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Shane Black's Iron Man 3 is not a very deep or psychological film but it offers 126 meaty minutes of something most superhero fans would cherish: explosive action.
The third instalment in the franchise has Tony Stark/Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) faced with arch-enemy Mandarin, who has been perpetrating suspicious blasts across the world. The threat is bolstered by demons - a snubbed scientist Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) and former lover and ace biotechnologist Maya Hansen (Rebecca Hall) - inadvertently created by Stark during a habitual night of revelry in 1999. Stark must don the Iron Man suit to save the day and most importantly his love interest, secretary Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow).
To complicate things, Stark is also battling pent-up stress and anxiety attacks after a previous Earth-saving expedition in The Avengers. The industrialist's insecurities lend a slightly darker tone to the film, leading the audience to question his power outside the metallic armour.
The film draws from the Extremis storyline in the Iron Man series, though Black and co-writer Drew Pearce take a few creative liberties with the setting and events. Extremis is a formula that recodes the repair centre of human beings and makes them nearly indestructible. The writers address the moral conflict of science becoming fodder for warfare but don't dwell on it for long. Things routinely crash, combust, sink, float and fly, supplemented by ruthless lines such as "I will own the war on terror. I will create demand and supply."
Downey does not have to bring new tricks to the table and makes use of an already well-stocked repertoire. His usually brash Stark experiences many moments of vulnerability this time and he excels in those scenes. And just when one begins to think his character's manner may be less audacious in this instalment, he offers this reckless piece of advice to a temporary sidekick, a boy of about 10 years: "Dads leave. You don't have to be such a pussy about it."
There are sequences that draw you to the edge of the seat like a striking 3D moment when Stark is hurled out of his Malibu mansion into the Pacific Ocean after an attack, or when he has to stop a team of 13 federal officials from falling to their death. A stirring image is that of him dragging his lifeless suit alone through snow-covered streets in Tennessee.
Black infuses the film with cutting humour, not unexpected considering the director's first and only other venture was Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, a 2005 crime comedy (another Downey-starrer and a must-watch). Iron Man 3 is packed with witty lines, though a certain quip about a wristwatch is repeated more times than is relishable. The plot is rich with clever twists that make one's jaw drop or in some cases, provoke chuckles.
The music by Brian Taylor has a more traditional superhero flavour and perhaps marks the maturing of the Iron Man series but it does not overshadow the soundtracks of the first two films, heavy on classic rock and full of bratty energy.
Ben Kingsley is superlative in the role of Mandarin or "The Master," sporting an elaborate costume and delivering his lines in a menacing, theatrical voice. Guy Pearce does a fine job as Killian, bumbling at first, then suave and confident. Paltrow, whose role mostly requires her to look pretty, upset or worried, pulls it off comfortably.
So, does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man? The answer becomes clear in four closing words that are familiar but still sound glorious. Punch the air as you hear them being said this weekend.
