Finally, the original “heavy metal hero” has made it to the big screen in “IRON MAN”the
Movie, starring Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark IRON MAN is this summer’s first major blockbuster, but does it live up to the hype?

The story begins with the origin of Iron Man, which arguably could be a drag for comic nerds like me, Because we already know what is going to happen. Still, for this movie it is quite the opposite, the tone of the origin in this movie sets the pace for the rest of the story. Billionaire weapons’ manufacturer, Tony Stark, (Downey JR.) is testing a new missile defense system in Afghanistan when he is ambushed by a small, unnamed terrorist group. He is blind sided by a missile made by his own company, and wakes up a prisoner in a dark, dreary cave, which oozes hopelessness. The terrorists want him to make the missile he just demonstrated for the soldiers, using stolen ballistics from the terrorists. The reason the terrorists possess these missiles is kept a secret until later in the movie, and I don’t want to spoil it, so I’m not going to tell you. Instead of making this missile of mass destruction, Stark secretly makes a full suit of armor with a built-in rocket launcher, flight system, and a flamethrower. (My personal favorite) In only a few days of work. Stark uses this suit to escape from the cave and return home. Here we meet “Pepper” Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), Stark’s personal assistant and love interest, who tends to Stark’s every need without protest.

Stark holds a press conference to ban his company from making any more weapons, because he has personally seen the destruction they can cause. He secretly starts making prototypes of suits improving on the design he made in the caves. Eventually he perfects his concept in his “Mark III” suit. Many brilliant scenes of the building process added comic relief. They could call the whole film in fact half comedy half adventure, because of the way Downey portrays this character. The dialogue of Stark is just so cocky and manipulating, but Downey acts it in such a way that it comes off as funny.

Stark then makes his way to Afghanistan, where he wipes out the last of the terrorists. This part of the movie is a very redeeming and exciting. Especially because people in the crowd cheered during this part, adding to the excitement.

The film sort of goes downhill when the “Iron Monger” is introduced. The Iron Monger is a bigger and more powerful, but not as Hi-tech, suit of armor built by a “rival” to kill Stark. Although the villain name is never announced in the movie, it is on the package of the toy. Don’t get me wrong The Iron Monger looks great . . . but there is something missing. A rhyme or reason to his madness. The secret identity of the Iron Monger (Which I Will Keep A Secret) just doesn’t feel right, and the way Stark defeats this “Villain” is kind of lame. I took some comfort in that the fight scene is really well animated.

Overall, IRON MAN is Downey’s movie; he acts every scene perfectly. I think the other actors actually knew this, because nobody actually tried to upstage him in performance; they really wanted him to shine. They succeeded. Don’t get me wrong, their acting is still amazing.

The special effects in this movie blended flawlessly with the live actors. The amount of imagination the animators used is unbelievable. Stark’s house is filled with hi-tech gadgets that would make even James Bond cry in a corner. Every bit of the movie is fantastically animated, Even I had a hard time trying to figure out what was real and what was fake. Overall, I would award this movie with a very strong eight out of ten. IRON MAN is a really great movie with great special effects, great actors, and a storyline that stays true to the comic. I recommend this movie to anybody who is a fan of Iron Man, or anybody who is looking for a fun ride. I give it a thumbs up.