Note: This review contains spoilers related
to Iron Man (2008) and The Avengers (2012).
In 2008, Marvel Studios released their
first live-action film, Iron Man. Though the project was a risk for a number of
reasons, its success propelled the studio to new heights and their continued
success with the Marvel Cinematic Universe would help reshape the cinematic
landscape, for better or worse. With their most recent film, Avengers: Infinity
War (2018) now out in theaters, we at Trophy Unlocked have decided to take
another look back at Iron Man in celebration of its 10th anniversary and see
just how well it’s held up after all these years.
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), CEO of
defense contractor Stark Industries, is in war-torn Afghanistan with Lieutenant
Colonel James Rhodes (Terrence Howard) to demonstrate the company’s latest
weapon, the devastating Jericho missile, to the U.S. military. Soon after,
however, Stark’s convoy is attacked and he becomes implanted with shrapnel from
one of his own company’s weapons. The terrorist organization the Ten Rings
captures and imprisons Stark in a cave, where he is forced to construct a
Jericho missile using stockpiled Stark Industries weapons. Though Tony is able
to escape with aid from Yinsen (Shaun Toub), a captive doctor who helped him construct
a miniature arc reactor to keep the shrapnel away from his heart, he decides to
shift his company’s focus away from weapons and figure out just how the
terrorists got their hands on his technology in the first place.
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| Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) before his personal transformation. |
After 10 years, the story holds up
pretty well. The major characters are very three-dimensional from the moment
they’re introduced and while the actual dialogue was largely improvised, the
characters remain consistent and true to themselves throughout. As a result,
Tony Stark’s personal transformation is believable and Obadiah Stane (Jeff
Bridges) is a memorable villain who is very capable at using Tony’s trust in
him to his own advantage. Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), Yinsen and Colonel
Rhodes are also strong supporting characters due largely in part to how they
interact with Stark and how well they serve the overall story. In addition, the
plot is pretty easy to follow and is enough to keep viewers engaged for over
two hours. The setting is also grounded very well within reality and the
various twists and turns, while perhaps old hat at this point in the MCU, are
handled well enough to enjoy this movie in a vacuum.
Along with the story, the special
effects have also held up surprisingly well considering their age. The designs
of the Iron Man suits, including Iron Monger, have a timeless quality to them
and their interactions within the world are still convincing. One smaller scene
that has aged especially well is one where Pepper Potts has to replace an arc
reactor within Tony’s chest by reaching into a chest cavity to remove one wire
and insert another.
Iron Man is also good at balancing its
humorous and serious moments. The best way to describe this is that it’s serious
when it needs to be and it’s funny when it feels appropriate to add a bit of
levity to a scene. This balanced approach, along with the improvised dialogue,
allows the film to include a rather famous line from Obadiah Stane. When
frustrated at the inability of Stark Industries scientists to recreate the arc
reactor technology, he yells, “Tony Stark was able this in a cave! With a box
of scraps!” This line stands out not only for Jeff Bridges’ delivery, but also
because it sums up how truly gifted Tony Stark is.
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| "Tony Stark was able to build this in a cave! With a box of scraps!" |
One thing that’s hard to discuss,
however, is the music. While the score does match the tone when you can detect
it, including a guitar riff that repeats a couple times, it’s not really
memorable. The licensed tracks, on the other hand, especially AC/DC’s “Back in
Black” and Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man”, really stand out and gel well with the
energetic atmosphere of the film. My only complaint with the use of “Iron Man”,
however, is that they don’t play the entire track.
At the time that Iron Man came out, it
was facing somewhat of an uphill battle. In order to get funding for the
project, Marvel had put up the rest of their film rights as collateral, meaning
that if they failed, the bank would own their remaining properties. Additionally,
Director Jon Favreau’s previous film, Zathura, was a box office flop (about $64
million earned against a budget of $65 million) and Robert Downey Jr., though a
talented and successful actor in his own right, was more known at the time for
his past addictions and run-ins with the law. When Iron Man became both a
critical and financial success, the rest of the MCU became a true possibility.
Iron Man also helped, both directly and
indirectly, to reshape the Hollywood landscape. The film’s more grounded and
realistic approach to a superhero movie, as well as the shifting of the
character’s origin from the Vietnam War to the War in Afghanistan, helped the
movie stand out from its contemporaries and gave it a more modern feeling. Tony
Stark’s declaration at the end of the movie, “The truth is…I am Iron Man,” also
felt fresh at the time, as unlike many other superheroes, he had forgone the
notion of a secret identity and publicly embraced his image as Iron Man. The
film’s role as the launchpad for the MCU also contributed toward the buildup
for The Avengers, which was so successful in its unique approach to
storytelling, particularly as a crossover between multiple properties, that it
would change how Hollywood approached short and long-form storytelling, for
better or worse.
Part of the legacy of Iron Man also
involves actor Clark Gregg, who plays S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Phil Coulson. This
movie introduced Coulson to the greater Marvel multiverse and Gregg’s
performance helped the character become rather popular. So popular, in fact, that
not only does Coulson show up in later films within Phase One of the MCU, but
soon after his death in The Avengers (2012), he was brought back to life for a
lead role in ABC’s television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which thus far has
yet to make a real impact on any of the films.
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Clark Gregg would get a lot of mileage out of
his role as S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Phil Coulson. |
On the subject of S.H.I.E.L.D., however,
there is a very noticeable retcon within the MCU that’s worth mentioning. In
Iron Man, the way Agent Coulson talks about S.H.I.E.L.D. makes them come off as
a rather new organization that had yet to really nail down their name.
Beginning with Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), however, S.H.I.E.L.D.
is established as having existed since WWII and named after Captain America’s
weapon of choice.
Those who watch Iron Man will also
notice that a short sequence takes place at the Disney Concert Hall. This small
moment turned out to be highly prophetic once Disney had bought Marvel
Entertainment in 2009 for about $4 billion. This deal would cause some friction
with Paramount Pictures, who at the time had a six-picture distribution deal
with Marvel Studios, save for The Incredible Hulk (2008); Universal Pictures
still owns the distribution rights to the property. After Disney purchased
Marvel, they later bought the distribution rights to The Avengers and Iron Man
3 (2013) from Paramount, but they still had to display the Paramount logo on
those films.
Another enduring part of Iron Man’s
legacy is the post-credits sequence where Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) shows
up to discuss the Avengers Initiative with Stark. This sequence would not only
kick off the buildup to The Avengers, but also create a trend where Marvel
would end every film with some kind of mid- or post-credits sequence (save for
Age of Ultron (2015), which has no post-credits sequence), with some like
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) reaching up to five end-credits sequences.
Outside of Marvel, however, the impact of Iron Man’s post-credits sequence
would eventually lead to other studios including such sequences in their films
for one reason or another, which has essentially trained audiences to stay even
after the movie is finished in the hopes of getting a surprise; in my own
experience, I’ve seen more people complain when there isn’t some kind of
post-credits sequence.
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| The moment that started it all. |
Even 10 years later, Iron Man is not only
a good superhero movie, but a great movie in its own right. The more grounded
and realistic approach to the story and world help it stand out from other
superhero films and the performances of the actors help the characters feel
three-dimensional and their dialogue natural. The special effects still hold up
well to this day, but the original score hardly feels present or memorable.
Though Marvel Studios would ultimately copy a lot of elements from Iron Man for
later MCU films, their first outing is still one of their best and is perfectly
enjoyable in a vacuum (even with the post-credits scene). If you’re in the mood
for a good action movie, Iron Man is sure to satisfy.
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