Iron Man 3

April showers bring May flowers but what May also brings for the last 7 years now is a new entry in the Marvel comic movie series. This year brings the return of Iron Man/Tony Stark in "Iron Man 3". Arguably the most popular stand alone character in the Marvel movie universe "Iron Man 3" is the first Marvel Disney release since last years box-office juggernaut, super hero cream dream crossover "The Avengers". Gone is Iron Man 1 and 2 director Jon Favreau and taking his place is 80's action/buddy flick phenom Shane Black (Lethal Weapon, The Long Kiss Goodnight) a random if not inspired choice. Returning is the always charismatic Robert Downey Jr. as the billionaire inventor Tony Stark turned superhero Iron Man and Gwyneth Paltrow as love interest/Stark Industries CEO Pepper Potts, playing the classic Iron Man foe "The Mandarin" is Oscar winning Sir Ben Kingsley. Iron Man 2 was seen as a disappointment to many (not me) but after the HUGE success of "Avengers" does Tony Stark still have enough power to succeed in his own stand alone franchise? The short answer is yes.

For me,Iron Man was always Marvel's response to DC comics own "Batman". Much like Bruce Wayne, Tony Stark is a billionaire playboy who essentially has no superpowers but is incredibly smart and has the ways and means to create themselves into superheros and seeks justice for the justified. Tony Stark, unlike Bruce Wayne going back to the actual comics has always had charisma and most importantly a sense of humor. That is partly what makes this the perfect vehicle for Robert Downey Jr. who again knocks this role out of the park, he could play Iron Man in his sleep at this point. "Iron Man 3" finds our hero having sleepless nights as he is suffering from panic attacks and anxiety from the events that took place at the end of "The Avengers". Through a series of events (no spoilers) Stark seeks all out revenge on "The Mandarin" which leads him to of all places: rural Tennessee.

One of the big problems people had with "Iron Man 2" was that its place was basically just to be a set up for "The Avengers". I appreciated the effort because "IM2" delved into the darker side of Stark/Iron Man, including his battle with alcoholism and the fact that Mickey Rourke is worth the price of admission alone. The producers were smart to insert new blood into the creative side of the franchise, with enlisting Black to write and direct "IM3" is easily the best written entry in the series and for fans of the old 80's/early 90's action films you'll appreciate it. This is only Black's second directing job but the action scenes here are flawless, the centerpiece being one involving Air Force One is particularly pulse pounding.

There is one portion of "IM3" that will probably have fellow nerds up in arms. It is a pretty big moment in the film and if you know your Iron Man comic book lore you know that the big revelation is something not out of the comic book stories. This revelation did catch me off guard and goes against everything that the comics had already determined about a particular character but after getting passed all that the way they switch things around is actually pretty clever and original, if you have never read an Iron Man comic then this will mean nothing to you and wont notice any difference. And as with every Marvel film be sure to stay until the end of the credits, you will get a little Easter egg. It has nothing to do with any future "Avenger" installments but it is good for a few chuckles.

Overall "IM3" gives the fantastic and always anticipated summer movie season a well deserved kick off. This has been a consistent and durable franchise in an era of "Fast and Furious 11". Downey Jr. and Paltrow continue to have some of the best on screen chemistry in movies today. If messy contract negotiations between Downey Jr. and Disney/Marvel go south for future installments this trilogy ends on a solid note.