Iron Man Three review

Iron Man 3 (or Three as the end credits pertain) is as near to an 80s action movie as Marvel are gonna get. It's a Shane Black movie through and through. A Shane Black movie which just happens to be about superheroes. There's even the use of profanity, the kind of word you'll unlikely hear again in a Marvel/Disney movie. Iron Man Three really is more Lethal Weapon / Long Kiss Goodnight than it is a follow-on from Iron Man 2.

Saying that, and to put things into perspective here, Iron Man 2 was better than they'd lead you to believe. It had a standout action set piece (see Monte Carlo Grand Prix sequence) and an excellent supporting cast (See Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke). And Scarlett Johansson, lest we forget.

However, '2' did suffer a little from 'Superhero-sequel-by-the-numbers' syndrome. As you can probably tell, 'Three', alas, does not suffer from this same fatigue. Marvel here have injected new life into the franchise, the first of its Phased 2 properties, and in handing Iron Man over to new blood (notably Shane Black and Drew Pearce) it seems that this Phase of Marvel movies has gotten off to a stonking start.


'Three' is quite clearly a standalone movie following on from the mammoth success of last summers Avengers (Assemble). Kudos to the studio for taking brave chances and putting an established franchise in the hands of Shane Black and Drew Pearce, the results of which are... well as you can probably tell, exceptionally surprising to say the least. That being said, the less you know about the film, the better.

Suffice to say, following the events in New York at the end of Avengers Assemble, 'Three' picks up at Christmas time with our hero suffering from some kind of Post-traumatic stress resulting in a series of panic attacks and a distinct lack of sleep.

After a savage attack on his Malibu home, Stark is presumed dead and by Act 2, the movie has successfully stripped Tony Stark of the suit and hurtles him into a world reminiscent of the action movies of the late 80s and early 90s.

He hides out in a small American town, befriends a young boy and turns to Rhodie/Iron Patriot (Don Cheadle) for help. The pairs banter really is dialed up a notch in this threequel and it's here that Rhodie becomes the 'Murtaugh' to Stark's 'Riggs' in a series of highly amusing one-liners in this classic, yet not so familiar, Shane Black-Marvel universe cross-breed of a film.

RDJ is, once again, on fine form, taking Stark into a new stripped-back realm where he is forced to use his own wits and tech-genius to help get him out of some rather tricky situations. However, that said, there's plenty of the famous Stark quips that the fans have come to love on display here, rest assured, the billionaire, playboy, philanthropist still does what he does best. Gwentyh Paltrow is also top-notch as she returns as Tony's squeeze, Pepper Potts, bringing a decent heart and soul to the story.

As for the rest of the supporting cast, notable mentions to Guy Pearce who plays the villainous Aldrich Killian to perfection. But no review could not mention Sir Ben Kingsley. The acclaimed British thesp here gives a performance as uber-terrorist The Mandarin which will really go down in the books 'You'll never see me coming'. Quite literally.

This is a superhero movie that's as much about characters as it is about the FX, set-pieces and the spectacle. The plot is so well developed and thought-out, it may actually take a couple of viewings for some viewers to take hold of all the sub-plots and threads that screenwriters Shane Black and Drew Pearce have perfectly weaved together.

Go in, sit back and enjoy. Marvel really are establishing themselves as a studio not afraid of taking risks with well-loved and established franchises. And so onto Thor, The Dark World...

Marc Foley-Comer
@marcfc

Moments Worth Paying For with “Iron Man 3”

On Friday 29th March the Industry Trust for IP Awareness and Walt Disney Studios UK launched a unique IRON MAN 3 trailer, featuring ROBERT DOWNEY JR. and GWYNETH PALTROW that celebrates the value of original film, TV and video content.

In the next instalment of the Iron Man series, Robert Downey Jr. reprises his role as billionaire playboy Tony Stark who is pitted against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. IRON MAN 3, releasing in cinemas on 25th April, is set to be even more thrilling than ever!

Film search engine FindAnyFilm.com, which lists film availability in all formats, has recruited IRON MAN 3 to support in their ongoing ‘Moments Worth Paying For’ campaign. The campaign aims to inspire support for the UK film, TV and video industries by celebrating unmissable movie moments and the positive emotional effect these have on the viewer.

