Iron Man Soars

robert_downey_jr_in_iron_man_wallpaper_6_1280It’s not often when a movie based on a comic book turns out to be something truly special.

For every “Spider-Man” and “Batman Begins,” there are plenty of films such as “Incredible Hulk” and “30 days of Night” out there.

At first glance, a film like “Iron Man” looks to be a middling entry into the world of big screen comic-inspired drama. With a jaded star, playing a character that isn’t particularly adored by youngsters or appreciated [currently] by older comic book fans, this film looked as if it needed everything going for it to be able to escape big screen mediocrity.

Powered by a tour-de-force performance by Robert Downey Jr., and an excellent supporting cast consisting of Terrance Howard, Jeff Bridges and Gwyneth Paltrow, “Iron Man” may be the best comic book-inspired film since “Spider-Man.”

Some may even argue that it’s the best of all-time.

Make no mistake about it, being able to do such a thing with a character such as this is a daunting task. Over the past four decades, Marvel comics have always had numerous problems keeping the franchise fresh. For children, Iron Man seems a bit too grown up, as his well-documented drinking problems and womanizing tendencies are often too much for them. Teenagers and older readers however, often appreciate his exploits, but tend to stop reading comics when they get to a certain age, thus making the character extremely under-appreciated in the super hero world.

However, this film goes beyond the comic book and builds the protagonist up in a way where he is more interesting than ever before. Rather than a full-fledged makeover the likes of Venom in “Spider-Man 3” or Halle Berry’s horrid interpretation of Cat Woman, Downey is simply Tony Stark with the volume turned way up.

It is because of this that Downey turns in one of the best performances of his career, which will ultimately set the bar extremely high for future comic-inspired movies and later entries in the series. Never before has an actor been so at one with the character he’s played than Downey Jr. is in “Iron-Man.” Cocky, arrogant, yet charismatic and undeniably likable, Downey (“Zodiac,” “Charlie Bartlett”) does a phenomenal job as Stark, the millionaire playboy with a heart. With Downey leading the way through an exceptionally-crafted story and even better special effects, “Iron-Man” is easily the first film this year to truly captivate audiences.

As a matter of fact, “Iron-Man” is such a solid entry into the world of cinema that non-comic fans will love it as well. Director Jon Favreau (Daredevil, The Break-Up] has put together an amazing story that not only gives every character an opportunity to shine in their own way, it leaves the door open for a sequel that will continue to flesh out what has been a remarkable first entry for the franchise.

While it appears more so everyday that Hollywood may have run out of ideas completely, if films like this keeping popping up once every few months, comic book geeks may have a bigger voice in Hollywood than ever before.

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About Patrick Hickey Jr. 13819 Articles
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports. Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders. His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023. Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief. Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale. Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.

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