Review:
Iron Man 3 is a
different sort of Marvel film. It is about Tony Stark dealing with the world in
the wake of the events of The
Avengers and the toll it is taking on him personally. He cannot sleep. He is
obsessed with what the next threat could be. He wants to be the old Tony Stark,
but something within him has changed. He may no longer be up to the challenge
of protecting the things he cares about (like Pepper Potts). Yet, he must face his
latest villain, The Mandarin (a terrorist who is setting off bombs across
America) because he still feels that it is his duty. Thus, more so than before,
he may fail.
From the beginning moments of
Iron Man 3, it is clear that the Marvel Universe has shifted. Throughout Phase One, the Marvel films were
light and fun (for the most part), but Iron Man 3 begins with Tony Stark (via
voiceover narration) regretfully owning up to his mistakes. No longer is he the
arrogant selfish showoff, but a man who has clearly seen his world view shaken
to the extent that he has doubts about who he is going forward. Something has definitely
changed in him. The bravado and wit are still there, but now they mask his self-doubt.
Writer-director Shane Black has
created a superhero event film that does indeed have the required prerequisite big
action scenes and villain who is evil and powerful enough to call to arms a superhero
to defeat him, but all that is secondary to his main focus: Tony Stark’s own
internal struggle. This is a personal character story, which means that Black
has Stark out of the Iron Man armor for most of the film. There are already
three films in which Iron Man defeats his adversaries in the suit. Now, it is
time to see Stark truly address his own issues. And yet, the fact that the film
is a superhero blockbuster does demand villains. Black uses his villains more
as foils for Stark’s own deficiencies to by reflected, rather than fully
fleshed out characters with origin stories and tons of character development –
again, this is a personal narrative about Stark, the rest is secondary to the
story Black wants to tell.
Stark not being in the suit is in
a way refreshing, and it gives the audience the ability to connect with the
character on a deeper level. He is much more vulnerable when he is not Iron Man
and the action feels much more immediate because Stark could actually be killed
at any moment (or at least that illusion is enhanced). Being stripped of his
armor also allows Stark to fully lose everything. He has two passions (or
loves) in his life: Pepper and his suits of armor. Black takes both away. The audience
sees Stark at his lowest point, which makes his inevitable rebirth all the more
satisfying.
However, some will take issue
with these narrative choices as well. There is still a lot of action involving
the Iron Man suit, but much more with Stark out of it, which changes the tone
of the series considerably. The first two films are mostly driven by big action
set pieces in which Iron Man battles stuff in his suit – there are lots of
explosions and heavy metal music; it is a lot of fun. This film is character
driven. The action, while still big and exciting, is narratively secondary. It
could be greatly reduced and the film’s overall narrative would not be hurt, in
a sense the action scenes do not matter.
Not developing strong villains in
terms of them being full characters also seems to diminish the stakes of the
action scenes. The Mandarin is evil and has a grand evil plan in a very generic
1980s Euro-villain sort of way. Black does give his villains some backstory and
motivation, but mostly they just serve as plot points along Stark’s journey –
because, again, this is a character piece focused wholly on Stark. Thus, while
Stark defeating The Mandarin does not feel as satisfying as it maybe should,
Stark growing as a person is much more gratifying on a character level for the
audience, as Black has done great work creating a deeper connection between
Stark and the audience (deeper than just: Iron Man is cool and Tony is funny).
The audience cares about whether or not Stark finds himself, not just about
whether or not he blows stuff up with his armor suit. Maybe that should not be
the goal of a blockbuster film, but it makes for a much more engaging and
interesting film overall (than the past two). Black also includes a fantastic twist in the film, which works incredibly well as a satire (to say more would encourage many spoilers).
Black also puts his mark all over
the film. To some extent, it very much feels like his first directorial film Kiss Kiss
Bang Bang (but with a lot more action). Stark engages the audience and
brings them into the narrative with his voiceover narration (that seems to
mirror Harry Lockhart’s in tone and style). Black also does a brilliant job
with Stark’s wit. This is probably the cleverest and deviously funny of the Iron Man films. The best
moments in the film are those in which Stark is just engaged in banter (I particularly
liked the scene in which he tries to intimidate two minions that are standing
guard while he is held captive). And like many of Black’s films, this is set at
Christmas.
