Riding high off last year’s mega-blockbuster The Avengers, Marvel starts off the summer again with Iron Man 3, this time though back to one superhero leading the way instead of seven. While Tony Stark and Iron Man are no strangers to the summer blockbuster season (they’ve kicked them off before in 2008 and 2010), this time things are different. We are now in a post-Avengers Phase 2 type of world. The stakes are bigger and so are the bad guys. And what bigger foe for Tony and Iron Man to face than his comic book nemesis, The Mandarin!
The Mandarin . . . I know this will be a sticking point to a lot of fans of the comic books or fans who know the history of The Mandarin, and I’m going to address this right off the bat. I thought what they did with the Mandarin was actually okay. One of the things I was most worried about going in was how his character was going to come across onscreen. Even though I wasn’t blown away by the character in the film, I was satisfied with his storyline and how Ben Kingsley played him. That is all I have to say about The Mandarin.
Don’t call him Mandy. You wouldn’t like it when you call him Mandy.
There were a couple of things in the film that just didn’t quite do it for me though, first and foremost being the heavy use of visual effects and CGI. From the Mark 42 armor components to Tony’s different suits of armor to human beings hopped up on Extremis, there was a lot of CGI work going on here. Realistically speaking, anytime we don’t see Robert Downey, Jr.‘s face the Iron Man suit is most likely a CGI representation. While it’s okay since it has been like this since the first Iron Man, the piling on of even more CGI characters was a bit much for me. In a world where nothing “feels” real, it was really hard to get into these epic action sequences when you know what you’re seeing on screen were all pixels. Beautifully done pixels, but still pixels nonetheless. The stakes just didn’t feel the same when you don’t believe a character or a representation of a character isn’t a bit more tangible. Other than pretty stuff happening onscreen, there wasn’t as much for me to latch on to, and I found myself just a little bit less invested in what was going on.
Then there was the story. We all know that from the trailer, Iron Man takes on The Mandarin. What bothered me though was the resolution of a secondary storyline where Tony is suffering anxiety from what happened to him in New York with the Avengers. It’s beautifully set up, but I didn’t think it was resolved in a way that was totally satisfying. Tony has been struggling with this post-traumatic stress, and he’s been trying to find ways to overcome it, save seeing a doctor. His friends are worried, and all the elements seemed to be there for him to rise from the ashes like the phoenix that we all know he can be. Exactly how he has his “breakthrough” though seemed contrived and not at all authentic to what was going on in the story. I can’t really say more without getting into spoilers, but yeah, there was just something about Tony’s journey to overcome his post-Avengers anxiety that I just didn’t buy into.
Iron Patriot = War Machine Extreme Makeover: Marketing Edition
Not to sound too negative though, there are a lot of fun things about Iron Man 3. Front and center would have to be humor that director Shane Black brings to the film. While Joss Whedon brought an off-the-wall geeky comedic vibe to The Avengers, Black brings his dark and awkwardly funny humor that fans will recognize from Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. Just some of the banter that Tony has with other characters in the film and a ton of really embarrassing and awkward moments that happen throughout the film, some in life and death situations… I thought all of it was really fun and made the movie almost an action comedy.
And what kind of an Iron Man movie would this be without the addition of new Iron Man armor? Tony’s latest armor, the Mark 42, has two things that make it unique: 1) the suit can be controlled remotely by Tony, and 2) its components can operate and travel separate from one another. While you wouldn’t think this second trait is that impressive, it comes in quite handy as the armor does not have to be put on as a whole unit. In one scene Tony calls for the entire Mark 42, but only one of its hands and a single boot piece show up. With just these two parts of his suit, Tony still manages to utilize them to great effect to take out a couple of henchmen till the rest of the suit shows up. With Tony being able to control the suit and its components remotely, it made for some fun action sequences.
Tony Stark totally pwns on X-Box.
Finally, probably the best sequence in the entire film is the one that was teased during the Super Bowl where Air Force One is going down, requiring Iron Man to save a bunch of people that have fallen out of the plane. It’s one of those conundrums where the hero has a decision to make about who he should save, a decision usually where it seems someone will still have to be sacrificed in order for someone else to be saved. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time as the gears in Tony’s head were working up a plan, the ground is getting closer, and he and Jarvis are trying to save everyone. Definitely the highlight of the film.
