MCU Rewind #1 - Iron Man - Review
Directed By: Jon Favreau
Rating: PG-13
Rating: PG-13
Starring: Robert Downey, Jr., Gweneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges, Terrance Howard
MCU REWIND REVIEW EXPLANATION: In these reviews, I will be going back to all the Marvel Cinematic Universe Films that have been released to date, reviewing each one in a retrospective manner. Expectations and background will detail how I felt about the film before the repeat viewing. This review will contain spoilers for these movies. You have been warned.
Previous Rating: 8.5/10
MCU REWIND REVIEW EXPLANATION: In these reviews, I will be going back to all the Marvel Cinematic Universe Films that have been released to date, reviewing each one in a retrospective manner. Expectations and background will detail how I felt about the film before the repeat viewing. This review will contain spoilers for these movies. You have been warned.
Previous Rating: 8.5/10
Expectations/Background: I had not seen this film in awhile, but do remember this film being a good one. With time, however, this film faded from my memory as more and more Marvel movies came and went. I always remembered this movie fondly as having some of the coolest suit scenes in the MCU, with the first suit ups with Mark 2 and Mark 3. And this was the first movie to kick this entire MCU off. But to be honest, I had no idea what to think going into the movie. I expected to like it - but I wasn’t sure how much, because I didn’t remember much of anything at all. Robert Downey Jr. never disappoints, so I knew that something good was in store.
The Movie: I was blown away by this movie, even more than I had expected. This movie is brilliant - and yes, there are ups and downs, but overall, this movie is revolutionary and there is a reason that this film was hailed as the beginning of an era for the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I think that this film has more subtle undertones that it lets on at first, and by the time the film is over, you feel completely satisfied and ready for more to come with Tony Stark.
Positives: There’s a lot of great things in this movie.
First of all the cast; I think every single one is spot on. Robert Downey Jr. Was born to play Tony Stark. And that’s that. Whether or not Marvel decides to recast him or not, he IS Tony Stark and will forever be that way. Gweneth Paltrow, playing Pepper, has such great chemistry with him and such witty banter that it works great. Jeff Bridges, for the MOST part, is excellent as Obadiah Stane. And even Terrance Howard, who was eventually recast, is also great in the role of Colonel James Rhodes.
What surprised me most about this film upon repeat viewing was not the story per se, which is great and we’ll get to it in a moment, but the dialgoue and the direction. Jon Favreau does an incredible job just shaping this movie into something so unique and special, and his direction and the way that he directs these actors into what is just such an engaging film is truly something to behold.
Another great thing about this film is the character development and the journey that Tony Stark goes on throughout th emovie is wonderful as well. You truly do see the progression of a human being as he goes through certain experiences that shape who he is, from the cave in Afghanistan, to back home where he begins to design his Iron Man armor.
What I really appreciated about this film is that you get to see Tony Stark actually experiment and tinker with his technology, and you get to see little things such as the holograms that he uses to design what will become one of the most iconic characters in film history.
And most of all, this film has heart. This film’s heart and soul lies in the characters that it has built and the beautiful story and action that is being told. Through all of the set pieces and all of the twists and turns this movie takes, there is a true heart behind it and it is clear the Jon Favreau made this movie with a passion for the material, and that, as a film fan, is all I can ever ask for.
Negatives: Being completely, honest, the first two thirds of this movie are nearly perfect. IN fact, if this movie had ended with just the first two acts and had a third act that is just as good, this movie would have been nearly perfect.
However, let’s talk about the third act. This is what drops the film from a higher score than it already was. I think that the story team and the director had set up such a great two thirds, but didn’t know how to close it out, that they just tacked on a huge explosive robot fight.
And look, being seriously, on its own man this fight is pretty awesome. Seriously, this fight between a behemoth robot and Iron Man is cool (was not so cool in IRon Man 2). But it just did not fit in the movie that it had set up.
And come on; Jeff Bridges screaming maniacal cliche villain dialogue in a weird gravely voice felt like it fit in a cartoon more than a feature film. But seriously, other than that, and a couple minor complaints, this film is great.
Positives: There’s a lot of great things in this movie.
First of all the cast; I think every single one is spot on. Robert Downey Jr. Was born to play Tony Stark. And that’s that. Whether or not Marvel decides to recast him or not, he IS Tony Stark and will forever be that way. Gweneth Paltrow, playing Pepper, has such great chemistry with him and such witty banter that it works great. Jeff Bridges, for the MOST part, is excellent as Obadiah Stane. And even Terrance Howard, who was eventually recast, is also great in the role of Colonel James Rhodes.
