Iron Man 3

The difference in quality between the first Iron Man and the second is probably greater than that of any sequel and its original, throughout the history of film.  After the complete disaster of Iron Man 2, which was basically an inversion of the first one, awful for the very same reasons that made the first so great, it was clear that the series needed to go in a different direction, a fresh start away from Jon Favreau's lazy direction, and Justin Theroux's cash-grab of a screenplay that made the sequel seem like it was conceived inside a boardroom.  Enter Shane Black, a screenwriter for decades, responsible for some of the wittiest action films of the late 1980's and early 1990's, Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout, and The Long Kiss Goodnight, who was somehow gifted this opportunity to both write and helm Iron Man 3, and who succeeded admirably.  Iron Man 3 kicks off both 2013's summer blockbuster season and Marvel's Phase Two in style, without sacrificing substance, an explosive thrill-ride for popcorn enthusiasts that still doesn't approach the level of the original, but then who says that needs to be a bad thing?

Shane Black is the perfect author to pen dialogue for Robert Downey Jr's sarcastic, playfully narcissistic superhero, packing the film with more slightly irreverent, bullseye one-liners than can possibly be retained on an initial viewing.  He's also not afraid to extend his signature zaniness into other areas, and other characters in the film, like when Stark takes out an entire room of bad guys, and turns to face the last one, who throws down his weapon saying "I never really liked these guys anyway; they're weird," or digressing for a moment here and there to have his characters argue about a giant bunny rabbit Stark purchased for Pepper's birthday.

But we're not paying good summer money to see endless shenanigans, and in films that take chances like this it's always a danger for them to eclipse the action and drama, diminishing whatever happens to be at stake.  And while the narrative does unfortunately take a backseat occasionally, what transpires never crosses the line into utter boredom.  The story involves villain Aldrich Killian (a terrific Guy Pearce) tapping into wounded soldiers' brains and "upgrading" them to allow for spontaneous regeneration and, um, the ability to breathe fire and generate tremendous heat, hot enough to melt iron.  Uh oh, Iron Man.  It is all pretty ridiculous, and far-fetched, and comic-booky (the nerve), and part of me did lament the film's reluctance to delve into reality a little more, as the original did, which for my money remains a perfect example of the seamless integration of plot and character, with the added bonus of a socially relevant storyline that will never be dated.  

Well, they can't all be one of the best films ever made.  But for two-and-a-half hours I was content to go where Shane Black and Robert Downey Jr. wanted to take me.  The film is clever, and exciting, and funny at usually all the right moments, never threatening to take me out of the story.  It is also the first Marvel film, besides The Avengers of course, that felt like part of a larger universe, due to its consistent references to the Joss Whedon film, partly as an explanation for Tony Stark's onset of panic attacks, an interesting, if not entirely useful, added dynamic to his character.  By the end of the film I think the film thinks it has covered more ground than it did in terms of the evolution of Tony Stark's character, but in all honesty the original Iron Man had such a magnificent and complete arc I have no idea where they could possibly go next.  I'm just glad they thought about it enough to at least try for Iron Man 3.  There is no over-crowding here, like in the second film; all characters are given adequate screen time for what they do, even with respect to secondary villain The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley), whom the film dispatches with quite brilliantly.  The action does occasionally drag a bit, and Stark's never-ending supply of Iron Man suits teeters on the ledge of lazy writing, but it's never a deal breaker, and the assault on Stark mansion is one of the most glorious displays of destruction Hollywood has ever filmed.  And finally, FINALLY, Gwyneth Paltrow is allowed a moment to shine.  She's no longer solely the damsel in distress, and it is truly a delight to watch the stunning actress kick some ass, and then deliver what is probably the best line in the film.

Iron Man 3 isn't going to change the world, or reinvent the superhero film.  It's content to blow stuff up and crack wise through a serviceable, intermittently deft storyline.  While I'll admit, the entire film could have been acted in pantomime and interpretive dance and I still would have preferred it over Iron Man 2, co-writer/director Shane Black does go above and beyond the basic requirements, never insulting his audience's intelligence, which is usually pretty hard to come by inside a movie theater during the summer months.

**** out of *****