Iron Man

With both kids clamoring to see the latest blockbuster, Iron Man, I broke down and we went. I have to admit, I was not looking forward to seeing it, as comic-book heroes are simply not in my radar of interest.

However . . . I enjoyed it. First, if you recall the snappy and snarky character on Ally McBeal from long ago that Robert Downey, Jr. played, he seemingly revises that role in his charcter of Tony Stark. I like Robert Downey, Jr. I enjoy his acting. I very much and sincerely hope that he has conquered his past problems with drugs because the man has talent. And he's nice on the eyes.

Which gives enough distraction for the ladies as this is definitely a "guy flick", but one your woman can enjoy. It has super geeky technology, it has explosives, it has military armaments, it has fast cars, it has babes, it has bald-headed villains with some wearing turbans (and any movie where Afghani Islamofascist camel jockeys get theirs, c'mon, what is not to like?).

It also has a thinly written "good-vs-evil-I-can-see-clearly-now-the-problems-of-my-past-epiphany-you-know-love-is-the-answer" story line but the special effects overcome the deficiencies there. Look, when comic book heroes are translated onto the big screen, are you really expecting Citizen Kane? Oh Lawdy, that last sentence may well garner a few comments from some of the guys I know who read this blog about, such as Stephanie, you can't discount the sturm und drang that is clearly the underlying motive for the Dark Knight and if you consider the angst in that scene where . . . Guys, guys, just as I did not accept in high school that the character of Jim Conklin in The Red Badge of Courage[1] is a metaphor for Jesus Christ, so too will I refuse to read anything further into a super hero on film.

No, I will do as I did with Iron Man. Sit back, munch on popcorn, and enjoy the film as pure escapism, cheering when the bad guys lose, wondering how Terrence Howard got such beautiful eyes, chuckling at the Dude[2] gone bald and bad, and thinking, damn, someone should give that Gwyneth Paltrow a hamburger or sumpin', she's too skinny . . .

Oh, and stay past the credits to see where this franchise is heading.

Update: A comment left questions the PG-13 rating on this movie. I brought my 10-year-old and 7-year-old. To be fair, the 7-year-old went MEGO during parts and really wanted to see fighting, death, destruction, explosions, etc. that can be expected with such a movie. You know, who cares about morality sub-themes and love interests when there are hot cars racing down a street.

I do not recall any profanity, except for really mild stuff like damn! No f-bombs dropped. Sex is in the film: at the beginning, Tony Stark has a one-night stand with a reporter from Vanity Fair[3] and you see a brief shot of the two of them in bed, but the covers are draped such that you don't see any body parts. That's part of the aforementioned morality subtheme - the "before Iron Man" Tony is a stone cold playuh, but changes his ways afterwards. He develops a love interest in his personal assistant, but they do not go jumping into bed and her role is more of the "damsel in distress" to allow the hero a daring rescue, naturally.

Hope that helps!

[1] Still ranks at the top of my list as Worst Drivel They Forced Me to Read in High School.

[2] "You know, that, or his dudeness, or duder, or el duderino, if you're not into the whole brevity thing."

[3] Now you know where slutty Brown University journalism majors wind up working.