An unlikely but brave choice

The plot of the movie is pretty standard action comics fare. Rich, flamboyant, self-centered young man finds himself in a life or death situation. He survives but is forever changed. He has experienced evil and now wants to dedicate his life to saving the world. Thus a superhero named Iron Man is born.

Could be Bruce Wayne turning into Batman. But he is not. This one comes from Marvel Comics. But that can’t be. Superheroes in that place can only be mutants or genetic freaks. This one is very human. I recall only one human who turned himself into a superhero in  Marvel. It was that blind lawyer. Remember him? He also starred in a movie we would much rather forget.

So why do a movie about Iron Man. Popularitywise, he is no Spidey or Wolverine. He has no superpowers that would make for dazzling special effects. That is probably why it took them so long to get him to the big screen. But he is now having the last laugh. Iron Man is not only a blockbuster at the box-office. It is also one of the most entertaining films ever made about a superhero.

Credit goes mainly to Robert Downey Jr., an unlikely and very brave choice. He is a great actor and casting him pretty much took care of 90 percent of the movie. And I mean that in every sense of the word. He is so adorable and I have yet to see him turn in a bad performance. And I have seen him in a lot of films.

Some that I enjoy watching again and again like Chaplin, Heart and Souls and Chances Are have Downey in them. The guy even manages to pull out surprises in complicated duds like US Marshalls or Gothika. And who could forget him in Less Than Zero. He is so real, you get major chills watching his descent into hell. But is he superhero material?

He is. Move over Tobey Maguire. Move over Christian Bale. Downey has raised the bar in the field of superhero characterizations. He is simply terrific as Tony Stark, a witty, cynical, willful, boozing playboy, inventor and arms manufacturer who listens to AC/DC and likes nothing better than to make lots of money and fool around with women. That is until, he becomes the victim of his work.

Stark is demonstrating his latest bomb in Afghanistan when he is kidnapped by terrorists and forced to show them how to make one of his weapons. The thought of how this would be used and self-preservation drives him to use his skills instead to invent a device that would help him get away.

However his narrow escape and the experience of meeting somebody willing to sacrifice himself for the greater good change Stark forever. Thus encased in a suit of armor equipped with flame throwers, guns and jet-engines that enable him to fly, he turns himself into Iron Man.

Now jet-propelled and encased in a red metal suit, the newly-buffed and extremely attractive Downey can literally fly through the picture with a minimum of effort. But he does not. The artist remains present throughout. He presents Stark’s neurosis and vulnerability in huge gobs to the audience. He is so flawed but so determined to be better that one cannot help but emphatize with him. I believe that this is Downey’s finest quality as an actor and he has given this to Iron Man.

Despite this though, there is no cause for worry that Downey has turned Iron Man into another one of his high-brow outings. Director Jon Favreau, who also did the enjoyable Zathura has made sure that all the comicbook elements are present in their dark Marvel Comics colored glory. No way the kids will not enjoy this.

The action scenes are suspenseful and spectacular. Stark’s escape from the terrorists is already worth the admission fee. There is a bald villain with piercing eyes and an omnipresent leer. Jeff Bridges as Obadiah Stane and Iron Monger. There is a pretty girl named Pepper played by Gwyneth Paltrow providing support for the hero. And to keep the action interesting, Favreau used just enough familiar faces to play the friends and enemies surrounding Stark. Don’t blink. You might miss some of them.

I’m sure you will leave the process of identifying them till the time you get home though. This is because you would be too busy hanging on to every quip and every gesture by Downey there will no time to do anything else.

Sequel please. ASAP.