I AM: IRON MAN Review
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Iron Man
Director: Jon Favreau
10
Where to Watch Iron Man?
Every story has a beginning. We must meet the characters, establish the norms, introduce our conflicts, and point us in the direction of where we are going. The story of Prairie Grown Reviews began in 2020 when three friends who wanted to create a reason to talk during COVID-19 decided to start a review website. If you are reading this, you’d know that these days we review books, movies, and video games.
Starting in 2020 did create a missed opportunity as the most popular film franchise the MCU had just finished its Infinity Saga and even though the franchise was continuing we had missed out on that iconic run. So now, four years later, I, Sebastian Weir, am embarking on a journey to review every single MCU project from Iron Man to The Marvels which includes every film and TV show that is part of the universe and I will accomplish this before the release of Deadpool and Wolverine in July.
If you are a long-time fan of the website and our YouTube channel you might be aware that we did reviews of the entire Infinity Saga. We have also reviewed many projects in Phases 4 and 5 so to keep my sanity I will only review the projects that we have missed. To start our journey let us travel back to 2008.
It’s funny that in 2008 two comic book movies would be released that would shape the future of the genre. There was The Dark Knight, which was the sequel to a successful film Batman Begins, it won the Oscars, it was widely acclaimed and it holds the title as my favourite DC movie. However, I would argue that Iron Man was the bigger game-changer. Now that could be a whole article on its own and I know that’s a subject of much debate but what Iron Man started was unprecedented. The question is does the movie holdup? I mean it’s getting close to 20 years since it came out.
The short answer is yes, the movie is just as great as it was when initially released and is still to this day one of the best origin stories in film history. My mom took me to see Iron Man when I was seven years old. I do remember the first time I saw it, where I got scared and we had to leave but I also remember the second time I saw it and I was hooked. I don’t even know if we caught the post-credit scene the first time, honestly, we probably didn’t.
I can tell you that I watched the movie over and over again. It probably was my most-watched movie for a time. When I reviewed Star Wars A New Hope, I described that film as iconic and I believe this film falls into the same category. From the very beginning with Back in Black by ACDC playing and we see Tony drinking while receiving a military escort it sets the tone right away. From there the movie just grabs a hold of your attention and doesn’t let go.
Robert Downey Jr. makes this film. Without him, nothing else happens, there is no Marvel Cinematic Universe if he does not nail this role. Now I know this is common knowledge but casting Robert Downey Jr. was a risk at the time as his image hadn’t fully recovered from his struggles with addiction and time in jail. However, in my opinion, I would say this is the greatest casting choice made in modern filmmaking.
His importance cannot be understated. His charisma and his bravado can be felt through the screen. He plays the playboy, billionaire, and asshole so well and in the first 30 minutes of the film, you see what kind of a man he is. He is selfish, womanizing, impulsive, and completely irresponsible. Once he is in the cave we get to see the transformation as he has to see firsthand the damage his actions have caused.
Some of my favourite acting in the whole MCU are the scenes of Tony and Yinsen in the cave where Yinsen presents Tony with his own mortality. Tony must face what he has done and take action to change the destruction and pain he and his company reaped. Tony Stark’s arc in this film is the crux of the film and just continues all the way through the franchise.
Other aspects of the film that I love are many of the moments where you can tell they are still figuring out how this universe is going to work. How much humour are we going to inject, how many references are we going to throw in, and how nerdy can we go but still engage broad audiences? Like in the movie, both S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Ten Rings are introduced.
Though S.H.I.E.L.D is presented as a low-tech government agency its prominence in the series becomes well-known in the next couple of sequels. Whereas the Ten Rings don’t get more attention until 2021 with Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. So it’s fun to see them lay down the groundwork and figure out elements of the formula that will become mainstays for later.
Coulson was introduced in this film and he was the first MCU original character who started in the films and then moved to comics. He is one of my favourite side characters in Phase 1. The other thing this film starts is the post-credit scene. Yeah, some films had done it before but it wasn’t something that was common or even well-known.
Nowadays when you go to the theatre for, every MCU film, as well as most franchise films you will see audiences waiting through the credits for the potential of a scene. Like I said this was a game changer. So many people missed the post-credit scene in Iron Man that they went to see it a second time. It’s one of my favourites as well as Samuel L Jackson was the perfect casting as Nick Fury and he gives an indication that there is a wider plan for this character besides the traditional sequel.
Jon Favreau did an amazing directing this film. He hadn’t done big-budget action before but he knocked it out of the park. My favourite scene is when Iron Man fights the terrorist in Gulmira. The power of every punch and weapon used by Iron Man is felt so strongly. I have two other favourite scenes. Firstly the “ I am Iron Man” scene is just iconic. For one, knowing that was improved is crazy because it shaped the rest of the universe so strongly.
Also in an age where every superhero had a secret identity, it was unimaginable that a hero would reveal themselves in that way. My other favourite scene of mine is one of Tony and Pepper’s conversations. Pepper has been the person who cares most about Tony with no ulterior motive. When they have the conversation where Tony says “ I shouldn’t be alive” I feel like that sets up his path for the next 10 years. Every decision he makes is trying to live up to what Yinsen said in the cave and that is emphasised with what Tony says in this scene.
This movie was a huge risk for Marvel. This was the first film that they produced themselves as Marvel Studios. Neither Sony nor Fox made the creative decisions it was Marvel themselves who had complete control of this film. If this failed not only, would they lose the rights to even more characters but their universe would be dead before it ever really began. This was a man named Kevin Feige who had an idea to fully adapt a Marvel universe that looked like the comics with crossovers and characters ups. A true cinematic universe. He knew it could be a hit and he knew this movie was a great place to start.
So whether you have seen it 20 times or have yet to check it out Iron Man has all the ingredients that will create its success that continues to this day. Check out the movie that started the phenomenon and still holds strong as one of its best. I couldn’t recommend it more and I hope you stay with me as I embark on my own hero’s journey.