Iron Man (2008, USA)

Iron Man is an excellent example of what good popcorn entertainment should be - interesting story, solid characters, non-dopey comedy, and fun action sequences. I know nothing about the original comic, but I have to say that as a piece unto itself, the film version feels both fresh and entirely able to stand on its own. That's not something that's necessarily standard with any genre of adaptation, but certainly not for action/science fiction films. Jon Favreau has hit his stride as an entertainment director, and I hope that he keeps working on projects like Iron Man, starting with the inevitable sequel.

Really, though, a lot of the genius is in the casting - Robert Downey Jr. may be approaching middle age, but he hasn't lost a bit of his energy. It's simply delightful to see him sink into the character of Tony Stark, which seems tailor-made for him. In fact, it's great just to see Downey working again, and at the top of his game. I thought he was a bizarre choice for an action hero when I first learned of the project, but I'm perfectly happy to be proven wrong here.

I'm neither a big Gwyneth Paltrow nor Terrence Howard fan, but both are perfectly serviceable as Tony's personal secretary/love interest and best friend, respectively. Jeff Bridges is fun to see as a villain - he doesn't take these roles often, and it's a great adaptation of his gruff paternalism in service of a real baddie. After their face-off, I'm really looking forward to seeing what they come up with for round two.