“Let's face it, this is not the worst thing you've caught me doing.”

In the early summer of 2008, audiences were subjected to the first of a new wave of superhero films. While still delivering big action, it also opened the door for a unified setting that could bring hero franchises licensed to different studios together for the purposes of clever storytelling and making lots of money. Iron Man directed by Jon Favreau, seemingly came out of nowhere to knock mainstream audiences off their asses. I, of course, was closely following the quietly supportive buzz of the film and was not in the least surprised when it not only spawned a sequel, but also cluster of currently in-development Marvel Comics based films that all have the goal of dovetailing into a team movie. This makes the Avengers fan in me insanely happy.

Plot
Wealthy industrialist Anthony Stark is a brilliant but lazy and hedonistic heir to his father’s technology and weapons company. More interested in boozing and womanizing, Stark does eventually travel to Afghanistan to do a live product test of a new missile system for the Air Force. On his way back to base, he is critically injured and taken hostage during an ambush. His life saved by another captured scientist who implants an electromagnetic generator in his chest to keep the shrapnel in his body from reaching his heart (which would kill him) Stark and the scientist are told to build a missile, but instead build a means for Stark to escape; a suit of armor powered by the upgraded generator in Stark’s chest. And that’s all the flashback.

Stark escapes but his armor gets trashed. Back in the States, he convalesces and makes waves saying that he wants to take the company out of weapons sales until he can evaluate what went wrong (he found a lot of Stark weaponry in the terrorist camp). Holing up in his basement he refines his armor into a better form and then proceeds to take some matters into his own hands about getting his company’s weapons out of the hands of hostiles. That may prove tougher than it sounds.

Characters
Tony Stark/Iron Man: Robert Downey Jr. plays the playboy Stark to a tee in a fit of perfect casting. Stark is personable, brilliant and often bored by most of the less smart people around him. Tony Stark makes you feel he’s a cool exec with a heart of steel. You can tell how annoyed he gets when he has to explain something to someone that doesn’t get it the first time. Brilliant casting and acting combined with a character that always seeks refuge in audacity makes Tony Stark this movie’s badass.

Virginia “Pepper” Potts: Gwyneth Paltrow turns in a good performance as Stark’s patient personal assistant. Loyal to him, there’s also that strong hint of sexual tension between them, but also the realization that if they consummate their feelings, the friendship would fall apart because of who Stark is.

James Rhodes: Terrence Howard plays Stark’s Air Force buddy, a man with some clout in the service and a steadfast friend. Doesn’t really get to do a whole lot since its really more foreshadowing for the next movie (which replaces Howard with Don Cheadle)

Dr. Yinsen: Shaun Toub is the captured scientist who save Stark’s life and confronts him about finding a purpose in life.

Jarvis: Paul Bettany voices Stark’s personal computer system, a snarky, apparently sentient OS that gets uploaded to the Iron Man armor and tries to be the voice of reason for Stark’s more reckless decisions.

Obadiah Stane/Iron Monger: Jeff Bridges plays completely opposite the Dude as the guy who’s been running Stark Industries while Tony was out drinking martinis and bedding journalists. He doesn’t like Stark growing a conscience and taking tighter control of the company since (like it’s a spoiler) he’s the bad guy. Now if only he could fix that damn icing problem.

Raza: Faran Tahir (who was a Starfleet Captain in the Star Trek reboot) plays the shadowy, bald and later scarred leader of the Ten Rings, a multi-national terrorist organization bent on…well, their motives aren’t exactly clear, so he’s mostly there as foreshadowing of something that will eventually involve ten rings and has a connection to a certain Mongolian-connected super villain in the Iron Man mythos. Hopefully.

Agent Coulson: Clark Gregg plays a modest member of a government agency who’s full name is a mouthful (it gets abbreviated to S.H.I.E.L.D.). He has a very high interest in Stark’s activities and his new toy.

Visuals/Effects
You know, I didn’t originally associate Jon Favreau, the witty writer and star of Swingers to have a really good sense of action movie aesthetics. I’m glad I was wrong, because this movie is slick, not just in looks but in pacing. Shots are well laid out and the special effects, including a practical costume of each Iron Man suit (as well as really well done CGI versions) help flesh out a hefty feel for the movie. Fight scenes are fantastically done, and the movie has a great industrial feel to it. Also, after the credits there is the mother of all teases for this shared universe that Marvel Studios is working on.

Writing
Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby, Art Marcum and Matt Holloway all worked on the screenplay, adapting the comics character originated by Stan “The Man” Lee, “Dazzlin’” Don Heck, Jack “King” Kirby and Larry “I don’t know his Mighty Marvel nickname” Lieber. As far as an origin story goes, the screenwriters did a great job of adapting a Cold War superhero to a modern setting while still keeping the core traits of Tony Stark and his supporting cast. They did a great job, and the dialog in particular is fantastic.

Sound
The original score by Ramin Djawadi (Blade Trinity) is a little bit on the generic side, but I think its more industrial cues were a great fit to the film and there are moments where the score just completely clicks with the visuals, like when Stark takes the Mk. II for a spin over the city. Of course, the movie wouldn’t be complete without Black Sabbath’s “Ironman” playing at the very end of the movie.

