Iron Man

image source

So, Infinity War comes out at the end of the month. I figured this is as good a time as any to cover the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe that I haven't reviewed yet. The story of Iron Man is that weapons dealer Tony Stark is attacked and injured by his own weapons. He is taken hostage and tasked with building weapons for a terrorist group called the Ten Rings. He escapes and decides to rid the world of his own weapons simply because he saw the evil they were being used for. This is easily one of the most important movies in the MCU. For starters, this is where it all started. This movie was the biggest risk. A huge sprawling cinematic universe hadn't really been tried before. This movie was the beginning of Robert Downey, Jr.'s comeback tour. He wasn't the mega star he was before and is now. Robert Downey, Jr. is Tony Stark. The action scenes are pretty fun to watch. Robert Downey, Jr. is one of those actors who just manages to have a good back and forth with his co-stars. The first act is easily my favorite. I love the interactions between Tony and Yinsen (played by Shaun Toub). There is some genuine emotion and dramatic acting between the two. There are things that build up the future movies in this giant universe. They are very small and subtle. Some of them actually took me multiple viewings to truly notice. The only real issue I have with this movie is Terrence Howard's performance as Rhodey. He felt a little too whiny, and a little too much like a pushover. I just didn't buy him as a war veteran. Ultimately, even ten years later, Iron Man still holds up as a good movie, and as a good starting point for one of the biggest franchises of all time.

9 / 10