Iron Man loses its way
Having spent a few months as a hostage to terrorists, Stark becomes aware that his company's weaponry is falling into the wrong hands. Turning over a new leaf, he leaves behind his reputation of being a ladies man and vows to rid the world's bad guys of Stark Industries' high-tech gear.
Unfortunately, here's where the movie starts to lose its way a little. Stark's two closest friends, his chum-turned-sidekick, James Rhodes, played by a lacklustre Terrence Howard, and trusty assistant, Pepper Potts, played by the long-legged Gwyneth Paltrow, are largely unconvincing and remain on the periphery of the movie. There's a particularly uncomfortable scene between Potts and Stark in which the two kiss - nearly. The only chemistry here is in Stark's labs.
To the pleasure of gadget-fans however is the lengthy suit-creation sequence. Taking his reference design from the desert escape, Stark makes a vastly-improved suit, complete with hot-rod red paint job and flight stabilisers. Seeing a superhero kitted out in gear is one of the highlights of a superhero movie and Iron Man doesn't disappoint, his suit is quite simply as kick ass as they come.
Though the suiting-up sequence might feel a little longer than required, it is interspersed with some of the more amusing moments in the movie. Stark's fire extinguisher-wielding robot companion provides a handful of chuckle-worthy scenes, as does Stark's first attempt at flight.
Downey Jr plays a care-free, flamboyant playboy so well, you begin to wonder if he actually is one. Unfortunately, he doesn't offer the alter-ego required for Iron Man, and, as a superhero, he lacks a soul and fails to spark the imagination.