Iron Man 3 Review

By this time we have seen Tony Stark in five out of seven Marvel films. We know who the man inside the iron suit is and what he is capable of as Iron Man. What is there left for audience members to understand about him besides being an egoistic, narcissist millionaire? The answer is he's a human who suffers from fear. Iron Man 3 follows the New York attack aftermath from The Avengers. We witnessed our hero take a nuclear missile into space to destroy an alien ship. What we did not know, though, is the trauma Stark suffered from the experience. After a near-death experience, Stark develops anxiety attacks. It makes for an interesting plot, but does nothing for the character. Stark is still that same guy who makes smart remarks and, like Steve Rogers says, puts everyone at risk. What made the first film so successful was the character development. By this third installment there is no change in Stark. This makes the film and the character predictable and, dare I say, bland. And don't make me get started on the title change of "War Machine" to "Iron Patriot."

The biggest letdown is the film's villain: The Mandarin. In the comics, the Mandarin is a powerful guy with magical powers. A real foe for Iron Man. The first mistake made with the character is the whitewashing cast choice. The Mandarin is an Asian male, but he is portrayed as being white. Moving on, he is displayed as a terrorist who despises the US for their high weapon usage. It makes for a realistic and modern version from the comics. It's an idea that makes sense, but *surprise* the Mandarin is actually an actor being told what to say and do like a puppet. A total throw away of a powerful and famous villain. The real threat is a group of superhumans who explode if they have a temper tantrum. The leader of the group turns out to be the real "Mandarin." He reveals it only to be defeated minutes later by Pepper Potts who is also a superhuman. Plot twist after plot twist that does nothing but show lazy writing.

Speaking of Pepper, the one refreshing feature is that she doesn't just play as the damsel-in-distress. She steps up from being labeled as Stark's love interest. Pepper is capable of running Stark Industries on her own and actually comes to Stark's rescue. Besides the total lack of interesting villains, the best features that Iron Man films always have are cool action scenes and awesome visuals. We witness Iron Man save flight attendants in midair and call a homecoming of his Iron Man suits to fight alongside. A cool little save of the film is seeing all the suit designs and their modifications. Ultimately, though, the inclusion of phenomenal fighting scenes does not make up for the lackluster of story or character development. At it's peak, the movie became the fifth highest grossing film of all time. So what do I know about critiquing a successful film?

Final Score: 6/10

The film is filled a lot of fun action, but a throw away of an Iron Man film. Just because it's Iron Man does not mean it will be good without a proper and fresh storyline.