A fun dose of superhero
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MAR
12
2009
Lee's original Iron Man aka Tony Stark was based on real life industrialist Howard Hughes, who he called "one of the most colorful men of our time." Hughes was an "an inventor, an adventurer, a multi-billionaire, a ladies' man and finally a nutcase," according to Lee. He was also a pioneer of modern aviation and wore a mustache. Against these exaggerated criteria, Robert Downey Jr. as Mr. Stark gave a near flawless performance for a generation who has never heard of Howard Hughes.
Director Jon Favreau adapted Stan Lee's Vietnam Era strip into a politically charged blockbuster, introducing us to Tony Stark in the middle of Afghanistan. While sipping scotch in a humvee, Stark, is nearly killed when an RPG knocks out half of his vehicle. He awakes in a cave and realizes that Stark Industries weapons have come into the hands of his captors.[Enter moral conflict].
Naturally, he escapes in a flurry of gunfire and incineration, and arrives back in Malibu a changed man. His transformation is reminiscent of the pain that propelled Batman into the business of crime fighting. In fact the plots are structurally identical. Both characters suffered losses that enlightened them to the dark side of humanity. "Iron Man" too wrestles with the complexities of good and evil, just not in the dim lighting of Batman's penthouse.
The deeply sinister themes, and irreversibly troubled protagonist earned Christopher Nolan's adaptation of Batman an R rating. Compared to "The Dark Knight," "Iron Man" is 2 hours of joy riding (or should I say flying) interspersed with melodrama. It's punchy and bright and flooded by witty exchanges between characters that have little to do with Iron Man's mission.
For instance, his Robin, Air Force Lieutenant Colonel James "Rhodey" Rhodes (Terrance Howard), is his right hand man when it comes to frat boy antics. Together, they enjoy such luxuries as stripper stewardesses in Stark's private plane, an endless flow of top-shelf scotch, and Vegas vacations all in under 130 minutes of film. Still, the Air Force Lieutenant is a natural partner for an unidentified flying superhero.
Pepper Potts, Stark's personal assistant, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, is also a shoe in for predictable, underdeveloped, superhero sidekicks. Her performance and screen presence are delightful, but her role is so prim and doting that she comes off robotic. When she and Tony nearly kiss, Potts is sent into a frenzy of conflicting emotion. Clearly her direction was meant to mimic the classic passions of comic book damsels from the tortured love of Superman and Lois Lane to Spiderman and Mary Jane Watson. And similarly, Potts' main objective is to offer humanity and compassion to the devil that is Tony Stark.
Of course, when women choose to challenge our superhero instead of faint in his presence, conflict erupts. Notable adversaries include the provocative Vanity Fair reporter Christine Everhart (Leslie Bibb). As a representative of the fringe media, her issues with Stark Industries and war profiteering are her driving force. However, her quandary is never actualized. Instead, she is continuously swatted away by the rest of the cast as if she were pesky gnat. That is, until she is caused to sleep with Stark himself, apparently overtaken by his sex appeal (even though she dwarfs him in size, and beauty). Ms. Everhart's plight adds an unsettling antifeminist tone to the film, although it is not entirely unexpected.
They only other thorn in Stark's side is the primary villain, Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges). Stane shares some characteristics with comic villains before him. He has a shiny shaved head (Lex Luther), attempts to kill Tony's love interest (The Green Goblin), and he even affixes steal to his face (Dr. Doom). But as a villain that we know little about to begin with, "Iron Man" does not elaborate much on his character. Stane is predictably driven by money and power, but unlike Bruce Wayne, Tony Stark does not have a strong grip on the family business. This allows Stane to take hold of Stark Industries and build a rival Iron suit in his quest for, well, money and power. And apparently, his inflated head required a much larger suit as well.
Obadiah Stane stood at a very unrealistic twenty feet tall. It was a disappointing jolt of reality for everyone who appreciated the realistic setting that "Iron Man" provided by using political and locational themes.
The climax of this conflict is left to the final minutes of the film, in which Iron Man and "Iron Monger" face off in the middle of a thruway. Compared to the previous 120 minutes, the CG fight scene is reminiscent of "Transformers," (and not the good parts). It is a painful last attempt to squeeze in some crime fighting; and makes the viewer instantly aware that the rest of this superhero movie provided little to no heroism. "Iron Man 1" was a well orchestrated set up for "Iron Man 2" (announced even before the first was released).
But I will give "Iron Man" a pass because I am genuinely looking forward to this blockbuster series; and I'm sure I will appreciate the entertaining back story when the plot resumes. Because what is truly appealing about Iron Man as a superhero is that all of his powers are contrived. Much like Bruce Wayne, he is able to achieve otherworldly strength with human resources. The way Stark acquires vigilante status is what makes "Iron Man" so captivating; he does most of it with his brain, just as Howard Hughes did; although Hughes' brain eventually led to his own demise. I suppose we will have to wait and see about Tony Stark.
Iron Man is recommended by kyriakideso
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