Ironed out

Robert Downey Jr. What a man. Going from a strong upward career in the 80’s to a complete downward spiral into drugs and substance abuse that aired on the tragically funny side, see the incident involving a mistaken bed in 1996, to becoming an A list staple, it’s safe to say the man has been around the block a good few times.  Look “comeback” up in the dictionary and you will probably see a picture of his face. Never has someone returned to the celebrity stratosphere more perfectly than Downey and it must be more than coincidence that Iron Man 3 is a return to the charming, cheeky form of Tony Stark that audiences fell in love with in 2008.

 

 

 

Iron Man 3 picks up where The Avengers left off, leaving Tony to deal with a whole wealth of anxiety issues due to “what happened in New York”. A new super terrorist in the form of the always great Ben Kingsley is the new baddie up to bat, blowing places up and doing general bad guy things left right and centre. What follows could be summed up as the generic superhero story arch but Shane Black has done a terrific job in slotting in a few dips in the road of the action film highway. Fair enough there is no “I see dead people” twist during the end credits but there is enough intelligence to keep the movie feeling fresh and somewhat smart. Special credit also to Guy Pearce who fills in the smarmy suit void that the delightful Sam Rockwell left open in Iron Man 2.  Not to mention a good healthy dose of Downey Jr witticisms thrown in for good measure. That is after all what the movie goers paid the cost of the cinema ticket to see, right?

Some may argue that Robert Downey Jr. isn’t a good actor, that he just plays himself in all his roles. But I think it would be without question that the Iron Man franchise is what it is today thanks to the man himself. He adds a certain realism and tongue in cheek attitude to the films that speak the viewer’s thoughts, echoing a certain Dr.Jones along the way. He gets things wrong, fumbles with baddies, trips up during the big fight, but that’s what makes Tony Stark so gosh darn enjoyable to watch.

This might be the last viewers could see of the Iron Man but something tells me his story isn’t going to be over just yet. Normally with franchises they decline as the numbers after the titles rise but Iron Man 3 has taken a big leap up from its predecessor. The Fat Lady, or should I say Angus Young hasn’t sung just yet.

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