At the end of the night Iron Man 3 sends Tony Stark, Iron Man, and Marvel’s Phase 2 off on a good foot. It integrates the fallout from The Avengers without seeming as ham-fisted as the S.H.I.E.L.D. storyline was in Iron Man 2 and also gives us a pretty decent Iron Man standalone movie as well. With great action and visuals, Iron Man 3 kicks off summer with a (repulsor) blast.
Iron Man 3 is now playing in theaters everywhere.
Rating 3.5/5 stars // PG-13 // 2h 10m
The Red Band Project 
Assembling a Universe I: High Profile Talent
Tags: Captain America, Chris Evans, Iron Man, Joss Whedon, Marvel, Marvel Entertainment, Phase I, Phase II, Robert Downey Jr, Robert Redford, The Avengers, Thor, Thor: The Dark World
Assembling a Universe is the first in a two part series (and potentially ongoing series) that takes a look at Marvel’s strategy in building their cinematic universe. Pictured above, the announcement of The Avengers at the 2010 Comic Con.
The gambit of Marvel’s Avengers Phase I paid off in dividends two years ago with the monumental release of The Avengers. Nothing like it had ever been undertaken before and it’s quite surprising that no one had attempted it sooner given the franchise film model that all the studios are currently operating under. Now that all the other studios are trying to chase Marvel, not only does it seem that they were ahead of the curve in every sense when building this mega franchise, but they seem to be really good at it as well.
Consider this, none of the Marvel films (post Iron Man) has been a flop and though not every film tops the last release, none has ever earned less than $370 million worldwide (not a lot when compared with the $1.5 billion that The Avengers made, but still a lot when you consider that Captain America–a film with ‘America’ in its title, is a hard sell in foreign markets). So what’s their secret then? Really, really well planning. In our first of two posts on ‘Building a Marvel Universe’ we take a look at one of the smart decisions that Marvel has made with their films: getting high profile talent.
This week marks the release of Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Joining series regulars Chris Evans (Captain America), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), and Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow) will be Academy Award winning Robert Redford. Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman, two Oscar winners, star in Marvel’s Thor franchise, most recently last year’s Thor: The Dark World. Back in late December we also saw the announcement that another Oscar winning actor, Michael Douglas, would star in Marvel’s forthcoming Antman movie.
Robert Redford and Samuel L. Jackson debating who should star in the next Marvel film in a scene from The Winter Soldier.
If you were to just look these names alone, you think that we were gathering actors together for an Oscar winner photoshoot. How about we throw in a few more names: Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner, Jeff Bridges, Mickey Rourke, Glenn Close, Scarlett Johansson, Don Cheadle, and Paul Rudd. While not all of them are Oscar winners, they all are recognizable actors. What they all have in common is that they are a very important part of the world building that is the Marvel cinematic universe.
To fully realize the scope of what Marvel is undertaking, there are a couple of key questions that we need to answer; the first of which is, why are high profile actors signing up for comic book movies? Sure, we’ve always had big names in superhero movies (Jack Nicholson in Batman, Wesley Snipes in Blade, and Arnold Schwarzenegger & George Clooney in Batman & Robin), but it’s never been anything on the scale of what Marvel is putting together.
The first and most obvious answer is money and work. By nature of franchises and tv series the longer they run, the more cast members are paid for reprising their roles in future installments. While many think all actors make quite the pretty penny, by taking a gig with Marvel, an actor knows they will have job stability over the course of several years in a couple of different films.
Yes, Joss Whedon can do this all he wants after the success of the first Avengers.
These type of franchise films not only get actors paid, but it also affords them a certain amount of clout to work on other films that are of interest to them (independent or pet project films). Would Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, and Joss Whedon be where they are right now if it wasn’t for their roles in the Marvel cinematic universe? Sure Downey, Evans, and Whedon were known names in Hollywood before Marvel’s Avengers movies came along, but none of them were bankable or A-list. Having a leading role in an Avengers movie (or shepherding in Whedon’s case) or two gives you something that sought after and is difficult to attain . . . box office bank-ability.
