Episode 1367 Talkback: Iron Man 3 Movie Review
Pants
Posts: 567
Calling All Shellheads! In the wake of a highly successful opening weekend for Iron Man 3, Jamie, Pants and Murd sit down to share their reactions to the film. Comedy! Tragedy! Irony! Technology! Interminable plot synopsis! And the controversial master of menace and misdirection men call the Mandarin! All this and more awaits you in this repulsor-powered review episode. (Not for the spoiler-intolerant!) (1:29:07)
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Comments
Jamie and Murd keep mentioning The Mandarin still being out there. Did I mishear Aldritch tell Tony that he was the Mandarin? I thought he said that but now I'm questioning whether or not that was actually said.
If tony used extremis to help remove the arc reactor what are the chances the armor is inside him now. Hence the 'I am Iron Man' line?
That about sums it up, as my reaction when the lights went up was the same as Dr. Banner's. Bad jokes, inconsistent tone, poor plotting pacing and not enough Iron Man. At best a 2/5
I had fun.
And now off to watch some Werner Herzog flic.....
Nevertheless, my own annoyance/disappointment aside, I have to admit that the Mandarin reveal was a brilliantly concealed and executed plot twist, one that not only nicely enhanced the movie's central theme, but was also pretty damn funny!
It was actually said. Jamie and I were just conjecturing that there still might be a "real" Mandarin lurking somewhere in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, unaffected by--perhaps even responsible for, or inspired by--Killian's ruse. Just idle talk on our part, that's all; the movie did happen the way you remember it.
Except comics Tony Stark could probably hit a light bulb.
Oh and I really enjoyed the movie. I would have liked a macgyver-like voice over when he was making his spy toys but that's just the 80's in me
I also loved John F's 1999 Pulp Fiction haircut and suit. Awesome.
- both are presumed dead (again)
- both are retraining/regrouping in a remote location
- both are fighting a puppet terrorist, instead of the actual lead terrorist
- both have love interests (or 1 nighters) working with the villain
- both have a kid sidekick
- both use an army/legion to help fight the terrorist's cronies
- both have a cameo from the person who "made" them
- both give up the life of being a hero
- both lose their homes
- both provide their sidekick with an "equipment upgrade" at the end
- both go on to live happy with a love interest
I'm not complaining, I just noted 2 of the best know billionaires in comics have similar moments in their third movie.
I think the biggest devasting thing about Iron Man 3 is that RDJ probably will not play the role again. It's going to come down to money. I know the dude in charge of Marvel is frugal & believes people come to see the characters instead of the actors, but I think RDJ is one of the exceptions. Its what non-comic book readers are going to expect from Tony Stark. I think anyone playing the role will be a cheap imitation of RDJ's version.
M
I would love to get the rest of the groups take on this as well as I'm sure it's led to much controversy amongst you guys as it has my own circle of bros.
VIPBrillo - San Diego, CA
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I am okay without the exact copy of the source material because of the context. I think doing a Batman movie with the Dark Knight wearing something that resembles tights would look cartoonish, unrealistic, and laughable. It's an example of how costumes in the comics look better then they will translate onto live action. Also, some characters, such as the Mandarin, might not translate exactly as they were intended in the comics. You could have a year's worth of a run to explain his motives and origins. In a movie, you have 2-2hrs 30m to do the whole movie...not really enough time to develop one, non-lead character AND have a storyline.
I also like the idea of combining storylines to make a movie plot. You can combine Batman: Year One, The Man Who Falls, & The Long Halloween and create a kickass Batman movie.
Although I don't think they should completely rework characters (Galactus is an example, though there was an outlined shape in that cloud), but reinterpreting "immortality", shying away from a villain using drugs (which he does use anymore, anyway) or avoiding explaining how magic is in a movie world of technology are okay by me. I cannot comment on the Hank Pym example since the movie has not been released and would not expect Pym to be Goliath in the first movie anymore then I would expect him to be Yellowjacket or "Dr. Pym" right off the bat.
M.
The only thing I was a little disappointed at more than anything is that for some reason Hollywood decides to stick to this three movie format which prevents great stories and back stories like Mandarin's from being told and that for some reason at the end of every film everything needs to be closed and tied up neat and nice when I think the studios could still produce a successful franchise taking a format almost like The Lord of the Rings in which one movie almost rolls right into the next with plenty of chronological time going by to drop in the back story of the next villain.
What I mean by that is as one villian falls in the current film a plot behind the scenes starts to be revealed to the moviegoer of a greater mastermind behind the scenes pulling the hero/heroes strings this way and that.
