Iron Man 3 (Post-release)

[Zuiun]

Overall, I enjoyed the film. I thought it was well executed and, at times, had some clever writing.

There were some aspects of the villain plot that I thought were brilliant. For example, setting up a fake terrorist to cover up the Extremis failures was clever. But having said that, the thing that bugged me about Killian was that he seemed to be juggling too many motivations. Many third super hero films fall prey to the mistake of offering up too many villains. This one compensated by having one villain with the motivations for three or four.

On the one hand, he wants revenge against Tony (and Tony's brain muscle to solve Extremis). Understandable. On the other hand, he wants to cover up his Extremis failures. Also understandable. On the OTHER other hand, he wants to take over the country. On the OTHER OTHER other hand, there seems to be hint that Killian also wants to influence human evolution with Extremis.

This might qualify as a minor quibble, but it just seemed like a lot of balls in the air for one villain. The plot against Tony and the use of the fake terrorist scheme were satisfying plot elements. The rest seemed glossed over (to me) - not enough screen time in the film to make them satisfying.

The other thing that bugged me was the reveal that Dr. Maya Hansen was working with Killian. For one thing, it was a pretty transparent secret. But here's what bugged me: She was sent to Stark's home as part of Killian's plan. OK. So, either she knew Killian also planned to destroy Stark's home and willingly walked into that trap, or she didn't know and was taken as much by surprise as Stark and Pepper.

If the former, what did Killian have on her to get her to walk potentially into her death? And participating in the death of dozens of people (Extremis soldiers and collateral victims), almost getting killed herself, and injecting Pepper with Extremis wasn't enough to shake her loyalty, but seeing Stark tied to an upright bedframe was?

If the latter, it didn't bug her that Killian was playing so fast and loose with her life? And again, the same points as above: She was OK with all of the deaths, altering Pepper, nearly being killed, and was still loyal to him until her change of heart late in the film?

If Killian seemed to have too many motivations, Dr. Hansen's motivations/actions just made no sense.

 

[jmgrice]

I think it's hilarious that you can complain about all the insults in this thread and then hurl one at me in your first sentence. :lol Anyway, no hard feelings from my end. I've said my piece about the movie and I've moved on. Even though it was well below my expectations I am quite happy that others were able to enjoy it.

I wouldnt call it an Insult. But taking my words and treating them as though I said something I didnt isnt going to get you in my good books and you have to expect that kind of response. My reply had nothing to do with your view on the film. It was to do with your ignorance. I didnt name call. Funny how you didnt deny it.
J

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[Mr Mold Maker]

Having seen it just a few hours ago here is what I think;

First off I have not and probably will not read the comics. It's not my cup of tea, sue me.
What I can say is I've watched all the "phase one" Marvel movies.

I felt like the movie was fairly solid, but there where some things that just had me scratching my head and wondering "why!?"
One of my biggest "why" things is Maya. I wish she picked one side instead of jumping back and forth until Mr. Fire Breather killed her.

As for the mandarin, I do like what they did. I thought it was hilarious. That being said I DO think they could have approached him more appropriate to the original. While my knowledge of the mandarin stops at the TV series that have featured him, I believe they could have explained his ring as some Alien tech brought to Earth that people believe to be magic. The Asgardians have advanced tech and they're viewed as magical and gods, so why couldn't they explain the rings as such? It's already out there that they aren't alone in their Marvel universe.

All in all I did enjoy the movie a side from some scenes that could have been deeper and one that could have been removed. (I'm talking about you Killian!)
I'm going to see it again and hopefully I'll understand Maya's role a tiny bit more.

 

[third3ye]

Saw it again for the 2nd time and enjoyed it still, in 3D this time. 3D didn't add any value to the movie, the conversion is fine but just not worth paying extra, good thing it was a free screening. Watching it the 2nd time made Killian as the real Mandarin being the intent of the filmmakers even more obvious to me, dragon tattoos along with his last line before Pepper finished him off. I too was confused by his intent as it seemed like he was juggling a few balls, but ultimately it sounded like he wanted to control the war on terror for financial gain and his ego, from what he disclosed to Rhodes after forcing him out of the IP suit.

