“Iron Man” has always been a large step for Marvel, starting with the introduction of the Avengers at the end of the first one, which was a great risk for the studio, being that in order for “The Avengers” film to take off, each and every one of the films leading up to it would have to be a success. So it came as no surprise that America’s favorite billionaire/playboy/philanthropist would be the first one to show us the aftermath of the events in “The Avengers” in what Marvel is referring to as “Phase 2.”
Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr., Sherlock Holmes) can’t sleep, plagued by memories of the alien invasion and his heroism in bringing down Loki, so he does what he does best – build things. When news of terrorist threats and attacks by a man known as “The Mandarin” (Ben Kingsley, Hugo) and one of his friends gets caught in the crosshairs, Tony suits up to bring the man to justice and publically announces his personal vendetta against The Mandarin. With his Post-Traumatic Stress, however, it appears that Iron Man may have bitten off more than he can chew this time.
Marvel took out all the stops with this film and gave us more of what we love most about Tony Stark – the witty banter and amazing action sequences. While the other two “Iron Man” films were great, “Iron Man 3” is a truly excellent display of humor, special effects, and awesome action. This film will have you both laughing hysterically and on the edge of your seat until the very end.
*WARNING* the following paragraph discusses a rumor about the ending. Although no details are given away (I would never spoil the end of a movie, especially one of this caliber), some of the more die-hard film fans might want to skip it just to be on the safe side.
But is this the end of Iron Man? Before seeing this latest enstallment, I had heard many rumor circulating from people who’d already seen the film claiming that this would likely be the last one. I’m here to tell you that those rumors are basically the rantings of paranoid fans. Without giving the ending away, I can say that while the end of this film could be taken as the end of a trilogy, it’s still wide open for many more sequels, and I can guarantee that this is definitely not the last we’ve seen of Tony Stark. Robert Downey Jr. expressed a decision he’s wrestled with a little while back about not wanting to continue making “Iron Man” films because he didn’t want to stop loving the role, so the studio likely decided to end this in a way that would be able to seem final without being TOO final.
Of course, there is a scene after the credits, so make sure you stay till the very end!
“Iron Man 3” is rated PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence throughout (gunplay, robot violence, things one would expect in an Iron Man movie. Nothing over the top.) and brief suggestive content (a couple is shown kissing in bed and sex is briefly and discreetly implied).