The talk of an "Iron Man" film had actually been doing the rounds since the early 1990s and there was even talk of a Hulk/Iron Man tie-in as a follow-up to "The Death of the Incredible Hulk" way back when before Bill Bixby's passing had put the kibosh on that series. However, by the mid-noughties, following a number of films which received lukewarm or worse critical reaction, Marvel decided that they were going to go it alone and launch Marvel Studios with the aim of putting a new series of films out. As well as being tied in to the comic books a lot more closely than some of the ones, all of these films would be interconnected and tie together to create a big epic story. And, as we all know a decade or so later (Christ, that makes me feel old), it went pretty well. But in 2008 it was very much a case of sink or swim and there were no guarantees that "Iron Man" wasn't going to go the same way as "Ghost Rider" or "Daredevil". Put simply, it was stand and deliver time.
(Just a quick NB before we start btw - the spoilers for the MCU reviews will be very limited for the above reason. I'm guessing a lot of people will have seen these films already but given that we'll be covering them in chronological order, I think it's safe to say that I don't want to give away too much especially if anyone wants to play along and watch them as we cover 'em in this blog).
Anyway, Iron Man - the story begins with a bit of background on Tony Stark, played by Robert Downey Jr, who's the owner of Stark Industries, an arms manufacturer started by his dad Howard (who died 15 years previously) and his business partner Obediah Stane (Jeff Bridges). We see Tony in Vegas where he's supposed to be accepting a "Man of the Year" award (presented by his long-time friend Colonel James Rhodes, played by Terence Howard) but instead he's taken the evening off to go gambling before copping off with an investigative journalist who's come to question him about his company's arms dealing history and taking her back to his shag-pad in Malibu. Because, y'know, that's just the kind of guy he is.
The next morning, Tony leaves his conquest to be seen out by his assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and, after being chauffeured to the airport to meet Rhodes by his other assistant Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau who also directed here) flies off to Afghanistan where he unveils Stark Industries' latest missile the Jericho which is shown blasting ten shades out of a mountain. However, on his way back to base, Tony's car is attacked by insurgents and he's kidnapped after a Stark Industries bomb used by the attackers blows up next to him.
Stark wakes up imprisoned by a group of local militants called the Ten Rings who want him to build a Jericho missile for them and torture him when he initially refuses. We find out that Stark only survived because his cellmate Yinsen, a doctor from the nearby town of Gulmira, was able to implant an electromagnet into his heart to stop the shrapnel from the mine from entering his cardiac system.
Stark and Yinsen eventually agree to build the missile for the group but actually end up working together to build a more powerful electromagnet for Tony and a robotic suit of armour to help them escape the prison. Belatedly the Ten Rings group discover what they're up to but by this time, the armour is built and Stark uses it to escape the tunnels and torches the camp in a cool fight scene. Unfortunately, Yinsen is shot dead by the kidnappers as the pair attempt to escape. Stark then takes off using the suit but crashes in the desert a few miles away destroying the suit in the process where a helicopter with Rhodes on board eventually rescues him.
Returning to the States, Stark holds a press conference where he announces that Stark Industries will henceforth no longer be manufacturing weapons much to the concern of Stane. He's also approached by Phil Coulson, an agent with SHIELD, who offers to debrief him regarding his escape (this, as we'll see, is the beginning of the Avengers initiative). Leaving Stane to run the company day to day, Stark retreats back to his mansion to begin work on a new Iron Man suit based around the electromagnet with a bit of help from Potts and his robots. After a few failed attempts, he finally gets it working properly and heads off to a Stark Industries Charity Ball to celebrate.
However, while at the ball he's approached by a reporter Christine Everhart (the same one he schtupped in Vegas earlier) who informs him that the Ten Rings militants have been causing mass destruction in Yinsen's home town of Gulmira. Stark makes some enquiries and realises that Stane has been going behind his back by continuing to sell weapons to the militants and that it was him who ordered the hit on Stark at the beginning of the film.
Furious, Stark suits up and flies to Gulmira where he takes out the militants before flying away. However, Stane has organised a meeting with them where they give him the remnants of the original Iron Man suit they found in the desert. And so the stage is set for an explosive final confrontation between the pair. And I'm not talking getting the lawyers in to deal with a hostile takeover here...
Every so often there's a Marvel film that feels like an evolutionary step forward and "Iron Man" definitely falls into that category. It has just the right balance of action and intrigue and the cast put in a great performance to keep you glued to the screen, especially Downey whose career had been in the doldrums for well over a decade prior to this film while the special FX and cinematography are a class above anything we've seen so far on this blog. Suffice to say that if you're one of the few people who hasn't done so already that this one definitely falls into the "must watch" category and has comprehensively gone to the top of the table.
Of course, the rest is history - there'd be another two Iron Man films after this and the character would feature in several other MCU films, all of which we'll deal with in the weeks ahead as the franchise continues to grow and grow. Safe to say that it's going to be an enjoyable ride...
FINAL RATING: 🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖🤖 (10/10)
CURRENT MARVEL FILM TABLE
1. Iron Man (2008) (10/10)
2. Spiderman 2 (2004) (9/10)
3. Spiderman (2002) (9/10)
4. X-Men 2 (2002) (8/10)
5. Men In Black (1997) (8/10)
6. X-Men (2000) (8/10)
7. Blade 2 (2001) (7/10)
8. Blade (1998) (7/10)
9. The Incredible Hulk Returns (1988) (6/10)
10. Spiderman 3 (2007) (6/10)
11. Fantastic Four - Rise Of The Silver Surfer (6/10)
12. The Trial Of The Incredible Hulk (1989) (6/10)
13. The Punisher (2004) (6/10)
14. Conan The Barbarian (1982) (6/10)
15. Elektra (2005) (6/10)
16. Conan The Destroyer (1984) (6/10)
17. X-Men: Last Stand (2006) (6/10)
18. Blade Trinity (2004) (6/10)
19. Men In Black 2 (2000) (6/10)
20. The Incredible Hulk (1977) (5/10)
21. The Fantastic Four (2005) (5/10)
22. Doctor Mordrid (1992) (5/10)
23. The Punisher (1989) (5/10)
24. Doctor Strange (1978) (5/10)
25. Nick Fury: Agent Of SHIELD (1998) (4/10)
26. The Fantastic Four (1994) (4/10)
27. Hulk (2003) (4/10)
28. Red Sonja (1985) (4/10)
29. Captain America 2: Death Too Soon (1979) (4/10)
30. Spiderman (1977) (4/10)
31. Ghost Rider (2007) (3/10)
32. Bride of the Incredible Hulk (1978) (3/10)
33. The Death Of The Incredible Hulk (1990) (3/10)
34. Man-Thing (2005) (3/10)
35. Return of the Incredible Hulk (1978) (3/10)
36. Spiderman: The Dragon's Challenge (1979) (3/10)
37. Howard The Duck (1986) (2/10)
38. Captain America (1990) (2/10)
39. Captain America (1979) (2/10)
40. Generation X (1996) (2/10)
41. Spiderman Strikes Back (1978) (2/10)
42. Daredevil (2003) (2/10)
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