With IRON MAN 3 boasting over 2,000 spectacular visual effects and jaw-dropping stunt sequences, the new trailer brings to life the technical brilliance that goes into creating a movie experience worth paying for. Dramatic clips of the original ‘Moments Worth Paying For’ trailer are fused with high-octane excerpts from IRON MAN 3, to further remind audiences of the value of the film experience.

The 35-second trailer will be shown in cinemas nationwide over a 4 week period from 29th March. The campaign will also highlight the wealth of legitimate ways to watch film and TV by directing viewers to FindAnyFilm.com where film fans can find all films, all in one place, all above board.

Lee Jury, Vice President, Head of Studios Marketing EMEA and UK, The Walt Disney Company said: “Marvel film and comic fans completely understand the time and effort that goes into turning the stories they love into full length feature films as is the case with Iron Man 3. At Disney, we’re committed to supporting consumer awareness campaigns to tackle copyright infringement, so we’re delighted to be working with the Industry Trust to inspire audiences about the value of film and showcase the technical wizardry involved in making the movie moments film fans love.”

Liz Bales from FindAnyFilm.com said: “We’re delighted to be working with Disney on the latest film in the Marvel franchise. The enormous fan following for Iron Man 3 will help ensure that our work to inspire and inform film fans about the value of movie moments and the wealth of official film, TV and video services available reaches audiences right across the country.”

TM & © 2013 Marvel & Subs

Iron Man Suit available to purchase

London, April 1 2013: For the first time ever a fully functioning Iron Man Suit has been developed and is now available, exclusively from Firebox, the world’s greatest retailer. Combining existing military electronics and incorporating new, highly experimental technology, Firebox has created a safe-mode version, giving consumers an opportunity to truly feel like Ironman, without the hassles of saving mankind. Modified for consumer use, the suit has been stripped of all weapons technology, but flight mode and the integrated sensory systems are all still fully functioning. For legal reasons a full waiver must also be signed, indemnifying Firebox in the unlikely event of injury or appearance of arch-nemeses.

As part of a top secret project, Firebox is also supremely excited to introduce the brand new Tony Stark fragrance ‘Eau De Stark’. Distilling the very essence of Iron Man it combines wit, intelligence, courage and arrogance to create the ultimate fragrance for anyone aspiring to be a “genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist”. Plus, each bottle is crafted from recycled pieces of used versions of the Mark XLVII suit worn by Robert Downey Jr. in the film. An extremely limited run of 100 bottles actually contains a single drop of Robert Downey Jr’s sweat (collected under sterile conditions during the filming of Iron Man 3).

Iron man gets a new poster

We have seen quite a lot of character posters over the last couple of months. This time we have a montage poster. It seems to be bolted together form a couple of the character posters with a background that seems to be made form the trailers.

Marvel’s Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark disc0overs the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Iron Man 3 stars Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall and Ben Kingsley as ‘The Mandarin’ and is in cinemas April 25th in the UK.

Pepper and Tony gets a poster

We've seen over the last couple of weeks some character posters for the upcoming Iron Man 3. This time it's the turn of Pepper and Tony to appear. This time together.

Marvel’s Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Iron Man 3 stars Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall and Ben Kingsley as ‘The Mandarin’ and is in cinemas April 25th in the UK.

More from Iron Man

Two great things about Iron Man 3 has just hit. One the amazing new trailer. The other, it's being released a day earlier on April 25!

I did say 2 things. That's not true as I read down the email. The third is some new images from the film. No action shots this time but we see Guy Pearce and Don Cheadle in them! (Just click on any of them to embiggem them)

Marvel’s Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Iron Man 3 stars Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall and Ben Kingsley as ‘The Mandarin’ and is in cinemas April 25th in the UK.

Iron man gets a poster

We've just been sent over a nre character poster for the Upcoming Iron Man 3. This one is for Iron Man himself

TONY STARK/IRON MAN

Eccentric genius, billionaire, philanthropist Tony Stark is the armored super hero known as Iron Man. Decompressing from his heroic, near-self-sacrificial action as Iron Man that saved New York City from annihilation, Tony finds himself unable to sleep and plagued by worry and trepidation. When his world is destroyed and those closest to him threatened, Tony must find a way to save them—and in the process find himself again.

Marvel's Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Hitting UK cinemas April 26, 2013

Meet Pepper

Another day, another new Iron Man character banner. This time it's for Pepper Potts

PEPPER POTTS [Gwyneth Paltrow]

Pepper has progressed from Tony Stark’s assistant to the head of Stark Industries, pausing along the way to fall in love with Tony as well. Bright, loyal and honest, Pepper understands Tony Stark more than anyone and sometimes that can be both a worrisome and a dangerous thing.

Marvel’s Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Meet Mandarin

With this poster hitting my in-box yesterday, the Internet has gone a bit crazy over it. Mainly comparing Mandarin's outfit to what Hipsters are wearing around the Shoreditch area of London. I disagree. They could be from the hipster area of Manchester as well. I'm sure that I've seen someone dressed quite close to Mandarin... Either that or I was having a sleep deprived hallucination!

MANDARIN

Mandarin is the sinister head of the terrorist organization known as The Ten Rings, from which all the acts of extreme terrorism plaguing the world appear to emanate. Although he is reclusive, Mandarin wields great power and makes his presence known by striking fear in the government and the populace through his brazen plans of attack.

The synopsis is, I would say, vaguely specific... It tells you little but in a way it seems to tell you the entire plot as well

Marvel’s Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Iron Man 3

Disney has just released the first set of images for the next adventures of Tony Stark, aka Iron Man. We don't know much about the plot, as yet, but this will change over the next couple of months.

 

 

“Iron Man 3” continues the epic, big-screen adventures of the world’s favorite billionaire inventor/Super Hero, Tony Stark aka “Iron Man.”

Hitting UK cinemas April 26, 2013

First look at Iron Man 3

Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” Commences Principal Photography In Preparation for May 3, 2013 Film Release

 

Following in the footsteps of the record-breaking Marvel Studios’ release “Marvel’s The Avengers,” production on the highly anticipated film “Iron Man 3,” directed by Shane Black, has commenced production in Wilmington, North Carolina. The production schedule will also include locations in Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina, Miami, Florida and China.

Based on the ever-popular Marvel comic book series, first published in 1963, “Iron Man 3” returns Robert Downey Jr. (“Iron Man,” “Marvel’s The Avengers”) as the iconic Super Hero character Tony Stark/Iron Man along with Gwyneth Paltrow (“Iron Man,” “Iron Man 2,”) as Pepper Potts, Don Cheadle (“Iron Man 2”) as James “Rhodey” Rhodes and Jon Favreau (“Iron Man,” “Iron Man 2”) as Happy Hogan. Set for release in the U.S. on May 3, 2013, Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” marks the second feature to be fully owned, marketed and distributed by Disney, which acquired Marvel in 2009.

“Iron Man 3” continues the epic, big-screen adventures of the world’s favorite billionaire inventor/Super Hero, Tony Stark aka “Iron Man.”  Marvel Studios’ President Kevin Feige is producing the film. Executive producers on the project include Jon Favreau, Louis D’Esposito, Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Charles Newirth, Victoria Alonso, Stephen Broussard and Dan Mintz.

The creative production team on the film includes two-time Oscar®-winning director of photography John Toll, ASC (“Braveheart,” “Legends of the Fall”), production designer Bill Brzeski (“The Hangover,” “Due Date”), editors Jeffrey Ford, A.C.E. (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” “Captain America: The First Avenger”) and Peter S. Elliot (“Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer”), and costume designer Louise Frogley (“Quantum of Solace,” “Contagion”).

Marvel Studios most recently produced the critically acclaimed “Marvel’s The Avengers,” which set the all-time, domestic 3-day weekend box office record at $207.4 million. The film, which is currently in release, continues to shatter box office records and is The Walt Disney Studios’ highest-grossing global and domestic release of all time and marks the studios’ fifth film to gross more than $1 billion worldwide.

In the summer of 2011, Marvel successfully launched two new franchises with “Thor,” starring Chris Hemsworth, and “Captain America: The First Avenger,” starring Chris Evans. Both films opened #1 at the box office and have grossed over $800 million worldwide combined. In 2010 “Iron Man 2,” starring Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson and Mickey Rourke, took the #1 spot in its first weekend with a domestic box office gross of $128.1 million.

In the summer of 2008, Marvel produced the summer blockbuster movies “Iron Man” and “The Incredible Hulk.”  “Iron Man,” in which Robert Downey Jr. originally dons the Super Hero’s powerful armor and stars alongside co-stars Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges and Gwyneth Paltrow, was released May 2, 2008, and was an immediate box office success.  Garnering the number one position for two weeks in a row, the film brought in over $100 million in its opening weekend.  On June 13, 2008, Marvel released “The Incredible Hulk,” marking its second number one opener of that summer.