Iron Man 3 Official rate & review IRON MAN 3 thread!

[ElMariachi]

Yeah, she was kind of a waste in this movie. Not that she had to do anyways. Shame though because the comic version was a bit more interesting.

James Badge Dale was great and really added to the movie. Really well played as a memorable henchman.

 

[Tony Stark]

I loved the movie, but I totally agree about Rebecca Hall. It's a shame, since Maya is such a central character to the Extremis story.

 

[Steyin]

Well, this film was....average, bland and quite honestly, a little boring. I'd have to see it again to get a better feel, but upon my first viewing its nothing special. It wasn't as funny as people were making it out to be either, at least no more than the other films have been.

I wasn't as irked with [BLACKOUT]the Mandarin twist, but it still feels like a huge wasted potential for a lingering villain to remain in the background for future plots.[/BLACKOUT]

I did notice some things in the background that might have been a hint to future things, but I'll have to see it again to clarify.

AIM was also a letdown as [BLACKOUT]we don't learn anything more about the company, and I hope it shows up again in full glory, because it seems with Killian dead and his scheme exposed, AIM would be no more.[/BLACKOUT]

All in all, right now I give it a 6/10. IM1 remains the best of the three, and right now I still enjoy IM2 more.

 

[BrlntDsgse]

RDJ as always will probably be seen as Iron Man and will be impossible to replace if and when Marvel decides to reboot the series.

Downy is to IM as Depp is Sparrow. Neither one could ever be replaced.

Ehh, Downey IS great.....but I'd bet money that in a few years(after he does Avengers 2 and MAYBE one more solo IM film) we will see someone replace Downey....although NOT in the form of a reboot. Now that they have built this interconnected universe, you're not gonna be seeing any "clean slate", "starting from scratch" reboots, since doing it for one hero would necessitate doing it for the rest. The MCU is going to be treated like the James Bond series, just a constant continuation, replacing the actors every few years and just giving us further adventures of each hero.

PS nothing absolutely nothing, not even "Batman and Robin" was worse than Superman 3.

Hey now, let us not forget such intolerable crimes against cinema as Steel, Catwoman, Elektra and of course.....SUPERMAN 4..........those films are so bad they make Superman 3 look like Superman 2 by comparison.


But anyway, about the movie at hand.....LOVED it. The best IM yet. I loved the way that Tony himself was explored and the whole PTSD angle. Loved the fact that they didn't shy away from or ignore the wider MCU , but still made sure that this was fully and totally an IRON MAN movie(as opposed to part 2, which I also love, but was very much a "buildup to Avengers" flick). My only problem was the big twist,

Spoiler

with the Mandarin turning out to be just an actor hired by Killian.....it just seemed like such a waste of Sir Ben Kingsley, who up until the reveal was SOOO deliciously menacing. But, it at least worked in the context of the film, ad Guy Pearce as Killian and the whole contrast/mirroring of that character with Tony brought me back around after my initial disappointment with the twist.

All together, a great ,funny, action packed start to Phase 2, with a great angle on/exploration of the main character .... on a scale of 1 to 10, a solid 8-8.5

 

[Supermouse]

Great movie! It didn't feel as Superhero-y as I expected, but that's not always a bad thing. At least, with this movie and these characters, I think the decisions they made really worked out. If this were a Captain America movie, I think I would have been really disappointed.

I heard that RDJ is renegotiating his contract, which hopefully means he is asking for more money and not trying to do fewer movies. And hopefully Disney gives him everything he asks for, because the man is worth it. This stuff would not have made this kind of money without him.

Things I'm totally happy about: SPOILERS And I don't know how to black things out and am too lazy to learn right now, and this is the Rate and Review thread, and if you didn't read the spoiler warning and did read the spoiler then by golly I don't know what to tell you.

Spoiler

He saved Dummy!
Mk 42 Collapsing after Pepper Died. I think the "Whatever" line wasn't him joking, it's because he already knew how he was going to use the armor to kill Killian.
All the jokes! The sheer propensity and density of the humor in this film had me smiling throughout.
The movie was significantly different from previous Iron Man movies. I am so happy about that. Often the temptation is to keep doing what you're doing, but that way leads to stagnation. Even James Bond has crappy entries, and most of those are due to confusion about what makes that series great (and profitable). Quantum of Solace was panned by quite a few even though it returned to 007's "Roots" after a fashion, with the Wide-spanning evil scheme and Gadgets.

