Films modeled after comic books have become the big thing over the past decade. Some have been huge successes like the franchises of Spider-Man and X-Men. Other franchises have seen new awakenings with films like Superman Returns and The Dark Knight. Others have found some success but not much simply because they just sort of missed the mark. See: Ghost Rider. But then there are those comic books that try to break through into the world of film world yet have a character that isn’t quite the popular name like Superman, Batman, or Wolverine. What do you do when you’re a huge fan of a comic book that the everyday film viewer won’t even recognize? Well, you go out and do what Jon Favreau did.
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is everything anyone would ever want to be. He’s a genius and a weapons specialist. He’s a millionaire and a jet-setting playboy. He has a cocky side but also shows his humorous side by trying never to be too serious. Tony has stepped into the shoes of his late father to take control of Stark Industries along with longtime family friend Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges). The United States military has all the weapons they’ll ever need to keep “peace” in the world and it’s all thanks to Tony and the brilliant creations his mind spews forth. Things just could not be better.
Tony takes a trip to Afghanistan to showcase his newest, and possibly most deadliest, weapon, the Jericho missile. While touring around with soldiers on duty, a savage attack from a group of soldiers ends up killing everyone but Tony and taking him hostage. The Afghanistan soldiers save his life by creating a machine that keeps shrapnel from a bomb out of Tony’s heart, but there is a motive behind their kindness. They want him to build a bomb for them like that of the Jericho missile so that they can hold total control and be the strongest world nation. Without much hesitation, Tony agrees but he also has an ulterior motive. A brilliant mind is a terrible thing to waste so Tony automatically thinks up a way to break free of his prison and not deliver on what their request; an invincible suit of armor that will plow through his army of captors.
Upon breaking free with his immaculate suit and finally being rescued by the United States military, Tony realizes that a change is in order. After returning home, and first getting a cheeseburger, he reveals to a crowded press conference that Stark Industries is ceasing its weapon operations immediately. Tony will not allow U.S. soldiers to die by the same weapons that he created to keep them safe. He’s seen it first hand, and it is not acceptable. Stane wants Tony to make sure this is a totally rational decision and also doesn’t want to lose his meal ticket, so he convinces Tony to take some time off. Tony agrees and uses his time wisely to build a much more advanced suit that has better weapons, is stronger, and can even fly. It’s time to make sure the world is a safe place to get even with his captors. It’s time to introduce the world…to Iron Man.
Comic books were a way of life for me when I was a young kid, and sadly my amount of reading them dropped off as my age went up. But even when tons of them lined my bookshelves, copies of “Iron Man” were hard to find among them. For some reason it was just never a story or character that appealed to me enough to pick up some issues. As time went on and I became even more of a geek then I was as a child, the story of Tony Stark and his history filled my mind. It was intriguing, exciting, and one that interested me beyond all belief, but how could I learn more then the little bit of information available online? Sure there’s the option of picking up issues of the comic book and trying to catch up, but that’s impossible with forty-five years of back issues to read up on. Thank God that director Jon Favreau was a big enough fan to create this amazing film.
Robert Downey Jr. is by far one of the best selections I’ve seen yet for a comic book character made into a big screen feature. His attitude and demeanor make him perfect for the cocky, yet caring, persona of Tony Stark. And not having to change who he is very much except for putting on a big suit for Iron Man, then he slips into both roles flawlessly. It is amazing how incredible the casting decision was for this role. As a matter of fact, the entire cast was chosen immaculately. Bridges as Stane is just awesome in that the man can pull off a confused teacher or a bald, evil businessman like he’s been doing either his whole life. Terence Howard is great as Rhodey and even Gwyneth Paltrow, who I could care less for, is a nice fit as Pepper. Favreau sure knows how to pick ’em .
As for the film itself, it’s just about as picture perfect as you could possibly ask for. It almost doesn’t even feel like a comic book adaptation, and just appears as a film with a great story that includes and over the top hero. The best part about all of it is the backstory that brings us to the final culmination of seeing Iron Man himself. That’s one of the things that made Batman Begins such an awesome flick. We aren’t introduced to the hero/icon right away, but given time to understand everything else hat’s going on and eventually why a normal guy becomes this secret identity. Doing things that way gives those that know nothing about Iron Man whatsoever a chance to enjoy a film that is just phenomenal.
