7. Iron Man 3

Release Date: May 3, 2013

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwenyth Paltrow, Ben Kingsley, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall.

Director: Shane Black (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang)

First Time I Saw It: Iron Man 3 was a group experience for me. The first time I saw it was right before finals week of my freshmen year. About twenty of us met at the communications buildings and divided up between four drivers. I was in car with three or four other girls and we almost missed the movie because we got lost in Camden which was an adventure on it’s own. Don’t fret, though. We made it in the nick of time, joining the mass of over worked and stressed college students that made up our group.

Through the previews everyone loudly debated across the rows, much to the chagrin of the other patrons, about the Marvel Universe, the direction of this movie, and the other Marvel Universe movies to come. The comic book fanatics among us got the most worked up. At this time I knew virtually nothing about the Marvel Universe so I sat silently absorbing all the information, becoming more and more confused. It was awesome.

Importance in the Marvel Universe: Like I said earlier, when I first watched Iron Man 3, I had little knowledge of the backstory behind this movie in particular, and the Marvel Universe in general. At the time I didn’t know the importance of the movie in regards to the Universe. However, I now have 2 years, 1 in depth wiki timeline, 10 films, a mini series, and 40 episodes of history and information.

Iron Man 3 introduces, Extremis, the experimental regenerative treatment that is supposed to help people recover from crippling injuries. However, the treatment ends up turning the users into human bombs. Extremis later turns up in episodes of Agents of Shield. It is the catalyst and story arc of the first half of season one.

The other, smaller, importance of the movie lies with the supposed bad guy. As a non-comic book reader, I liked the Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) in the movie. But the true blue, die hard comic fans were aggravated by the big bad of the comics being reduced to a drunken actor. I believe this change was meant to create a break with the comic book universe to allow a little more creative freedom when making the film and television adaptations.

Why I Love It: I really enjoy Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) He is a sarcastic asshole and it’s fun to watch. After the dud that was Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3 was a breath of fresh air. I liked how this movie, though setting up plots for other movies and shows to come, focused on character. We were introduced to Harley (Ty Simpkins) who was a great addition and had an interesting relationship with Stark (Downey.)

I also loved the action scenes. They were done so well and looked pretty. I know that’s a weird way to describe and action scene but it’s true. The timing of everything was downright pretty. It had enough tension to keep an audience captivated but not too much to make you nearly vomit from stress.

Best Moment: The whole movie was awesome but I thought the best parts came from scenes with Tony Stark and Harley (Simpkins.) The best moment between them was when Harley tries to guilt trip Stark who wants him to stay with the suit. It’s a fast, throwaway scene. But it was funny and acted well. This one tiny scene embodied my favorite part of watching tv and movies, the voyeuristic look at other people’s conversations and relationships. –Marley Ghizzone

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