IRON MAN 3 (2013) MOVIE NEWS & REVIEW

iron man 3 (2013) movie

Genre              |   Science Fiction

Classification   |   M

Running time   |   131 minutes

Released         |   3 May 2013

cast

Robert Downey Jr. ... Tony Stark
Gwyneth Paltrow ... Pepper Potts
Don Cheadle ... Colonel James Rhodes
​Guy Pearce ... Aldrich Killian
Rebecca Hall ... Maya Hansen
Jon Favreau ... Happy Hogan
Ben Kingsley ... Trevor Slattery
James Badge Dale ... Savin
Stephanie Szostak ... Brandt
Paul Bettany ... JARVIS (voice)
William Sadler ... President Ellis
Ty Simpkins ... Harley Keener
​Miguel Ferrer ... Vice President Rodriguez

director

Shane Black

writer

Drew Pearce ... (screenplay by) &
Shane Black ... (screenplay by)
 
Stan Lee ... (based on the Marvel comic book by) and
Don Heck ... (based on the Marvel comic book by) and
Larry Lieber ... (based on the Marvel comic book by) and
Jack Kirby ... (based on the Marvel comic book by)
 
Warren Ellis ... (based on the "Extremis" mini-series written by) and
Adi Granov ... (based on the "Extremis" mini-series illustrated by)

cinematographer

John Toll ... director of photography

music

Brian Tyler

film editor

Peter S. Elliot
Jeffrey Ford

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box office result

Worldwide             $​​​​​​1,214,811,252

Australia                 $​​​​​​​​36,164,486

North America       $​​​​​​​409,013,994

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movie minutiae

This is the first IRON MAN movie, and the first movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, that doesn't hint at the events of a future movie in a mid-credits and/or post-credits scene.

Including the bonus post-credits scene in THE INCREDIBLE HULK (2008), this is Robert Downey, Jr.'s fifth portrayal of Tony Stark. This briefly tied him with Hugh Jackman's and Samuel L. Jackson's record of theatrical appearances as a comic character. However, Jackman re-took the record after this movie's release, with his role in THE WOLVERINE (2013), X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST(2014), X-MEN: APOCALYPSE (2016), and LOGAN (2017).

Screenwriter Drew Pearce compared Tony Stark to an American James Bond, for both being "Heroes with a sense of danger to them, and unpredictability". He also likened Tony to the protagonists of 1970s movies, like THE FRENCH CONNECTION (1971), where "The heroes' idiosyncrasies is what makes them exciting."

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related movies

AVENGERS:
AGE OF ULTRON
(2015)

IRON MAN 3 (2013) MOVIE IMAGES

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IRON MAN 3 (2013) STORY SYNOPSIS

When Tony Stark/Iron Man finds his entire world reduced to rubble, he must use all his ingenuity to survive, destroy his enemy and somehow protect those he loves. But a soul-searching question haunts him: Does the man make the suit... or does the suit make the man?

IRON MAN 3 (2013) MOVIE REVIEW

Reviewed by Mark Geraghty   |   Review date 14 June 2013

​​Pop Movee Rating

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The IRON MAN franchise is back in form!

IRON MAN 3 returns Marvel's most popular stand-alone comic book franchise to its winning ways after the critical misfire of IRON MAN 2. This third instalment benefits greatly with the addition of Writer/Director Shane Black. Like them or not, Black was responsible for scripts of some the late 80s and early 90s action blockbusters including the LETHAL WEAPON series. He puts his credentials to good use in bringing a more humane version of Tony Stark's Iron Man in this third outing for the franchise.

The film opens with a Tony Stark voice over and begins its story in 1999. Tony Stark, once again played by Robert Downey Jr., and Happy Hogan, played by IRON MAN & IRON MAN 2 Director Jon Favreau, are in Bern, Switzerland for a New Year's Eve party. Tony's obnoxious behaviour results in one of the central charcaters from IRON MAN 3 making a decision that will change everyone's life fourteen years later in 2013.

The story jumps forward to 2013...

Tony Stark is a much humbler man. His world has changed.

