This is typical
me, it needs to be said. I literally jumped in and watched this anyway, because
it was convenient more than anything else. I had no prior knowledge of the series;
I hadn’t even watched the first film. It had Robert Downey Jr. in it. It was a
superhero movie. Oooh it has been nominated for the special effects Oscar®.
That was just about the sum-total of my knowledge of the film. What can I say;
I’m not always the epitome of professional conduct when it comes to my film
watching habits. In the end, I had to put it in the blog. And just hope that
there were enough nutcases like me who just dive into the middle of a series
with no rhyme or reason. Or, alternately, have watched the first film already
and don’t really care that I haven’t.
Having
invented the Iron Man suit, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) has literally become
the personification of peace on earth. “Peace is privatized” he announces
proudly and the press lap it up. He already has riches, now he has worldwide
fame and the kind of adulation only a super hero can have. He is, both
seemingly and actually, an eccentric and slightly egocentric businessman that
does whatever he damn well likes without regard to too much else, so all this
suits him just fine. The long suffering Pepper Potts (Gwenyth Paltrow) does her
best to keep him in line and to keep his company from going under completely.
But under this perfect veneer there is trouble brewing. Both the government and
Stark’s rivals will stop at nothing in their plotting to get their hands on the
suit. Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), a rather brilliant Russian physicist is not
only out to get Stark but is possibly the only person with the brains and the
technical capability to bring him down. Then there is the small matter of
finding a replacement for the “core” that keeps Stark alive. As in, Stark has
failed to find one. And he is desperately low on cartridges…
Now, this
is the kind of Hollywood film I really do love. I mean yes, we know that Pepper
Potts and Tony Stark will get together in the end. Yes, Tony Stark will defeat
the bad guys. But Tony Stark is far from your average squeaky clean super hero.
I love superheroes with attitude problems, especially if they are acted by
actors as successful as Robert Downey Jr. In fact, after having seen his
success in Sherlock Holmes in a very similar role, I am beginning to suspect
that he is not so much acting but just being himself (a bit like a modern Clint
Eastwood if you will). No matter though, he is just too funny. The comedy value
alone would, in fact, make the film a joy to watch.
But then,
there are the special effects. I honestly don’t know what I think of the whole
school of thought whereby people go to films solely for the special effects. I
am not one of these people. But every now and then, I enjoy a good show. And
come on, even if you are all French New Wave, Godard and Truffaut when it comes
to films, you have to admit that a good, old fashioned action flick is really,
really fun. Especially if it makes you actually laugh outloud. And go “Ooooh!”
at the special effects. I’d try to get this in blu-ray if poss. And I’d watch
it with the sound blaring. And popcorn. If I had my way that is. Just saying.
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