Being surprised is the best part of watching films.
Audiences crave mysteries and find immense pleasure in attempting to unlock a film's secrets, yet enjoy being one step behind the filmmaker's ruses. Solving a mystery creates a vacuum of cinematic fun, draining a film of life, while the act of deduction amidst progressing action is a stimulating treat. Only dramatic irony, an intentional plot device, is capable of deriving joy out of a prematurely knowledgeable audience, and in either case of functional moviemaking, the director (as master storyteller) and audience (as captive intelligent receptors) benefit equally.
While superhero films are far from exercises in Hitchcockian suspense, it is nevertheless a joy to be surprised that Robert Downey Jr. makes for an appealing action hero, Jon Favreau (of "Elf" fame) is an effective superhero director, and that their Iron Man is a successful overall film. Though featuring a cast rounded out by Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard, and Jeff Bridges, an adaptation of a minor superhero with a director and star both unproven in the genre is a risky move. But Favreau and Downey, with a little help from Industrial Light & Magic, take their enthusiasm and talent and produce a film that is, most importantly, thoroughly entertaining.
Downey's wonderboy sarcasm brings ideal depth to his billionaire mechanical genius, Tony Stark. All of Marvel impresario Stan Lee's extraordinary characters exhibit unique dimensions of relatable personal flaws and weaknesses, and Stark is no different. After surviving a near-death abduction by terrorists, Stark uses his ingenuity to escape, yet becomes increasingly vulnerable to mortality as a result. In voicing the error of his arms-dealing ways, Stark is viewed as a lunatic by the money-obsessed public and his greedy company's board of directors, but uses his newfound conscience to avenge evil in a near-impenetrable suit of armor.
But as is expected in this genre, the action is the main attraction. Batman Begins set a new standard for superhero films, but the flying scenes of Iron Man are the most satisfying sequences from a Marvel Comics release since the Nightcrawler moments of X2: X-Men United. Burning across the sky and eluding fighter jets in his shiny metal threads, Stark sets the standard for this summer's surplus of action films.
However, with all of these notable findings, it is disappointing that Iron Man's central plot twist is easy to decipher. Perhaps the contributions of four writers on the script negated the possibility of a unified concept, but what is intended to be a gasp-inducing moment of unforeseen shock unfortunately gets reduced to a scene of "told you so" simplicity. In the wake of the superior new Batman films, expectations for superhero screenplays have been elevated, and though neither Charlie Kaufman-esque creativity nor David Mamet's precision are audience requirements for this genre, that's still no excuse for lazy plotting.
Surprises aplenty are to be found in Iron Man, but, though it's regrettably far from startling, the film's writing is its main weakness. Yet regardless of this relative shortcoming, Favreau's effort is full of merit.
Other Notes
-Iron Man features the best Stan Lee cameo of all of expected Marvel film appearances.
-In a feminist analysis, Pepper Potts (Paltrow)'s hair starts the film in a bun, but after she dresses up at a benefit and her attractiveness is noticed by Stark, her locks remain down for the remainder of the film. In the final sequences, her curled 'do is further beautified with the aid of a flattering straightener. Is Favreau saying that once a woman is identified as being visually appealing by a male superior, only then can she feel comfortable to express her physical loveliness? Or, is Potts using her upper hand over Stark to her advantage, primarily drawing out the sexual tension into sequels while continuing the core of Starks' newfound humanity?
-Favreau makes an intelligent nod to hip-hop's Iron Man, featuring a Ghostface Killa video in the background of an airplane party scene.
-And please, stay through the credits.