Things I'm less happy about:
The Mandarin reveal felt like a waste of a great villain. I think it would have been better if they used Mandarin here for realsies, and then in IM 5 or so they do it the jokey way. Then again, this movie is a predecessor to every Marvel Movie, and in the way that every movie is a predecessor of every movie that came before it, all the James Bond movies and every movie where the Mandarins tropes were played straight. So I'm not all that surprised that they went a different way.
Not enough War Machine! Though, it worked sense Tony went suitless for much of the film, if Rhodes had gotten to stay in the suit it would have been weird.
Iron Man suits are subject to the Inverse Law of Ninja Strength

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ConservationOfNinjutsu

 

[Son of Coul]

After thinking about it a lot and seeing it a second time, I think I can say this was my favorite of the Iron Man series. Its personality, tone, characters, dialogue, inventive set pieces, and all that jazz I just loved. Like Suzanne posted, part of IM1's charm is the feeling of improv and seat of their pants filmmaking that makes it feel like an earnest effort. Conversely, IM3's script is tightly written, and that works to its benefit in its own way. All the themes and arcs come full circle, and like The Avengers, it feels like one of the only MCU films that really has something to say.

I'll have to see how it holds up over time of course. Also, considering the distinct personality injected into both this and Avengers, I'm really excited to see how off-the-leash they let James Gunn go with Guardians of the Galaxy.

 

[RedIsNotBlue]

I have to say I am actually...pretty shocked at how many people are down on this film. I thought it was a blast and awesome. If anything it was on par with the first Iron Man which is why I am so surprised to see such nitpicking hatred towards this one. I suppose it was expected...the third of any film franchise is met with harsh, microscopic criticism. Fanboys need to get over the twist. Yeah yeah I know...you wanted to cream in your pants over the idea of The Mandarin going toe to toe with Tony Stark on screen but I absolutely loved how Shane Black handled him for the film. It actually surprised me which doesn't happen too often these days and Kingsley's performance was one of the highlights of the film. I would give it a solid 8/10 rating. Fantastic summer popcorn film and I will definitely be buying and watching again in the future.

 

[spider-neil]

The posters claiming SM 3 was better are completely insane. As others have said I would rate this right behind the Avengers.

Then call me insane. SM 3 never made me angry, therefore (for me) SM3 = Better movie.

 

[Pickle-El]

I posted this in the Superman forums...might as well give my final thoughts on this film a few days after seeing it. Mind you , NOT coming from a comic book fan of Iron Man or the Mandarin. Just a guy who has watched the films, and had pretty high expectations coming off The Avengers.

Agree with you on all counts. They tried telling me on the IM3 forums that I just didn't get it. The reason being that I simply didn't understand this "fresh" take on a comic book film. That this was daring, and flying above the heads of people who didn't agree with the obvious lazy storytelling.

Spoiler

Never mind that the villain that the marketing depended on...the Mandarin had friggin one-sheets and was all over the commercials. The trailers and spots had this as an Iron Man vs Terrorism Real World sell to it. THAT was interesting, and had me awaiting how it would play out.... And to just bank a left in the middle of the film and reveal the Mandarin was just an actor for hire.

It's insulting is what it is. At least wait till the end to keep the audience in suspense. They lost me right there. I laughed, because

Spoiler

Kingsley

is such a great actor and he did a commendable job. Still, I was like, "that's it? he's done with?"

The story hotshot-ing really undermined the premise of the whole film. At least, the one they were selling to audiences. They were hoping that (RDJ) and the comedic elements would be enough to cover up the many, many flaws. And, as you can see....to those of us (or them) clever enough to "get it". It did cover up many of them. 10/10!

No wonder Downey is finished with Iron Man. Nothing left to see here folks. Where do you go from here?

Btw, just for reference

IM 1 9/10
IM 2 6.5/10
IM 3 7/10

 

[spider-neil]

For the record IM 3 has gained another point and is now 79% on RT

 

[Eros]

Yea IR3 was a great and fun movie, a summer pop corn flick with humor and heart.

 

[Steyin]

Just going to ask this here as well as this is the popular thread of the moment:

Anyone else get Disney surveys at their viewing? One of the questions was "how interested would you be in seeing the following films?" and the films listed were Thor 2, Cap 2, Ant Man, Avengers 2, The Lone Ranger (I think) and Iron Man 4.

 

[spider-neil]

Just going to ask this here as well as this is the popular thread of the moment:

Do they say you can choose more than one. Seems a little redundant because everyone will vote Avengers 2 so what exactly are they learning?

 

[spideyboy_1111]

Anyone think the Roxxon oil spill reference could be a future Namor set up?? I sorta geeked out about that did bit

 

[spideyboy_1111]

Then call me insane. SM 3 never made me angry, therefore (for me) SM3 = Better movie.

spider-man 3 didn't make me angry, it made me embarrassed to be a spider-man fan... Which imo is like 5 levels worse......

 

[Steyin]

Do they say you can choose more than one. Seems a little redundant because everyone will vote Avengers 2 so what exactly are they learning?

It was for each film on a scale, I think it was 1-yes definitely, 2-maybe, 3-none at all; something along those lines.