Conclusion
2008 was a great summer for movies, and I will defiantly proclaim Iron Man as my favorite of the bunch. Dark Knight had the best villain and Wall-E was the best damn movie of the year, but Iron Man is just a fantastic ride that merges crazy SCIENCE with fast paced ADVENTURE! that you wish you could be a part of. If you haven’t already seen it, amend this status right away.

Or I will find you.

“I’m gonna make Gretzky’s head bleed for superfan 99 over here.”

RMWC trundles onward into the DVD shelf, grabbing Doug Liman’s Swingers (1996) for two reasons. I really love that movie and its only 96 minutes long. Funnily enough, checking IMDB, Liman also directed The Bourne Identity, as well as Jumper. That has no bearing on my intended viewing whatsoever.

PlotA group of young actors with shitty jobs in Hollywood hang out after hours and try to score chicks. Hilarity ensues.


All right, there’s a little more too it than that. You’ve got Mike, a stand up comedian who’s been reeling for six months after breaking up with his ex and moving to L.A. from New York. The movie follows him as he tries to get over his ex. It’s a simple plot, but often in comedy, simple is perfectly suitable.


Characters
Mike: Our Hero, and also Iron Man director Jon Favreau. Mike’s a nice guy, but therein lies his problem. He just can’t get over his ex girlfriend and that stunts his ability to function around his buddies. Of course, that’s the main crux of the movie. Can he get over his ex girlfriend and his own awkwardness to woo the beautiful babies? Here, Mike really is likeable, and a lot of the humor comes from the downright painfully awkward situations he gets himself into.


Trent: Mike’s best friend and a would-be actor, played by Vince Vaughan. Trent is the fast talking, action-taking flipside to Mike. Trent is the cool buddy who’s constantly trying to push Mike into self confidence (and also through leading by example). Trent is this movie’s baddass, calling anyone out on bullshit, always backing up his buddy. The only real downside to his character is that he doesn’t get a real character arc, and that difference shows by the end of the movie.


Rob: Mike’s friend from back east, recently moved to L.A. and struggling to find work as an actor. Certainly a side character, he struggles to swallow his pride after auditioning to be Goofy at Disneyland after playing Hamlet Off-Broadway. Also happens to be played by Ron Livingston, who was in Office Space.


Sue: A local who’s dad loved that Johnny Cash song, Sue is more Trent’s friend than Mike’s since they both chase the ladies with gusto. Sue’s also got an image thing going on where he projects himself as a hard-boiled badass who grew up on the streets and carries a gun around, which invariably causes trouble. Sue’s the easily pissed off one, which leads to the somewhat surprising end of the second act.


Visuals (Direction/Effects)
No special effects to speak of, considering the subject and budget. All that leaves is cinematography to deliver on the mood. Liman delivers. Sure, some of the shots are deliberate shout outs to other movies, but the composition of the movie is overall very solid. Los Angeles and Las Vegas are captured in a fairly realistic way. When they roll into Vegas in the first act, Trent & Mike, Vegas looks like the swanky, fancy, neon playground that everyone expects. Then they get inside one of the lesser casinos and it looks like how the midnight-6 AM crowd on a Wednesday night would look: slow and a little bit sad.


A similar thing gets done with L.A. Its not the over-glamorized movie factory town, but its also not the crime riddled war zone of the underbelly. It’s a lower middle-class L.A. where people who drive beat up old cars go to hole in the wall jazz/swing bars and their apartments have cracks in the walls from all the earthquakes. It’s a refreshing snapshot of a nightlife scene that doesn’t really exist anymore (after all, its been more than ten years and the swing revival didn’t last very long).


Also, I have to mention that I absolutely love some of the shots in the movie. Trent pissing by the side of the road on a bright sunny morning is awesome. Mike standing in silhouette in his doorway after coming home from a bar is one of my favorite shots of all time for some reason.


Writing

An indie film like this lives or dies on the strength of its writing. Jon Favreau’s script is a solid three act story where the main character learns something about himself and the movie doesn’t waste time getting there.


More importantly, the dialogue is outstanding. I’m struggling to sound glib and urbane here in describing it and nothing good is coming to mind, and I don’t want to just start quoting it because I’ll feel like a douche. It is funny. It is damn funny. It is infinitely quotable in a variety of situations.


Sound
The soundtrack is suited to a movie about the not-wife-swapping kind of swinging. A laid back jazz soundtrack punctuated with a country song here, a rock song there just hammers home the underground feel of the movie: playing Dean Martin over the opening credits in a movie about 20-something actors in L.A. in the early-mid 90s was not a mainstream decision. Also, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy made a live appearance in the film, one of their earliest exposures to a wider audience.


Conclusion
I love this movie. It blends thoughtfulness, style, music and banter into a compact little package that is best viewed in the company of others. Thoroughly recommend it, and if you don’t like it, then there’s no accounting for some people’s bad taste.




This... is an awful trailer. Do not let it discourage you.