I'm also tired of after 3 movies its time for another break then reboot or else risk creating another Batman and Robin Clooney disaster. Right now I think Amazing Spider-Man is going to run that risk as in the next film we're supposed to be reintroduced to Norman Osborn and be talked into forgetting the great work of Willem Dafoe. Do you think it will be different with this new Spider-man or perhaps Nolan's Superman, possible Justice League tie-in?
It would be nice to see characters go beyond a trilogy, but I think actors eventually want to move on from the roles (unfortunately.) Even if they film the movies every 2 years (like the golden age of Bond movies), I think actors are looking to move on after 3 movies.
I have 2 minds of reboots now. Raimi's Spider-man series was 3 movies...NOT a trilogy. I would have preferred ASM actually be Spider-man 4 with a new cast moving on from what Raimi created (making some tweaks along the way.) I think the reboot is a complete waste and seemed to rehash a lot of scenes from Spider-man (2002.)
One the other hand, Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy left me very satisfied. I would not want anyone else to play in that universe (aside from maybe a Catwoman movie), as I feel it will soil the movies. Christian Bale was amazing as Bruce Wayne AND Batman. Having said that, I do NOT want to see him under the cowl in the proposed JLA movie. I do not think any of the DKT actors should be cast in roles in the JLA to prevent any connection between the two franchises or cause any confusion. Plus, if Batman is going to be rebooted in the next 5-7, why not start with the JLA movie it is being released beforehand?
I do not know if it will be different with the MoS (supposedly) connecting with the proposed JLA movie. In fact, unless all systems are a go for JLA, I would not even feature an Easter egg scene to bridge into that movie. If JLA never happens, but a MoS sequel does, it'll be left unanswered and very thrown-away.
M.
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- too many plot holes
- the macguyver, mansion attack was really lame... i want to see more of tony in the armor doing cool things or wearing different types of armor for different tactical situations... and not macguyver beating random thugs
- guy pierce's motivations were lame and his plans didn't make much sense
- the final battle between automated armors and random extremist solider was lame
- pepper killing guy pierce so easily was stupid
- don cheadle is just too ugly to be rhodey
- too much ad libbing... kind of made it feel like the fourth wall was being broken all the time... like i was watching RDJ instead of tony stark
- the mandarin reveal was cool
- the air force one scene was awesome
- rebecca hall was under utilized
It might be lame, but Killian's motivation is the same as Stane's & Hammer's. playing both sides to make money & gain power is a very old motivation.
I don't think the ad libbing was anything different from IM, IM2, or Avengers. Anything less would seem off.
Wait, Don Cheadle's appearance added to your disappointment?
Am I the only 1 not into Rebecca Hall?!
M
The guys did discuss the movie including what they liked & didn't like. I understand what disappointed you, but I don't think it took away from the enjoyment of Pants, Jamie, or Adam (I can be added to that list also.)
I find these review episodes to be the most tedious to record. The feedback we get seems to be "only picked the negatives," "only picked the positives," or "stop whining it wasn't what you expect/should've gone THIS way."
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I sorta disagree with Murd's assessment of the plot that the hero gets stripped down, etc. I never really felt that Stark got "stripped down" even though his house got blown up and got send to Tennessee. Why? Because he still had resources! He obviously still had access to money to buy his Mcgyver stuff and was able to call Pepper, etc. I also disagree about him wanting more Pepper. I didn't feel the need for it, I'm sure they'll have more screen time together in the future.
I loved the little kids interactions with Tony, also.
Jamie: I missed seeing Stan the first time, too! When I saw the movie the second time I wondered how I missed it the first time. Don't know, I guess I'm getting old.
I agree with the dislike of the over-the- top how did he survive that moments...but since this was a comic movie I tend to give it more leeway.
Aw. Lighten up about the Mandarin, Murd. If he had turned out to be a real threat we'd probably be complaining that it was too commonplace. To me it was perfect, especially after seeing something like Zero Dark Thirty. It's a COMIC BOOK MOVIE! No need to be so dark...
Jamie: But I think Killian said he was the Mandarin. On the other hand, I do think it's possible the there might be a Mandarin out there.
Barrel of Monkeys: ...and It wasn't really Tony! Awesome!
Yes, he used the things he learned from extremis to first fix Pepper and then himself.
Wow, I'd give it a 4.5! Close to Avengers!
The kind of fear-of-the-unknown terror that Mandarin was supposed to evoke in, for example, the 60s Iron Man cartoons by virtue of being Asian doesn't play well anymore. Best to leave that character as an historical curiosity.