Those who didn't like it I find fall into 2 categories - comic book fans with their main complaint (among others) being what they did with the Mandarin, and superhero film fans who were expecting a more traditional take with Iron Man. I think the former will never be satisfied, and if it isn't pulled directly from the comic panels it's just not good enough... like Watchmen wasn't a bad enough example for this approach. The latter I can understand their disappointment/frustration a bit - IM3 is just in a different genre from both IM movies and Avengers, and it's rubbing people the wrong way.

Even after my second viewing I still appreciate the direction Marvel Studios and Shane Black took with the franchise, it's a fresh spin on the CBM genre and still in line with the stylistic approaches in the other Iron Man films. But don't get me wrong, I still put IM1 above IM3 any day.

 

[Op4]

Nobody is getting upset with you because of your opinion. We're getting upset with you because of your poor articulation of it.

Amen to that. Isn't that what trolling was defined from? commenting on the way people comment? lol

 

[dbalschi]

I absolutely loved this movie! Far better than the second one and IMO even gives the first one a run for it's money!

 

[TheRealMcFly]

Here are the questions that keep me from liking this movie...

If Pepper and the villans's right hand man can operate a suit then why is the President helpless inside of the Iron patriot?

Why didn't Tony use any single one of his other suits when the mandarin helicopter attack wrecks up the saucer section of his house? Cool to see him throw the suit onto Pepper but if all of the others are Jarvis operated suits why not have them protect the area?

Why not send a new iron man suit out as soon as Jarvis was operational again during tonys undercover-kid adventures?

Why did killing the villain in suit not work? Pepper throws some silver rod at him and that works? The first death was better.

No comic attachments here and I really liked the first two. This one seemed off to me, maybe because of poorly established 'rules' that remain inconsistent throughout the entire film. What did I miss?

 

[JD]

Loved it. Might be the best Iron Man flick to date... they finally got away from other men in iron suits as the enemy. Yeah, there are some plot holes... TheRealMcFly pointed out a couple that I missed; but, they didn't effect my enjoyment of this one at all. (I was more concerned with where'd Tony get the car and money from in TN?)

 

[TheRealMcFly]

Yes that too! Of course Tony has a stealth looking Sedan when undercover. Lol.

He made some forty plus suits and we get a good look at four of them. They were all under his house the whole time. Rhodes snuck around in a lime green polo!?

Sorry, couldn't suspend my disbelief long enough before my brain asks suspense and stakes-ruining questions.

 

[Kevin Gossett]

He took the keys from Savin after he repulsor-blasted him...

 

[JacobGates]

So I just watched the movie last night and I REALLY enjoyed it but I feel like they didn't show off the new features of the new suit (mark 42 was it?). But I guess they did have a lot of new suits/robots to show off. I'm not completely happy about them removing the arc reator, I feel like that was his symbol and like he said in The Avengers "this things here, keeps shrapnel from entering my heart... blah blah.... it's apart of me now". So I might have to get used to that.

Anyways, about the freaking awesome. Did anyone else expect all of his robots to be suits as well? When I saw the previews and saw the many robots I thought that's all they were going to be. That was exciting. I kinda hope Pepper gets a protection suit in the next installment.

 

[davidm00]

I've seen a coup,e of the thoughts I'm going to share expressed here already but I'm including them in my review to form a complete thought.

I also want to say that my opinions aren't based on wanting the movie to follow the comics. My opinions are based mostly in my frustration that this film and script seemed to be made with very little thought. Here goes:

I'm terribly disappointed in Ironman 3.
Being a HUGE fan of these movies makes that hard to say.

High point? Robert Downey Jr. The man can do no wrong.
At least his snarky dialogue was one thing the writers got right.

That said...
If, like me, a lot of what you love about IM is the genius, tech, and especially the cool armor, it would be nice if they decided to use that in the movie.

Open letter to the writer and writer/director

*****. the Plot Holes:
How does a suit powered/recharged by the arc reactor run low on battery? You literally have Tony walking around with a battery charging the suit. Did you see the first movie?

So, the kid didn't recognize Tony Stark/Ironman? Really?

