Iron Man
By Karen WilsonAverage User Rating:
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and brief suggestive content.
Genre: Action Adventure/Sci-fi
Release Date: May 2, 2008
Running Time: 2 hours and 6 minutes
Plot Synopsis: En route home after a meeting in Afghanistan with military brass, weapons inventor and manufacturer Tony Stark is captured by a militia group. As Stark as their prisoner, the militia group demands that he builds them his newest smart missile, the Jericho. Injured by shrapnel, Tony agrees but instead builds himself a massive iron suit that he uses to battle the militia and escape. Back in Malibu, Tony refines the suit into a bulletproof, missile-firing, flying marvel and when he realizes his partner Obadiah is selling Stark Industries weapons to terrorists, he uses his Iron Man suit to fight back.
Sex/Nudity: Tony Stark is a renowned playboy, characters often refer to his numerous conquests of models and he sleeps with a gorgeous reporter on their first meeting (we see her in her underwear rolling around on the bed with Tony) then ditches her callously in the morning. A budding romance builds between Tony and his assistant Pepper Potts but isn’t consummated beyond a romantic dance and an almost kiss.
Violence/Gore: Quite a lot of shooting, explosions, bleeding and death happen throughout the film, including attacks on defenseless families in Afghanistan and a near car crash involving another family in Los Angeles.
Profanity: None
Which Kids Will Like It?
Iron Man earns its PG-13 rating with its violence and sexual innuendo, and subsequently isn’t really appropriate for viewers younger than middle school. However for young superhero and comic book fans that are old enough, there’s tons of thrilling action, funny one-liners and clever slapstick to entertain them.
Will Parents Like It?
The wry sense of humor and debonair flair of Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark should amuse most adults, though they should be prepared to discuss complex issues like war profiteering and philandering with impressionable viewers after the film.
Kaboose Review: The summer blockbuster season usually features at least one comic book icon brought to life, and this year we’ll have new interpretations of old favorites like the Hulk and Batman to revisit, and one new addition: Iron Man.
The original Iron Man comics were invented by legendary comic book writer Stan Lee in the early ‘60s. The lead character was a wealthy industrialist character (modeled after Hugh Hefner) who evolves into a fighter of communist menace. Now, Iron Man--or more accurately, titanium alloy steel man--has been updated for the ‘00s, and is fully equipped to cut the Middle East terrorist threat down to size.
Robert Downey Jr., in all of his smarmy glory, plays this modern day version of Iron Man and his alter ego Tony Stark. Tony’s a bit of a damaged man-child; he excelled at engineering and robotics at a young age but had to replace his saint-of-a-father, and the founder of the weapons business Stark Industries, when he died tragically.
Tony has all the money, gorgeous women and toys a boy could ever want but when he’s captured by a terrorist militia in Afghanistan and realizes their evil plans are being armed by Stark weapons, he turns over a new humanitarian leaf. With the help of his loyal, red-headed assistant Pepper Potts (made into a feisty feminist by Gwyneth Paltrow), Tony uses his newest invention, a futuristic flying suit, to destroy the Stark weapons being used for ill and to bring down his double-dealing partner Obadiah (a quietly menacing, bald Jeff Bridges).
Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark is a bit more mirthful version of taciturn businessman Bruce Wayne (aka Batman) and it’s that sardonic sense of humor, which really sets Iron Man apart from the usual summer crowd-pleaser. Tossed off asides to his helpful robot aids, and an extended slapstick-laden sequence where he tweaks the flying mechanism on the new suit are gut busting. They are also a welcome respite from the battery of violent fight scenes where countless dark-skinned, bearded baddies are dispatched without a second glance. Tony says he wants to become a person who has more to offer than just making “things that blow things up,” but meanwhile the movie is filled with one more elaborate pyrotechnic after another.
Watching Iron Man swoop and dive over the Pacific coastline is an exhilarating cinematic ride, but parents of pre-teen and younger children might want to think twice about taking their impressionable young ones on this adult comic book adventure.
Directed by: Jon Favreau
Cast: Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark), Terrence Howard (Jim Rhodes), Gwyneth Paltrow (Pepper Potts), Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges), Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), Raza (Faran Tahir), Christine Everhart (Leslie Bibb)
Karen Wilson is a freelance writer living in New York City.
