmet. Gwyneth Paltrow was perhaps wasted in a role was underused and will be looking to see more of her in the sequel.
What's good about the movie? It's fun, it's energetic....real comicbook stuff, Robert Downey's Tony Stark, the fabulous special effects and the humour; comical scenes and witty exchanges. Now that we are done with origins of Iron Man, I very much look forward a complete adventure in the upcoming sequel.
Iron Man is the first of the four superhero movies slated for 2008 (the others being The Incredible Hulk, Hellboy 2 and The Dark Knight) and it does not disappoint. I've always been a big fan of Iron Man comics, so when I first heard about Iron Man being featured in the big screen, I was rather thrilled. I was also interested in who's going to play Tony Stark. Robert Downey Jr., it turns out got the role and while he was not quite what I had imagined Tony Stark would be, he nevertheless turned on a brilliant display as expected, totally dominating the proceedings and provided an added dimension to the movie.
The other characters were well cast, Jeff Bridges with a shaved head and a bushy beard plays Obadiah Stane who appears like a conniving entity from the start although without the usual boundless energy that he normally radiates. Tony Stark's Girl Friday, Pepper Potts, was elegantly played by Gwyneth Paltrow. Gwyneth as usual, delivered her lines with such immaculate poise that has long been her charm and trademark. She does however, appear to be even more anorexic than before and a few extra pounds would do her no harm. The role of Jim Rhodes went to Terence Howard, whose role was minimal here at best, but would be certainly be featured more prominently in Iron Man sequels (oh yes, there will be a sequel alright).
In typical Hollywood trend there were the expected deviations from the actual comic premise and characters. James Rhodes, Tony's pilot and best friend is a Colonel in the US Air Force here, Obadiah Stane is the CEO of Stane International but portrayed as the Number Two in Stark Industries, Jarvis is Tony's butler in the comics and appears here as a robot-assistant to Tony. Finally, the scenario of the origin of the armour changed from Vietnam to the Afghan conflict to better reflect the present-day political landscape. Following this, the character of Yinsen was understandably changed from Chinese to that of Afghan origins.
The story goes that Stark is captured by militants while on a trip to Afghanistan, and while being forced to manufacture a missile for the militants, he instead conjures up a crude piece of armour complete with jet boots and weapons to facilitate his escape. He returns home to discover a link between his arms manufacturing company and the militants, and proceeds to reinvent a better armoured suit, dons it and sets out to put things right.
What I had hoped for? A bit more of the action (it is after all a superhero story) and the better final battle. It may more satisfying to see the Iron Monger dispatched with a flurry of repulsor rays from a fully armoured Iron Man, rather than a battle-scarred superhero that's missing a glove and helmet. Gwyneth Paltrow was perhaps wasted in a role was underused and will be looking to see more of her in the sequel.
What's good about the movie? It's fun, it's energetic....real comicbook stuff, Robert Downey's Tony Stark, the fabulous special effects and the humour; comical scenes and witty exchanges. Now that we are done with origins of Iron Man, I very much look forward a complete adventure in the upcoming sequel.
2 comments:
i thinks its 'gwyneth'...
Of course it is...silly me. Thanks for the pointer.
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