What surprised me most about this film upon repeat viewing was not the story per se, which is great and we’ll get to it in a moment, but the dialgoue and the direction. Jon Favreau does an incredible job just shaping this movie into something so unique and special, and his direction and the way that he directs these actors into what is just such an engaging film is truly something to behold.
Another great thing about this film is the character development and the journey that Tony Stark goes on throughout th emovie is wonderful as well. You truly do see the progression of a human being as he goes through certain experiences that shape who he is, from the cave in Afghanistan, to back home where he begins to design his Iron Man armor.
What I really appreciated about this film is that you get to see Tony Stark actually experiment and tinker with his technology, and you get to see little things such as the holograms that he uses to design what will become one of the most iconic characters in film history.
And most of all, this film has heart. This film’s heart and soul lies in the characters that it has built and the beautiful story and action that is being told. Through all of the set pieces and all of the twists and turns this movie takes, there is a true heart behind it and it is clear the Jon Favreau made this movie with a passion for the material, and that, as a film fan, is all I can ever ask for.
Negatives: Being completely, honest, the first two thirds of this movie are nearly perfect. IN fact, if this movie had ended with just the first two acts and had a third act that is just as good, this movie would have been nearly perfect.
However, let’s talk about the third act. This is what drops the film from a higher score than it already was. I think that the story team and the director had set up such a great two thirds, but didn’t know how to close it out, that they just tacked on a huge explosive robot fight.
And look, being seriously, on its own man this fight is pretty awesome. Seriously, this fight between a behemoth robot and Iron Man is cool (was not so cool in IRon Man 2). But it just did not fit in the movie that it had set up.
And come on; Jeff Bridges screaming maniacal cliche villain dialogue in a weird gravely voice felt like it fit in a cartoon more than a feature film. But seriously, other than that, and a couple minor complaints, this film is great.
The Villain(s): Jeff Bridges is much like the movie. The first two thirds sets up a screwed business man who has the company’s best interests in mind but lets himself get carried away. In fact, I really enjoyed the first two thirds of the film with Obadiah. But again, when he gets into that Iron Monger suit, it just becomes a little too silly to be believable.
The Verdict: This really is a special film. There is a reason that MArvel was able to take this and jumpstart it’s Marvel Cinematic Universe with it. And seriously, without that last fifteen minutes of nonsensical robot punching, this would have been a near perfect film. As it is, even with the third act, this is still a fantastic, amazing movie. Letter Grade: A-. Number Score: 9.0/10
Should I Skip?: Nope - this is a film worth seeing (unlike the next two).
TLDR: Tony Stark, a billionaire living the life selling nuclear weapons, is trapped in a cave where he escapes by building an early version of an Iron Man suit. He shuts down his weapons programs and begins building more suits as the head of the company, Obadiah Stane, begins to go insane and builds his own giant Iron Man suit called the Iron Monger. They fight it out at the end, and Obadiah dies. Tony holds a press conference announcing to the world that he is Iron Man. Nick Fury, the head of SHIELD later comes to talk to him about the Avengers initiative.
9-10: Nearly Perfect
Should I Skip?: Nope - this is a film worth seeing (unlike the next two).
TLDR: Tony Stark, a billionaire living the life selling nuclear weapons, is trapped in a cave where he escapes by building an early version of an Iron Man suit. He shuts down his weapons programs and begins building more suits as the head of the company, Obadiah Stane, begins to go insane and builds his own giant Iron Man suit called the Iron Monger. They fight it out at the end, and Obadiah dies. Tony holds a press conference announcing to the world that he is Iron Man. Nick Fury, the head of SHIELD later comes to talk to him about the Avengers initiative.
**IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER**: Letter grades and Number grades do not mean the same thing. Just because I give a film an A does not mean it gets a 9.5 or above. They do not line up like a traditional school grading system To see specifics, see below.
A- to A+: Amazing
B- to B+: Enjoyable, but Flawed
C- to C+: Redeemable in some cases, but heavily Flawed
D- to D+: Nothing but Flaws
F: A Failure of a Film
8-9: Very Good
7-8: Good
6-7: Okay
5-6: Average/Mediocre
4-5: Apparently Flawed
3-4: Heavily Flawed
2-3: A complete and utter mess
0-2: A Failure of a Film
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