Black’s Iron Man 3 ushers in a
new era for Marvel produced films, one that is more character driven and
personal. The success of this film, however, somewhat depends on the viewer’s
expectations. Do they want an Iron Man or a Tony Stark film? After Iron Man and
Iron
Man 2, it seems like it is about time for a Tony Stark film, and Black has
done a fantastic job with the character.
Technical,
aesthetics & acting achievements: Shane Black’s ability to write
dialogue is brilliantly on display in Iron Man 3. He is also adept at action
too, but as mentioned in the review above the best moments of this film are
those in which Stark is engaged in character moments and banter. The Kiss Kiss
Bang Bang vibe is also undeniable (for those who have seen it), as this film
has a similar style in which the narrator tells a story about how he got
himself into a big mess, but how it all worked out in the end and how he grew
as a person as a result of the journey. Stark also resembles Harry and to a
greater extent another Black protagonist Martin Riggs (from Lethal Weapon, which
Black wrote) in that he is psychologically about to crack – a man on the edge
(so to speak). Plus, this has a bit of a mystery undertone to it as well. Personally,
it is my favorite of the Iron Man films and the second best of the Marvel films
so far (behind The Avengers), setting the stage of Phase Two to be quite a bit
better than Phase One (which aside from The Avengers was filled with
entertaining but mediocre films).
Brian Tyler’s score has a good
theme (which is important for superhero movies), but more so than it being
particularly memorable it accompanies the dramatic tone of the film well. Black
also uses his found-music soundtrack effectively to set the mood (for example:
the scene in which Stark is trying his new armor for the first time). John Toll’s cinematography is
very strong throughout the film. Visually, Toll and Black seem to want a
slightly grittier look than the very clean and glossy style of the earlier films
to fit Iron Man 3’s tone (which is darker, as the narrative focuses on Stark
essentially losing everything and having to rebuild himself from scratch). Toll’s
photography, however, still excels at providing wonderfully grand and heroic
images of Stark and Iron Man, during the action sequences. Bill Brzeski’s production design
also very much fits the tone as he seems to play with the juxtaposition of the grandeur
of Stark’s old persona and the current broken state that he finds himself him
(which is also mirrored in the costume and set design). The Mandarin visually
has the opposite narrative arc to Stark, starting at the bottom, broken and
rising to power (arrogant and self-obsessed), which works well in contrast. It allows
to audience to visually see that these men are opposing forces.
As Iron Man 3 is a character
piece, the performances are paramount to its success, much more so than in the
past two films. The whole narrative hinges on Robert
Downey Jr.’s performance essentially. He is fantastic. All of his past
performances of Stark have been good too, but he is more or less playing the
same character the whole time. He does not change. With this film, Stark
undergoes a massive and clear transformation, which Downey Jr. plays
wonderfully. He is at his best when he is tearing off one-liners at rapid pace,
but more vitally he is excellent in the dramatic moments too. The audience has
always liked Stark, been amused by him, and cheered for him, but here Downey
Jr. goes deeper and enables them to feel pity when he makes mistakes and
ultimately admiration when he picks himself back up a new man. More than ever
before, the audience has a stake in the outcome and cares about Stark. Black’s
narrative is partially to thank for this, but Downey Jr.’s performance is what
makes the film. The supporting cast is also good. James Badge Dale does not have a
lot of dialog, but he has a great presence which amplifies what is really
nothing more than a henchman role. Ben
Kingsley is marvelous in the film. He is clearly having a ton of fun with
his character, which translates well for the audience (i.e. they are having a
lot of fun with him too). Rebecca
Hall is maybe underutilized, but her good work in the early moments of the
films pays off well later. Guy
Pearce is a great character actor and here again he does a good job creating
something out of thinly written character. Don Cheadle and Gwyneth Paltrow are also good in
support. They bolster Stark, but are also removed so that Stark can find his
way alone.
Summary
& score: In many ways Iron Man 3 is more a Shane Black film than it
is a Marvel film, but that works greatly to its benefit, as this is the best and
most personal of the series to date. 8/10
No comments:
Post a Comment