"Iron Man"

By: Matt Duncan
Coastal View News

Robert Downey Jr. seems about as likely a superhero as Tobey Maguire, and Iron Man is about as well-known and popular as Plastic Man. Yet Downey’s performance in the latest superhero thriller, “Iron Man,” is smoother and more convincing than any number of Batmen or Supermen, and the man of iron ends up being more formidable than the man of steel.

Tony Stark (Robery Downey Jr.) is half suave-playboy, half engineering-genius. He is also very rich and successful, having inherited his father’s engineering company, Stark Industries, which specializes in weapons manufacturing (a lucrative industry indeed). Due to Tony’s unparalleled technical abilities, the company thrives under his control. However, while demonstrating some of his latest military technology in the Middle East, Stark’s convoy is attacked and Stark is captured by thuggish, cave-dwelling terrorists.

Having obtained shrapnel wounds during the skirmish, Stark is lucky enough to be treated by a doctor who implants a mechanical device powered by a car battery into his chest to keep the shrapnel from entering his heart, thus keeping him alive. But shrapnel is the least of his worries, as the terrorists command Stark to build them a copy of his latest weapon, the Jerusalem missile. It is compliance or death. The brash and noble Stark feigns obedience while instead building a method of escape—and so Iron Man is born!

After kicking tons of butt, Stark returns to his California home and announces his intention to quit making weapons. This announcement is to the chagrin of the Stark family’s long-time business partner, Obadiah Stone (Jeff Bridges), and to the surprise of Stark’s long-time beautiful assistant, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow). While both seem initially supportive, only one is genuine. With the help of Potts, Stark puts his genius to work in developing a more sophisticated version of Iron Man, while Stone struggles to undo Stark’s position in the company.

The new Iron Man kicks even more butt, and as the design improves, greater evils arise and Stark’s nobility and sense of responsibility kick into overdrive. Stark is forced to discover just how impenetrable his armor really is.

Most people do not go into a superhero movie expecting to see the next Best Picture winner. They do not expect a unique plotline or a profound message. If the average moviegoer is astute, such a person will have noticed that every superhero movie is pretty much the same: an unlikely individual, flawed but genuinely noble, is thrust into a position of responsibility that is at once exciting and frightening. Along the way, this superhero will be confronted with an archenemy—a person that was once a close friend and personal ally. Love will be involved; most assuredly including another unlikely person; perhaps a person that has been in the superhero’s life for a while, and who the audience hopes (and secretly knows) will be “the one.” There will be moments of excitement followed by moments of deep despair and doubt. But ultimately, as if from the ashes, the superhero will triumph.

These facts are rarely short of given. Therefore, because nearly every superhero movie follows the same plotline, what makes such a film stand out is more-or-less unique to the genre. For a superhero movie to be successful the acting has to be good (nothing short of inspirational will do); the action scenes and explosions have to be fast-paced, exciting and somewhat unique, and the screenplay must be smooth, witty and often funny.

“Iron Man” certainly does not transcend the standard superhero storyline, but it is successful because the acting is good, the action is fun and the writing is slick. Robert Downey Jr. is sharp, quick and sassy—characteristics that are strengths for Downey and well-designed in the screenplay. Jeff Bridges’ voice alone makes him well cast as a villain, and Gwyneth Paltrow is nearly always golden.

There are many moments of implausibility in “Iron Man,” but so long as the implausibility is coherent and consistent, which is it is for the most part in this movie, it is the glue that holds all superhero movies together. If you have no patience for this type of movie, don’t waste your time, but if you loved Spiderman, Superman and Batman, “Iron Man” is a worthy superhero flick.

“Iron Man” is rated PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence.