A former nun leaves the convent to become a governess for the seven children of a wealthy, Austrian widower who has grown into a cold disciplinarian. Soon, the she opens the children to the wonders of life and the joy of music – and eventually softens the heart of their father and gains his love.
Yesterday, Movies.ie got a chance to watch the first big summer blockbuster ‘Iron Man’. It’s 10am on possibly the sunniest day Dublin has seen since, well probably since last year’s other big comic release Spiddy 3. To top it all, there’s no popcorn – it doesn’t bode well for a summer blockbuster cinema trip but none of this really matters two minutes into Jon Favreau’s jaw dropping, ironclad epic comic adaptation.
The Story
At this stage, you all probably know the story (especially with the 101 clips and trails released in the lead up to the film); Tony Stark – the genius, billionaire playboy is kidnapped and forced to build a weapon of mass destruct for those bad guys but instead he builds and dons his first suit, which will eventually give rise to the much more polished hot rod red (with just a dash of gold) suit we all know and love. Of course there’s love, lose, betrayal and a lot more going on in what is probably the most balanced origins story to come out of Marvel in years.
The Genesis of ‘Iron Man’
Origins stories are generally dull affairs. Spider-man paled in comparison to its sequel and the same can be said for X-Men. With Iron Man, it’s something very different. Yes, this is a film about a superhero’s origins but we’re more interested in watching his alter ego Tony Stark. Which is due to a combination of factors. First the film’s pace, the film’s scriptwriters have delivered a nice balance between character development and CGI action sequences. You’re never left wanting for action but at the same time, it’s used so sporadically to ensure an audience isn’t bored by CGI saturation.
Downey Jr et al.
The second and predominant factor is the man himself: Robert Downey Jr, whose natural charisma would have you believe that yes, this man could have his bevy of babes, billions and bombs and then some if he so wanted. As with all good Marvel adaptations, our hero will of course be conflicted, in this case by his desire to do good and the fact his company is responsible for creating those weapons being used against the innocent. Other cast members of note include Paltrow who fits right in as the 60’s superhero comic type or perhaps a Miss Money Penny from early Bond: the proper, subservient, and at times sexy assistant.
The future?
As an introduction to Iron Man, this is one fantastic film. The action scenes are amazing (as you’d expect with a budget of almost $200 million). There are two main scenes with the man in red with the majority of the rest concentrating on Stark, which seems very natural throughout this genesis film. It’ll be interesting to see how they continue the franchise, and judging by the film there will be a sequel. Will they up the Iron Man ante or will they continue to play up Stark’s role? Either way, we already can’t wait to see!
Iron Man is released nationwide May 2nd but you can see it first with Movies.ie. Visit our Iron Man competition for details.