The film is shown in Anamorphic Widescreen and holy hell it is beautiful. The transfer to DVD is flawless and it shows in every single frame of the film. Colors are bright and vibrant while darker scenes such as the caves and nighttime scenes are always shown with just enough light.
The film is heard in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and it has a couple issues, but it’s still very good. The surrounding speakers in the room are used to their utmost capabilities as sound effects and zooming rockets are heard everywhere. My one problem is rather evident when there are more civil and low-key conversations going on, and they’re kind of hard to hear so you have to turn up the volume. Then five seconds later you’re deafened by the awesome music blaring, but it’s a small complaint.
Deleted And Extended Scenes – Eleven in total, but most of them are extra footage to scenes left in the film more so then anything completely deleted. Most of the stuff that was left on the cutting room floor is deserving of that fate because it would have made many of the scenes left in the film feel as if they were dragging.
I Am Iron Man – This seven-part feature runs a whopping hour and eighteen minutes and is virtually a “making of” featurette, but not simple by a long shot. Join Jon Favreau and others as they go back all the way to pre-production and take you up through the premiere. There is so much detailed information given here that it would be useless for me to try and explain it all, but let’s just say that you won’t be left wondering after it all.
The Invincible Iron Man – Here is another multi-part feature (six in all) that runs close to fifty minutes and traces the history of the Iron Man character back to his creation in the comic books. Interviews and stories from artists, writers, and more fill in a lot of the gaps and holes that many who were just introduced to Iron Man in the film may not have known. Stan Lee and Adi Granov are just a couple of the famous names associated with comics that give a taste of their vast knowledge to Iron Man’s past all that comes along with him. Some comic book virgins may still feel a bit confused at times due to some references and character name drops that they’re not familiar with, but it’s still worth checking out.
Wired: The Visual Effects Of Iron Man – One of the things that I’ve been most interested in learning about is explained here in this twenty-seven minute feature all about the special effects in Iron Man. This feature explains a lot of the computer generated imagery and all the effort and planning that went in to making the suit, the weapons, and just about half of the whole film.
Robert Downey Jr. Screen Test – Downey’s screen test virtually takes him through separate scenes: Stark talking to the reporter from Vanity Fair, Stark talking to soldiers in a humvee, and talking to his friend Rhodey about the Iron Man suit. It’s always fun watching seasoned actors go through the early stages of rehearsal to win parts. This feature runs just about six minutes.
The Actor’s Process – Director Jon Favreau is seen with actors Downey and Jeff Bridges to go over how a key scene outside of Stark Industries should happen. This feature is only four minutes long, but it’s really cool watching it come together between these three brilliant minds.
Still Galleries – Just about every still image you can dream of from the pre-production to backstage to still shots from the film to publicity shots to post-production and tons more. Good stuff.
Trailers – A teaser, a theatrical trailer, and two international trailers here.
Iron Man: Armored Adventures – A short trailer for Iron Man: The Animated Series. Let’s just say, it’s no Batman: The Animated Series.
The Onion News Network’s Report – A two and a half minute “news report” as to the controversy of the beloved and popular Iron Man trailer shockingly being turned into a feature length film.
Trailers – Star Trek, Indiana Jones & The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull, and The Incredible Hulk
Having already seen Iron Man in theatres when it was released, this was a wonderful and pleasant gem to see it again sitting in the comforts of my own home. The film is just awesome and my pick for one of the top five of entire 2008. It tells a wonderful story and brings one of the coolest and most underrated comic book characters to life in such a way that he’ll be around for numerous sequels to come. Hopefully Iron Man will continue on the track it’s currently on and not fall into the Spider-Man realm of things. As for bringing it to DVD, Paramount did a bang-up job in that department too. The transition of audio and video to DVD is great and makes for a really good “theatre at home” viewing experience. The special features add a couple hours of extra viewing time with some entertaining and truly educational information. Noticeably missing though is an audio commentary that would have been solid gold if it included Favreau, Bridges, and Downey. Still, we all know that it will eventually end up on some kind of extra special edition yet to come. Hell, why wait though? This is a great release of a fantastic film that must be seen to be appreciated. So pick it up now. Fly if you have to.
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Paramount presents Iron Man: Two-Disc Special Collector’s Edition. Directed by: Jon Favreau. Starring: Robert Downey Jr. Jeff Bridges, Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow and more. Written by: Mark Fergus & Hawk Ostby. Running time: 125 minutes on 2 discs. Rating: PG-13. Released on DVD: September 30, 2008. Available at Amazon.
