Iron Man 3 Review

Does Marvel's Phase Two kickoff stand up to the studio's high pedigree?
Review by Isaac Handelman
*Note: Contains some very minor spoilers unless otherwise noted.

There comes a point in Iron Man 3 when Guy Pearce, in character as maniacal scientist Aldrich Killian, tells Tony Stark, “Ever since that dude with the hammer fell out of the sky, subtlety’s kind of had its day.” Well, it would seem that, with the arrival of the third Iron Man film, subtlety has indeed had its day. I decided that around the time Killian, in a mad rage, began breathing fire at Don Cheadle’s ever-endearing Colonel Rhoades. And, if any doubt still existed in my mind as to the validity of my hypothesis, it was erased when Killian took off his shirt to reveal two huge dragon tattoos adorning his chest.

“But Marvel movies have never been subtle; why is this suddenly an issue?” you ask. Subtlety may not be easily attainable when a film’s protagonist is a superhero, but a fine line exists between blatancy and outright goofiness -- and Iron Man 3 stumbles into the latter category more times than one. The blow is not softened by the resounding disappointment that comes with discovering the truth behind Ben Kingsley’s role in the plot. I’ll avoid an outright spoilers (those who are sensitive to information regarding the nature of the film’s characters may want to skip to the next paragraph), but suffice to say that, despite his menacing demeanor, the legendary Mandarin is not at all what he seems. Though the revelation is amusing, it’s also an enormous missed opportunity for Mandarin to gain a coveted spot among the great onscreen comic-book villains, and a degrading blow to the man who was once seen as Iron Man’s greatest nemesis.

And neither of these two central bad guys have any clear motivations. Unlike Jeff Bridges' memorable Obadiah Stane from Iron Man or Mickey Rourke’s creepy Ivan Vanko or Sam Rockwell’s fantastic turn as Justin Hammer in Iron Man 2, the villains in 3 feel as if they exist for the sole purpose of giving Iron Man someone to beat.

That’s kind of ironic, because Iron Man himself isn’t even in much of the film’s first half. For a long while, Tony Stark’s away in remote Tennessee doing detective work, and the film jumps between following several different storylines and characters, some more compelling than others, but all leaving viewers with a simple desire to see Iron Man be Iron Man. Iron Man 3 does manage to remedy this to an impressive degree during its final third, but the first part of the film is still sorely missing the carefree joy and easily cheer-able scenes that filled the first two films to the brim.

Iron Man has seen better days.

When Iron Man 3 does decide to dole out the action, it aims for the same level of effects spectacle that The Avengers offered up last summer, with varying degrees of success. Though well choreographed, none of this new brand of hectic, breathless action is as hard hitting or visceral as, say, Whiplash’s attack on the F1 race in Iron Man 2, or Tony Stark’s epic escape from the terrorist camp in the first film, and it doesn’t feel entirely fitting with the Iron Man formula. Still, the sequences are stunning in scale and execution.

Thankfully, certain, more Iron-Man-ey properties reminiscent of the first two films carry through in this threequel. Moments of Downey Jr.’s signature dry humor shine through, and, though they aren’t as plentiful as in previous installments, they serve as effective comic relief. The actor’s presence strengthens the film considerably, and his uncannily perfected Tony Stark returns in full form. He delivers a couple of slightly corny monologues that work well enough, bookending the film nicely whilst failing to deliver the emotional drama the film obviously aspires to.

Iron Man 3 manages to come up with numerous original and hugely creative uses for Tony Stark’s armors. Stark fights a group of goons with only a gauntlet and a boot, a couple of notable supporting characters get the opportunity to don a suit, and Tony finds many creative ways to dispose of bad guys using various parts of his arsenal one at a time. This creativity reminds us why we love Iron Man in the first place; unlike some of his fellow Avengers, he’s unpredictable, he’s irresponsible, and, above all, he’s fun. The moments when Iron Man 3 remembers these hallmarks are undoubtedly its best.

The Iron Legion assembles.

And speaking of Iron Man’s buddies, it’s nice that the filmmakers recognize the events of The Avengers instead of treating it like separate canon, and it shows that Marvel is serious about continuing on with its ambitious shared universe. Though Stark’s anxiety in remembrance of the events which transpired in New York don’t ultimately play in to 3’s central narrative, they, along with the amusing after-credits sequence, are nice touches. 

Credit Iron Man 3 with taking some notable risks that aren’t often seen out of threequels. It’s structured nothing like the previous two installments, and its tone is a departure from the predecessors as well. Iron Man 3 is a largely hit-or-miss affair, but it hits enough to be usually entertaining and often simply stumbles over its own ambition when it misses. In that vain, the film is commendably imperfect.

Iron Man 3’s second half brings some truly great elements into the mix with a couple of notably rousing rallies and battle sequences and some fantastic chemistry between Downey and Cheadle. And so, for those put off by the unfortunate monotony and flawed vision of the film’s first chunk, along with the unintentional goofiness that permeates much of the narrative, know this: it may never surpass any of its predecessors, but Iron Man 3 does get better as it progresses. I hope that the latter statement will hold true for Phase Two of Marvel’s cinematic universe.