CBI Archive
5/2 - Selective Selleck Reviews… Iron Man!
Friday, May 2nd, 2008 at 8:25 PM EST
Updated: Friday, May 2nd, 2008 at 8:30 PM EST
Iron Man is Marvel’s best movie since Spider-Man 2 (though that isn’t really a mighty feat). It serves the mythos well, but does not wallow in it; it creates a charming, captivating Tony Stark; it refuses to shy away from its political message or the complexities of its themes (i.e., “weapons are bad, but I’ve become a weapon”); it’s rollickin’ good fun with a kickass attitude.
Also, Robert Downey Jr. makes my chest hair tingle.
(Really, Bill doesn’t work for Marvel. He would not mind a paycheck, though. Wink wink.)







13 Comments
Anthony Strand
May 2, 2008 at 8:38 pm
Yes! Totally! Loved it!
Better than Spider-Man 2! As good as X2!
Chuck D
May 2, 2008 at 11:07 pm
I thought it was the best Marvel flick yet. I enjoyed Spidey 2 and all of the Spider-Man films when I first watched them but they are really hard to re-watch. I know its blasphemy in these parts but I really don’t like what Raimi did for the most part. Anyways, I’m getting side tracked. Iron Man was awesome. The acting was great and Downey really felt like he was Tony Stark. Nothing felt corny or contrived and it didn’t really have any lulls or feel like it was going to long (unlike X2).
Andrew Collins
May 2, 2008 at 11:49 pm
I remember at one point a lot of fans thought Selleck would have made a good Tony Stark. Though I cringe at the idea of Iron Man being filmed in pre-CG days.
Agree with the opinion too. Just saw IM for the second time in 2 nights and still loved every second of it.
ZZZ
May 3, 2008 at 1:07 am
If you see it, make sure to stick around through the end of the credits.
Grant
May 3, 2008 at 1:17 am
“I remember at one point a lot of fans thought Selleck would have made a good Tony Stark. ”
Comic fans think any character with a moustache should be played by Tom Selleck. Or Bruce Campbell with a moustache.
jazzbo
May 3, 2008 at 1:30 am
Every character in every movie should be played by Bruce Campbell. With or without a moustache.
Bret
May 3, 2008 at 12:32 pm
Except those played by the cast of “Firefly” or Sam. L. Jackson.
Chris Simpson
May 3, 2008 at 1:34 pm
Cool flick - as good as Spidey 2 and X2; if not for plot but for attitude and acting. I still have a little trouble accepting Maguire as PP but Robert Downey Jnr was Tony Stark.
Recommended.
T.
May 4, 2008 at 2:54 pm
If it’s the best Marvel movie since Spider-Man 2, you may as well go ahead and say it was the best superhero movie since Spider-Man too, since every recent DC movie was pretty much subpar.
Lynxara
May 4, 2008 at 4:41 pm
Judging by Rotten Tomatoes, it’s the best superhero movie ever - it’s actually ahead of Spider-man 2 and Superman: The Movie in reviews.
(I have to say it’s probably my favorite superhero movie ever, and I didn’t go in as a huge fan of any version of Iron Man. Now I am at the very least going to read Armor Wars and Demon in a Bottle.)
By the way, isn’t is sad that Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man is a tremendously funnier character than Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man? I never realized just how poorly Raimi’s flicks had handled that aspect of Spidey until I was walking out of the theater.
J to the AAP
May 5, 2008 at 1:10 am
I’d tend to agree with that if it weren’t for Batman Begins, which was pretty awesome. That being said, Iron Man is on that level and is definitely one of the best superhero movies ever. I dont think anyone will ever be able to believably portray Tony Stark after Robert Downey Jr, he simply is Tony Stark.
joshschr
May 5, 2008 at 6:25 am
I was really surprised at Jeff Bridges and Gwyneth Paltrow too. I thought they’d be standard throwaway set pieces, but I now think they had some really good roles. I’m still not 100% convinced of Terrence Howard as Rhodey, but it will be fun seeing him in the War Machine armor. “Next time, baby!”
I just read Iron Wars through Iron Wars II before the movie. I didn’t think I’d like them since I have a hard time reading anything from that time, but I really enjoyed it. Tony’s behavior during Civil War doesn’t seem so far fetched anymore.
I am a pretty big Batfan, but I’d still take Michael Keaton’s Batman over Christian Bale. He’s just too nasally in the costume, and as much as I love the real world feel of Batman Begins, it didn’t win me over. I’m hoping TDK changes my mind.
Patent Dragon
May 7, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Excellent. Simply excellent. Washed the bad taste of Spidey 3 out of my mouth in next to no time, starting Blockbuster Season in fine style.
Very hard to beat, I think. If only the Fantastic Four and Hulk movies could be this good.