Speaking of which, how does Tony Stark, arguably the most famous guy in the world (who just saved it a few weeks ago), walk around without anyone recognizing him? Oh wait, the people you _wanted to_ did!
Just an aside. People in Chattanooga, TN don't wear cowboy hats. That would have made him stand OUT.

I guess most of the suits were trapped until the construction guys cleared the rubble. Too bad there wasn't 40+ incredibly powerful suits of armor in there that could have busted right through all that and helped out sooner. Oh wait...

Did you really think putting the "high level hostage" in a suit of armor and considering them helpless/vulnerable was a good idea? Ok, there's biometrics in the suits so he couldn't use it, but someone else besides Rhodey can?

Tony, you've got on prototype armor that doesn't fully work and helicopters are attacking. Run to the armor that works, not away from it!

Basic Story Writing:
If your antagonist is so easy to defeat that you have to constantly cripple the hero, you might want to work on your plot. Here's an idea, you don't even have to be original. Read the graphic novel you based most of the movie on!

The scene with the reporters. Too soon in the movie. Yeah, a friend was hurt, but not enough had happened to call for that level of a reaction from Tony. And why was he so pissed at that one reporter? I'm thinking empathy would have been the reaction.

Amazing that Tony just happened to meet with the Mother of the 1st Extremis failure right when she was meeting with the antagonists henchmen. Why did they wait so long? Why were they there then? Amazing coincidence that dropped me right out of the movie.

The armor "failing" is great for quick tension or humor. It's been used very well in IM, IM2, and The Avengers. But after the 20th time it's used in the same movie, the writers/director are just lazy and it got old.

It would have also been nice to see any of the 40+ suits work well at all. Tony Stark IS a genius right?

Thanks for build up elements only to let down the audience:
Hulk Buster armor? Great scene of it entering the movie! I guess using it to prop up a bunch of steel and leaving it there was a great use of it....um no.

Every time Tony put on a suit of armor and we thought he was going to kick ass? Fail.

...speaking of... he must have spent more time getting into and out of armor than actually in it. Something else so overused that by the time Tony dives into the suit?...Non-event.

How many story lines do you need in the movie?
Why was the Mandarin even in the movie?
The scene with the Vice President?
Why was so much time spent in TN?
Calling the armor a distraction? This was such a side plot that it didn't matter except to create dramatic tension and setting up a fireworks scene that makes ZERO sense. Want dramatic tension? You already wrote it. Tony's freaking out about NY.
Take these, the few minutes spent with the kid not recognizing Tony, and the others, and you buy back a half hour + of time to add substance to the main plot.

So much complexity, overuse of the same elements, missed plot holes, additional story build to a climatic ending that... never really happened. Such a heavy hand on everything. There was no subtlety.

I did get your point, though you didn't make it well at all. Tony is Ironman and it's not the armor that makes the man. But it is part of what makes Ironman.

In closing, thanks for not pulling a "George Lucas" with the kid, and next time call Joss Whedon for advice. Seriously.

 

[msleeper]

Wired has an interesting review of sorts, in the form of a comic.

Sequential Stark: Wired Reviews Iron Man 3 ? In Comic Book Format | Underwire | Wired.com

 

[Crank729]

Really liked it. I wasn't crazy about it the first time I saw it on Thursday but I just came back from my second viewing and it was much better this time around. I would've liked to see Iron Patriot in the War Machine colours kicking ass but that's really a tiny nit pick. Great film and I can't wait to see where they go with Stark next.

 

[DVDVampire]

I think initially it was purley ment to explain where he was during the avengers movie. The comic itself has nothing to do to specifically tie in to the film. Youd probably be no better of knowledge wise about it. You just get to see the old color scheme. It just ends with tony hinting at his house party program. They do say that hes been rebreanded by aim at the start of the movie. But its not made perhaps as clear as it should. It honestly the comic doesnt say much about the film at all.

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Really?

It explains the origin of the WM 2.0 armor and what happened to the original.

I'd say that qualifies as a movie tie-in.

 

[Jet Beetle]

WOW! Just WOW!

What a horrible movie. I don't even know where to begin with this -- I know there are people who love the armor and I guess they'll walk away satisfied but this boys and girls is a true study of what happens when you remove a core piece of structure and leave your characters dangling in the wind.

