Iron Man 3

***1/2

Dir. Shane Black

This third installment in the popular franchise is a satisfactory, decent kickoff to this year's string of summer blockbusters. While no match for the cleverness and fluidity of the first film in 2008, Shane Black makes a valiant effort to give the Marvel character a darker and more compelling edge.

Opening with a voice over by Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), the superhero/cocky philanthropist remains altogether traumatized by the events which took place in The Avengers. With his opening line being "We create our own demons", the head of Stark Enterprises recounts his first encounter with a rival by the name of Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) in the late 90s. Also revisited is a brief love affair with botanist Maya Hansen (Rebecca Hall), which comes back to bite him in this story.

Now posing a threat for Iron Man and the rest of the country is a Bin Ladin like terrorist known as The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley). Plagued by threats of national security as well as his own internal conflicts, this iconic hero is driven most by the love of his life Pepper Potts (Gweneth Paltrow). In a battle of epic proportions, the stakes are the highest we've seen yet for Iron Man (at least on the big screen).

Following the forgettable sequel of 2010, it was certainly refreshing to see Black bring a new and gritty vision towards this film. With the director of the first two (Jon Favreau) serving as Executive Producer of this one, a definite correlation between his style and Black's proves to be effective. Nevertheless, trying to bridge the gap between gritty and comical does present some noticeable problems. For instance, the fight sequences are mixed with nicely composed shoot outs (evidence of Black's work with Lethal Weapon), followed by pretty corny images of Mandarin's henchmen breathing fire. Some will think that cool, I found it a bit too much.

Another evident drawback of the film is the editing. It unfortunately feels very Michael Bayish at points through rapid pacing and some pretty sloppy shots. This inevitably creates a distraction at points that are intended to be really engaging.

While Black and Drew Pearce's script is not without its flaws, it nonetheless ties the loose ends of the previous installments in a very coherent manner. Through emphasis on Stark's shattered psychological state of mind, it is a unique script for a comic book movie in that it makes effective use of subplots. Further developing the relationship between Tony and Pepper opens doors for some well crafted dialogue. The story also continues to utilize the military ties of Tony's right hand man Col. James Rhodes/War Machine (Don Cheadle), even though his suit is way cooler in the last one.

Parts where the script could've improved on, in my opinion, would be with the introduction and background of Killian's character. One of the highlights of the first film is how effectively Favreau and the screenwriters depict Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) as the antagonist. For once, there's a comic book bad guy that doesn't come out at the beginning and say "hey I'm the villain". I feel like Black and Pearce tried so hard to match that when they were writing the scenes with Killian. Attempting to live up to the original is always a problem with sequels.

Fortunately, despite the more gritty tone of the film, the Tony Stark we all know and love remains as cocky and careless as ever. This of course leaves room for Downey Jr. to deliver a string of unforgettable one liners in the same manner as he's done before. Having embraced the character so dynamically, the chemistry between him, Paltrow and Cheadle is all the more vibrant. Needless to say, Pearce and Kingsley also give effective performances, stepping into the villain's shoes without fear and possessing a wealth of imagination.

Overall, Iron Man 3 is an enjoyable, nicely crafted sequel that effectively pays tribute to the original. While disappointing at times, it nevertheless makes for a solid Friday night flick.