A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that - on a school night - I'd stopped by a friend's place on the way home from a meeting, and we'd watched some of Iron Man. Well, we finally watched the second half. In the first sitting, we did get pretty much exactly to half way, but looking at the screen I had no idea what had happened before that to lead us to this point. So we went back a few scenes (I tried to type 'rewound' but that felt so outdated, especially for a Blu-Ray experience), and watched a whole lot more of the movie again. Which was a good thing.
As for the actual movie... Man becomes superhero - but much more technologically apparent than, say, being zapped with a super X-ray machine. And then saves, you know, the Good World, with a little twist. This might sound like I didn't enjoy the movie - but I did. Hello, Robert Downey, Jr. It was just that it hasn't made a huge impression on my brain. There were some bits that have continued to pop up in my head, though.
I do like the nod to the original Iron Man costume at the start. But even more than that, I like his attitude. Yep, he gets blown up, and all his hard work at building the suit is ruined. However, he's escaped from the baddies, and he just picks himself up and brushes off the sand and keeps going. I like that attitude. In my head, the unspoken lines were something like "Huh. It blew up. Next".
I don't really like the general tone of the America = good, Middle East = bad, even though that was moderately rectified at the end. And the boys' movie style of blasting all the baddies with superior firepower was such a cliche, I had to do an internal eye roll. I know that you have to have a villain and all that, and the cultural climate at the time would suggest that this good guy/bad guy scenario would have gone down a treat, but still... I'm curious to see who the bad guys are in 2 and 3.
I don't like Gwyneth Paltrow in this. I found her to be rather annoying. My overall impression is reddish wavy hair, freckly face, and a bit dopey, while still trying to be a smart and sexy assistant. Moving on.
I do like the life change that occurs in him. Not the "I've been held hostage and nearly killed" bit, but the "Actually, maybe my company is not such a great thing after all, and I don't really care what you all think because you're just interested in your own money, actually, so I'm going to do what I think is right" bit. Yeah. Living your own life, not what others think you should be doing because it worked for them or will work out better for them. Following your own heart, not your bank balance. Working diligently towards a goal and gaining self esteem from your work, not from how much money you make or how attractive you are or how attractive your, er, conquests, are. Listening to your own heart, not the financial-worries-sector of your brain. Doing something to right a wrong. That's my kind of superhero.
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