Iron Man 3 – A review

I’ve put off watching Iron Man 3 for a long time because of the less than overwhelming thoughts expressed online about it. I recently made the decision to get myself up to date with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, however, and to do so by watching the films in chronological order according to a guide I discovered online, which leads me to this review

IRON MAN 3

Marvel’s “Iron Man 3” pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

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It’s fortunate, I think, that I don’t have high expectations for the MCU films, and that they were further lowered by what I had read online, because this would have been a disappointment.

I didn’t expect a stellar plot, none of the Marvel films have a great plot in my opinion, they’re enjoyable films but hardly fantastic, unfortunately Iron Man 3 suffers more than any of the other films I’ve seen in the MCU. The plot borders on the non-sensical (I realise this is a sci-fi/fantasy film series, so the plots aren’t going to make huge sense, but some measure of sense is necessary) and seems like something more suited to Michael Bay, whose films focus more on explosions and special-effects than on plot.

What makes the MCU films good has always been the characters, and the way they interact with one another, and this is where the film really lets itself down. Robert Downey Jr is not on top form throughout most of the film, and he suffers from a lack of anyone to bounce off – the only time he has that is when he connects with a young boy called Harley, and of course when he is talking to J.A.R.V.I.S.

Pepper Potts is a weaker character than usual, though she does have a pretty good scene during the final battle, as is Happy, and the bad guys lack charisma.

I found the action sequences lacking as well somehow.  There are some good moments, but overall they just don’t work for me, and I think in part it’s because there’s too many Iron Man suits.

I didn’t hate the movie, it was a reasonable way to pass a couple of hours, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I did the others in the series.