Believe it or not Chris Evans turned down the role of Captain America several times before he got a call from Robert Downey Jr. convincing him to take the role. From Variety:
later . . .
Evans first film as a director, 1:30 Train, is currently in post production and he hopes to start on his second film as a director after filming on Avengers 2 wraps later this summer. As stated in his interview, these types of projects wouldn’t be available to Evans if not for his role in the Marvel cinematic universe.
And even a third reason for actors joining up with Marvel is just plain curiosity and genuine interest. From IGN.com:
So while the big name stars that Marvel brings in to populate their world get more than just a nice payday for being in their films; what does Marvel get out of it? This is where things start to get interesting. At the surface level, you put known actors in your film and you already bring a sense of heightened awareness for it. People recognize them, and by extension, put the film on their radar. A secondary surface level benefit is that you put an established actor in a role and you know you’re going to get a good solid performance out of them. Granted you ultimately don’t know what kind of performance you have until the film is finished, but any filmmaker will tell you that casting the right actor is key for any film. Those with a proven track record, who deliver time and again, give filmmakers and audiences a certain confidence about a film.
How about this for gravitas, Hannibal Lecter himself Anthony Hopkins plays Odin in the Marvel cinematic universe. He’ll eat other superheroes for breakfast with fava beans and a nice chianti.
On a larger scale and most importantly, Marvel gives these films and this world a certain sense of credibility by having these types of actors in their films. Counting all of the Marvel films released to date as well as those coming out this year, there are 19 Academy Award nominated actors starring in nine films, six of which are Academy Award winners (to give you some perspective, the Harry Potter series only has 12 spread across eight films). Add to that a number of actors who may not be nominated, but still provide high quality work and are recognizable, and you have a sizeable pool of actors who moviegoers know and love. By having quality actors in a film, it gives Marvel a strong foundation to build their cinematic universe upon as well as a sense of legitimacy. Part of the message sent is “we’re serious about these movies and we want you to come see them.” And it’s with this credibility that Marvel is using to build and sustain their shared universe.
Marvel has embarked on something that has never been done before in cinema–create a set of films that exist in the same universe. We’re not talking about franchises and franchise building like Peter Jackson and the Tolkien movies or Harry Potter; while those film exist in the same universe, they are all essentially one long story. This is all old hat.
No, Marvel’s shared universe is a bit different. They are producing a game changer. While every other studio out there is jumping on the “EPIC group superhero movie” bandwagon (Fox with another X-Men movie and Sony with multiple Spider-Man movies), Marvel is paving the way for something bigger. After the success of The Avengers, Marvel has moved on to what they call “Phase II.” While many think that Phase II is just building to another Avengers movie much like the Phase I of Marvel films did, Phase II is more than that. It will ultimately lay the groundwork for an entire universe of superheroes and potentially endless supply of movies. If Avengers 1 was a gamble that paid off, the impending success of a second Avengers movie will not only solidify the Avengers series of films, but open the door for Marvel to further populate this universe that they’ve created. The are ultimately out to create a goose that will lay them an endless supply of golden eggs.
While the superhero films of the late 90s/early 00s introduced us to the modern superhero film (Blade, X-Men, Raimi’s Spider-Man), Marvel has established it as an official genre; with the actors that they recruit to be in their films being an important cog in the larger machine. You see a universe of this size, it needs strong supports to hold it up. High caliber actors provide this type of support.
Phase I . . . Assembled. Now on to Phase II.
We know that the stories from Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and this summer’s Guardians of the Galaxy compose Marvel’s Phase II and lead up to next year’s Avengers: Age of Ultron, none of this would be possible if we as an audience didn’t believe in the characters that populate this universe. While franchises come and go, having an entire ‘universe’ of films to draw from does carry a certain gravity with it. Through calculated and shrewd decision making, Marvel’s casting of well acted and reliable talent for their films gives them an excellent foundation to build their universe.
Is part of Marvel’s success due to the shrewd casting of high profile actors in their films? Tell us what you think and more in the comments.