 

[Eros]

spider-man 3 didn't make me angry, it made me embarrassed to be a spider-man fan... Which imo is like 5 levels worse......

That movie embarrassed us all, and Peters constant chubby face crying.

 

[spideyboy_1111]

Just going to ask this here as well as this is the popular thread of the moment:

Its such an odd survey considering all but IM4 are completely already planned....

Maybe they're trying to decide how wide of a release they should get??

 

[Compi716]

One thing I'm noticing in some of the more negative fan reviews is that the reviewer becomes hung up on the details, rather than focusing on the story as a whole. The entire "Who is the real Mandarin" issue tends to never get any further than that, leaving it as an on-the-surface criticism. Why are these same fans not examining the film in its entirety and asking WHY that is the case, and if the concept works IN THE CONTEXT of the film?

I believe it does. On paper, I balk at the idea. I'm a hardcore comic fan and, by God, I want to see my characters done right! But when watching the film and looking at it objectively...wow, it actually works.

 

[spideyboy_1111]

That movie embarrassed us all, and Peters constant chubby face crying.

I remember being with a group of friends who all knew my spidey obsession... And ive never been more embarrassed over a movie in my life... I was crouching in the chair half the time... Especially during the dance number...

 

[Punisher_MAX]

still need to digest it more but i liked how "back to basics" it was. Tony was constantly showing that HE is the Hero and not the suit despite his reliance on it. I liked how he pretty much had to improvise and take matters into his own hands/use his smarts to accomplish what he couldnt do.

Spoiler

The Mandarin was actually well done, Killian had all the characteristics and abilities that Mandarin has in the comics, Kingsley was definitely the FACE of the Mandarin...i hope that they somehow bring back Killian as a full on Mandarin with some tech rings to enhances his Extremis, i think it be great...but i wasnt too pissed on the twist, if anything it made sense

Pros:
- Great story arc for Tony. The message of demons from the past was great.
- Loved how they kept referencing The Avengers
- The "Back to Basics" approach was good
- The PTSD thing and his acceptance of it at the end was good.
- The movie knew when to be deep and when to be funny...i liked the balance.
- The "sentient armors" thing is a great start off point for Ultron. hope they follow it up.

Cons:
-The Avengers still has the best Iron Man action sequences. Still waiting on that OH **** moment with Iron Man. closest was in IM2
-

Spoiler

it WAS a bit disappointing that Kingsley wasnt the "true Mandarin" cause his vidoes/teachings/messages WERE sick as hell.

-War Machine had more to do but wish he wouldve kicked ass alongside Tony with the Suits.
- The last battle was too short.

 

[spider-neil]

It was for each film on a scale, I think it was 1-yes definitely, 2-maybe, 3-none at all; something along those lines.

Ah! Sensible.

 

[spideyboy_1111]

One thing I'm noticing in some of the more negative fan reviews is that the reviewer becomes hung up on the details, rather than focusing on the story as a whole. The entire "Who is the real Mandarin" issue tends to never get any further than that, leaving it as an on-the-surface criticism. Why are these same fans not examining the film in its entirety and asking WHY that is the case, and if the concept works IN THE CONTEXT of the film?

I believe it does. On paper, I balk at the idea. I'm a hardcore comic fan and, by God, I want to see my characters done right! But when watching the film and looking at it objectively...wow, it actually works.

That's exactly how i feel about it. Could they have done a propper Mandarin ? Sure... But either way, lets face it.... People would still complain, even Favs never wanted to do the power rings.

And id still love this version of the story just as much.

Bring on Ghost, Madame Masque, and Zeke Stain for IM4!

 

[Xeno]

Haven't read through all the pages, but... was I the only one who kindasorta wanted Pepper and Maya to make out?

No? Just me, then?

Also, because it cannot be said enough: IRON MAN 3 PASSED BECHDEL! It was short, but sweet, sweet, sweet! And damn, but Pepper and Peggy C. remain the gold standard for today's CBM "love interests". I love how the MCU developed them, and I really, really loved everything about Pepper in this movie. Paltrow was perfect! Although looking at Man of Steel, I think Amy Adams' version of Lois Lane will join them.

The one thing that really bothered me about the film was that Pepper's [BLACKOUT]Extremis powers were removed. Although I agree with Tony that she was perfect the way she was, I felt that deprived us of one incredibly powerful superheroine in the making.[/BLACKOUT]

 

[spider-neil]

I remember being with a group of friends who all knew my spidey obsession... And ive never been more embarrassed over a movie in my life... I was crouching in the chair half the time... Especially during the dance number...

Ha ha! The dance number. Where's your sense of humour? t:
Now you're going to call me a hypocrite for not being able to laugh at the Mandarin in the same way

The difference is the movie was built up as one thing and then delivered something different entirely. The whiplash (no pun intended) was so jarring it instantly made me turn on the movie to the point I could have happily got up and left the cinema there and then.