First off - Pepper was supposed to die - that's right, in the first act. She was to buy it in one of the Mandarin's terror attacks.

This was to put Tony on full on revenge mode - no superhero antics, he's just going to kill the guy who took away the one thing that made him happy, but the dilemma - thanks to the act Tony pulled to save New York he is viewed as a true hero - for the first time in his life he is looked at, and up to by millions and killing someone doesn't really match up with his newfound image. So he hopes Roady can do it - but Iron patriot is taken out (not killed but just about) - so that two people Tony cares about in or near the meat wagon. He knows if he can find the Mandarin he won't be able to hold back - what will he do? See, this small change would have given him a strong motivation - like the kind good movies are made of. Not Happy (a character who honestly could disappear and it not effect the story one iota) in the hospital. This is more like Beverly Hills Cop 2 - when the captain is gunned down, but the movie shuckers are too scared to kill him, so they put him in the hospital - don't remember - don't worry no one does - same as this film in a few months.

The Mandarin - what a waste of a great character - I thought Marvel was done with giving us half ass commitments like Galactus showing up as a big cloud because they cower from their own material. What they did with the Mandarin is just unforgivable.

I had such faith in Shane, but I know it's not his fault - these movies (post Avengers) will all be done by committee because there's just too much riding on the line. Shane's works are always daring and he's a hell of a smart guy who knows his pen to paper, but same thing that happened with Fav - He delivered them a good movie from a ho-hum script and they decided he wasn't good enough to do part 2 - after a whole lot of negotiation he was brought back - but the screenplay was pressed through the ringer giving him little wiggle room. Same thing they did with Raimi, same thing the Salkinds did to Donner. Such a shame. Oh well, on the next crapfest.... I've got to train myself to just fall in love with shiny things and big Booms.

BTW - I did watch Silver Linings Playbook and Jennifer Lawrence is so hot in that movie - has nothing to do with Iron Man - just thought I'd let you know.

 

[jmgrice]

Really?

It explains the origin of the WM 2.0 armor and what happened to the original.

I'd say that qualifies as a movie tie-in.

Its a seperate story. The movie starts. He has the ip. It resembles the mk 42. Clearly tony built it. And it explains that it was rebranded by aim. The whole point of my comment was to explain that not reading the comic shouldnt leave you bewildered at who he is when watching IM3. The post I replied to was acting confused because they didnt specify how he got the suit as though it ruined the film. You have to use the old noggin and figure it out for yourself. Please try and see the context of which I ment it. Its pretty clear. Tie in was probably a poor choice of words. I ment its not as though its a part of the third film as much as the other films arent. Its a seperate story but your not required to read it. For all those who are also confused about the origin of what I ment.

Edit.
Looking back id still say its more of a franchise tie in then a specific movie tie it. It explains more to do with the avengers and where he was then just saying he gota new suit in IM3.

J

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[rodneyfaile]

I loved Iron Man 3. I can overlook most of the flaws mentioned, but there are two things about it bothering me.

1- Barrel of monkeys. What looked to be a very compelling, intense, and suspenseful scene, and my favorite part of the trailer, had the most contrived resolution. I was so looking forward to seeing what happened. What a letdown.

2- Ten rings. I would have preferred to see a real Mandarin, but I did enjoy the plot twist. However, the Mandarin was supposedly the leader of the 10 rings. Going from the first two movies, the 10 rings is a real terrorist organization. I don't think someone could just create a fake leader to a real terrorist organization.

 

[darthwhitey]

Man, I really don't believe the love for this movie. I thought it was slickly produced but the story was crap. Did Michael Bay direct it? Sure felt like it. I couldn't care less about any of the characters.

This movie actually made Ironman 2 look good.

Any time a movie like this brings in a kid to "help" and turns the girlfriend into a superhero it's officially jumped the shark.

OH, and a movie called "Ironman" is supposed to have Ironman IN IT...right? I really don't care to see Tony Stark running around with a gun karate chopping bad guys.

 

[Kerr Avon]

OH, and a movie called "Ironman" is supposed to have Ironman IN IT...right? I really don't care to see Tony Stark running around with a gun karate chopping bad guys.

LOL! You realize that Iron Man is more than just the suit right?