However, evil is never far away. A reign of terror is being unleashed upon the United States by a madman known as The Mandarin. Terrorist bombings have become common place and The Mandarin is ramping up his efforts; hi-jacking television signals to broadcast his threats of destruction. It's Happy Hogan who provides the motivation for Tony to get back in the game. Happy is extremely suspicious of an unannounced visit to Stark Industries by Aldrich Killian, played by Guy Perace, and follows one of his operatives to downtown Hollywood. It's bad news for Happy though, as he is seriously injured when one of The Mandarin's weapons detonates causing death and destruction. 

The first act of the film really concentrates on establishing Tony Stark's state-of-mind, his feelings toward Pepper Potts, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, and his reaction to the world since the events the alien invasion of New York shown THE AVENGERS (2012).

"Tony is a very scientifically minded guy who thought he was at the cutting-edge of science and suddenly he learns in those brief moments at the end of ‘Marvel’s The Avengers’ that there is an infinite amount that he doesn’t know," says executive producer Stephen Broussard. "That makes him feel small in a certain way and I think even encountering those other characters in ‘The Avengers’ made him feel like he may not be the most powerful person in the world, which he doesn’t like. He may be the smartest person in the world, but not necessarily the most powerful." 

This is where IRON MAN 3 is a much superior film than IRON MAN 2 - character development.

As a Comic Book film, nobody expects an IRON MAN film to be an art-house character exploration. It is, however, important for the film's characters to be developed enough for the audience to care about what happens to them throughout the story.

In IRON MAN 3, Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow are given enough good dialogue in the first act to establish the point they're at in their relationship and what it means for the future; especially for Tony, who is struggling with his place in the world. Thankfully, Gwyneth Paltrow is also able to flesh-out Pepper more in this third film. In the previous two films, she comes acorss as one-dimensional; like the conscience sitting on Tony's shoulder always nagging him to do the right thing. In this latest outing, Pepper feels like a real person and the film is all the better for it. 

Marvel Studios are very conscious that all of their characters are seen not just as super heroes, but as human beings just like the rest of us.

Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige elaborates;

"The secret to Marvel comics and why our films have continued to be successful is our attention to the development and complexity of our characters, all of which are flawed in some way. Marvel characters have resonated with audiences for 70 years because, despite the spectacular and amazing things that they can do, people can relate to their many flaws. They struggle in a way that is recognizable and people like seeing Super Heroes save the day, but have difficulty doing it." 

The first act culminates in an all-out attack by The Mandarin, played by Ben Kingsley, on Tony and those he has come to care about, including Pepper and Happy. At this point in the film, Tony becomes a fish out-of-water as he is forced to use his survival instincts to stay alive and come up with a plan to defeat The Mandarin without the benefit of his Iron Man suit. 

This second act of the film really benefits from Shane Black's involvement..

Black and fellow screenwriter Drew Perace, do something of an update on Black's own familiar buddy-theme and provides Stark with not one, but two buddies to bounce off through the second act of the film. The scenes between young actor Ty Simpkins, who plays Harley, and Robert Downey Jr. are funny and provide a pleasant contrast to the acts of terror being perpetrated by The Mandarin and his forces of evil. As the action gears up toward the end of the second act, the story gets us back into familiar Iron Man territory as Tony and James 'Rhodey' Rhodes, played by Don Cheadle, pair up both in and out of their respective suits.
​
The film launches into high gear in the third act, as the scope of The Mandarin's plan is revealed. The setting for the finale is Miami and the action moves from The Mandarin's lair to the Miami shipyards, where the final confrontation takes place.

One of the few criticisms of this film is that the finale is spectacular but predictable...

The point at which Tony is able to, once again, don his Iron Man suit is well done but doesn't bring anything that the audience haven't seen in the previous two IRON MAN films or THE AVENGERS.  But, that's not really what the finale is all about. At the end of the day, the audience want the spectacle of Iron Man and War Machine, now known as Iron Patriot, saving the world from The Mandarin.

It's more than enough to put the stand-alone IRON MAN movies back on track in anticipation of bigger, more breathtaking adventures for the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe ensemble.

IRON MAN 3 (2013) USEFUL LINKS

Iron Man 3 - Wikipedia
​Iron Man Three (2013) - IMDb
​Iron Man 3 (2013) - Rotten Tomatoes​

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