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As
expectations go these days, when a sequel fails to be even equally as
good as its predecessor, there is little hope held out for the next
installment (if there’s even one at all). Iron Man 3 was inevitable. Though Iron Man 2 was disappointing to fans and critics, The Avengers was more than enough make up for it. This meant that Iron Man 3 had a lot to live up to, being the first post-Avengers
Marvel film. And though I might not be alone in having enjoyed this
installment, I think I’m one of the few that admired the film's
ambition.
It’s
impossible to discuss this film without mentioning writer/director
Shane Black. Black replaced Jon Favreau, who helmed the first two
installments and co-produced The Avengers. Black was an
excellent choice to bring a different voice and set of hands to the
franchise. Having previously worked with Robert Downey Jr. on his
directorial debut, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, he was able to
perfectly key in to Downey’s strengths and bring some of the
off-color, irreverent humor that he so excels in. Black’s script rolls
off the tongue wonderfully with most of the characters, but feels
especially in sync with Downey’s style. It’s sometimes impossible to
tell where Black’s words end and Downey’s riffs begin.
Trailers for the film remained fairly vague as far
as plot details were concerned, which is rare these days. In wanting
to stay just as tight-lipped on plot details, all I will say is that
the film makes some choices to subvert audience expectations, even for
fans. This hasn’t gone without a fair amount of controversy, but I
give this film props for trying something different, and for having it
be much more able to stand alone than most of the other Marvel films.
While it does reference events in The Avengers, it’s not
taking up a large portion of the film to simply pave the way for
another sequel, which was one of the issues with Iron Man 2.
Iron Man 3 shares a
lot more with the first film. The whole “in a cave with a box of
scraps” scenario is stretched a bit longer, leaving Tony to use his
intellect, and relying less on his suits. This allows for more
character building, which is something that is lacking in many big
budget franchise films today. That said, there is still plenty of
action, and the film moves at a nice, brisk pace.
If this is any indication as to the direction
Marvel is taking with the next phase of their cinematic universe, I’m
fairly excited to see what else they have in store before we see their
characters team up again in Avengers 2. It’s rewarding to
fans who have kept a close eye on Marvel's slowly building universe,
but depends less on familiarity of previous films that new viewers
won’t be required to do homework to enjoy it.
--David
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