Film: Iron Man
Studio: Paramount Pictures and MarvelStudios
Director: Jon Favreau
Principal Actors: RobertDowney Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges, Terrence Howard
Release: May 2, 2008
Film length: 126 minutes
Rating: PG-13 

5 Stars

ReviewedBy: Ashley Hunking (VancouverCorrespondent - Canada) 

Itis not often I say a movie is flawless however the new action-thiller andMarvel comic book adaptation Iron Manis an exception. This is a movie-supreme-sundae with a taste that will satisfyall palettes. Based on the Marvel comic book Iron Man, director Jon Favreau achieves a perfect balance ofhi-paced action, superb special affects (as good, if not better then Transformers), and a brilliant cast,cheeky ‘humour and wit' adult audiences appreciate. The writers achieve aperfectly balanced screenplay and storyline dealing with current issues thatface our post-modern world. Jon Favreau, also known for his performances in Swingers and Very Bad Things reveals his true colours as a director. Favreau isa jack-of-all-trades having directed, produced and acted in many productions.His resume is a long list of hit shows and movies. Keep an eye out for hiscameo in the beginning scenes of Iron Man.

RobertDowney Jr. is perfectly cast as Jon Stark, a genius technician and specialistwho builds arms for the U.S. military.Jon Stark is a self-centered womanizing businessman who works for Starkindustry, a conglomerate specializing in the advancement of military combatweaponry. On an overseas trip, militants kidnap Stark forcing him to build the Jericho missile, an advanced missile with the power to devastate anation. With his life at stake, Stark builds a missile within confounds of acave, under the heavy surveillance of the terrorist goons. In the cave, Starkbefriends a scientist who assists Stark's invention. They pretend to build the Jericho missile but in fact constructthe Iron Man, a state of the art suitfully loaded to destroy militant goons. Jon escapes in the suit by activating ahigh-powered nitro function that sends him soaring awkwardly through the skyinto the desert. The U.S. military rescues him. Along for the ride is Stark'sbest friend and most trusted ally, Lt. Colonel James Rhodes, a militarygeneral played by Terrence Howard, also known for his roles in Hustle and Flow and Crash.

Completelyin sync with present day U.S.geo-politics, Iron Man puts out thequestion "under what ethics do government institutions such as U.S. Congressmake sales of arms and weaponry technology?" This is a complex question that Iron Man subtly pokes at with outbecoming politically saturated.  

Starkreturns to his waterfrontMansionto perfect his suit; Iron Man hasstrong remnants of the Batman movies.Like all great epics, the hero returns home for preparation before battle.There are hilarious scenes of Robert Downey Jr. struggling to smooth out theglitches in the suit.

Iron mancan also be a great movie for a date. It has a perfect touch of romanticinterest between the sweet and savvy Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow) who is JonStark's assistant, and Stark himself. Their relationship resembles what youmight imagine a first lady holds with the president. Gwyneth plays the righthand woman offering Robert Downey Jr. time to evolve from his shallowdisposition into the great man he becomes; the Iron Man. Finally, playing the ultimate villain is Jeff Bridges.Jeff Bridges delivers a great performance in what resembles the Luke Skywalkerand Darth Vader relationship in Star wars.Bridges plays Obadiah Stane, the man who raised Stark after his parents werekilled. Greed and power corrupt Stane and he turns to the dark side. We arereminded of the wisdom of Spiderman,"With great power comes great responsibility" and only Stark has the ability toset things right.      

Someof the film content may be questionable for a few parents thinking about takingtheir children; in the beginning, Jon Stark is portrayed as a womanizing heavy drinker.There is a scene where he beds a beautiful reporter for a night of sex, howeverthe scene cuts quickly to the next day when Stark makes sure the reporter isquick to leave his residence before he sees her (we secretly know he is saving"true love" for Gwyneth Paltrow's character Pepper). There is no nudity butsome parents may not feel this content is suitable. This blockbuster hit is ona rampage to do all things in order to attract all audiences. Parents: if itmakes a difference, the argument can be made that Jon Stark undergoes atransformation, which teaches a lesson in how a man can rise above his shallowdesires of the "flesh" and achieve greatness. Regardless of any smallcriticism, Iron Man received anenthusiastic applause as the curtain closed. Go to the website to find outinteresting facts about the movie. http://ironmanmovie.marvel.com/