Early word on "Iron Man"

[Blackadar]

First of all, I took the family to see Iron Man last night.  I really liked it because RD Jr. made that character likable without being lovable.  My son loved the action.  Even the wife enjoyed it.  Definitely one of the best superhero movies of all time - it ranks right up there with Superman, Batman, Spiderman II and Batman Begins.

What's the deal with Ed Norton on The Hulk?  I really enjoy his movies - I think he's one of the best actors of his generation - so I'm curious to know what's the difficulty on The Hulk.

[leo8877]

First of all, I took the family to see Iron Man last night.  I really liked it because RD Jr. made that character likable without being lovable.  My son loved the action.  Even the wife enjoyed it.  Definitely one of the best superhero movies of all time - it ranks right up there with Superman, Batman, Spiderman II and Batman Begins.

What's the deal with Ed Norton on The Hulk?  I really enjoy his movies - I think he's one of the best actors of his generation - so I'm curious to know what's the difficulty on The Hulk.

Apparently he had some differences in opinion about the final cut of the film.

[Purge]

If they need to pencil him out, all they need to do is get him on a 5 minute cameo and go grey hulk... then the next Hulk ONLY movie can deal with the collision of Bruce, Grey, and Green and defeat his father issues and just become The Hulk.

They may even shorten that up and leave out Grey entirely.

[rickfc]

If they need to pencil him out, all they need to do is get him on a 5 minute cameo and go grey hulk

The problem with that is that it wouldn't follow the Ultimates at all, and apparently that's the story arc they're following (mostly) for these movies.  In fact, the Hulk barely makes an appearance in the Ultimates, but when he does, it's HUGE.

[Blackjack]

I keep digging around for interviews and such. The NY Times had this interesting slide show, featuring some ILM concept artwork and sketches, and narrated by ILM's Aaron McBride, visual FX art director for Iron Man.

Suiting Up Iron Man
http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/movies/20080502_IRONMAN_FEATURE/index.html#section

In the 1980s, the comic book had his armor being these flat things that fit in a briefcase, and when he needed to put them on, they just sort of popped out as full size armor and he shrugged them on by hand.

I guess in the more recent variations, it's some sort of "bio armor" that sprouts out of his skin and envelopes him (which I think I read Favreau wasn't too keen on trying to do, he was shooting for something a teeny bit more currently plausible).

[CeeKay]

I guess in the more recent variations, it's some sort of "bio armor" that sprouts out of his skin and envelopes him (which I think I read Favreau wasn't too keen on trying to do, he was shooting for something a teeny bit more currently plausible).

his new armor also seems to break everytime he gets into a fight-  maybe he should have stuck with the old model.  and don't get me started on how often his SHIELD helicarrier seems to crash....

[chaosraven]

I guess in the more recent variations, it's some sort of "bio armor" that sprouts out of his skin and envelopes him (which I think I read Favreau wasn't too keen on trying to do, he was shooting for something a teeny bit more currently plausible).

after being critically injured during a battle with the Extremis-enhanced Mallen, Stark injected his nervous system with a modified techno-organic virus to save his own life. This fused Stark's armor to his body, allowing him to store the inner layers of the Iron Man armor in the hollows of his bones as well as control it through direct brain impulses. He is also able to remotely connect to external communications systems such as satellites, cellular phones, and computers throughout the world. Because the armor's operating system is now directly connected to Stark's nervous system, its response time has been significantly improved. The Extremis armor grants him superspeed reactions and a healing factor able to regrow whole organs.

FWIW I'm a longtime Iron Man Fan (more than Batman, cuz seriously why didn't Batman build this suit of armor?)
and I loved this movie.

[pr0ner]

Hey, even Box Office Mojo (they basically hate every movie ever made, is how I consider their reviews section) liked Iron Man, so it must have some redeeming features. 

Robert Downey, Jr. Rocks as Witty Superhero
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/reviews/?id=2490&p=.htm

Another reason to see it is that (I assume in most places) you get to see newly updated Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, The Hulk and The Dark Knight trailers. You may also hoot at the trailer for the latest M. Night Shyamalan trailer. I like the guy, loved The Sixth Sense, but for the Love Of God, come up with a new schtick for your movies! (he doesn't  ) When the trailer ended, I heard people in the audience cackling at the title. Doesn't bode well for his continued career...

That's because Tony Stark/Iron Man is the perfect objectivist/capitalist/Ayn Rand style hero.  Scott Holleran, the critic at Box Office Mojo, is a noted objectivist, who demands characters and plots and movies to fit in with his philosophic viewpoint.  That's why almost every fantasy movie gets panned; fantasy doesn't mesh with his objectivist view, and any fantasy movie sucks as a result.

[SzechuanLlama]

Saw it last night, loved it!  Seriously rocked, and I can't wait for the inevitable sequels.  And though it has been noted before, STAY UNTIL THE CREDITS ARE OVER!!

I damn near had a fanboy seizure on that one - *** ********!?!?!!?!!!!!!?!!?  Are you kidding me?!?!?!!?!?!?!  WOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Can. Not. Wait.

[YellowKing]

Dammit, I missed whatever was after the credits!

However, we saw it last night and absolutely loved it. Great humor, great action, great dialogue, and Robert Downey, Jr. is THE MAN! I've always liked him, even in his cokehead days, and it's great to watch his comeback unfold. He's been in a lot of lesser known movies in recent months/years, but he needed a big blockbuster like this to put him back in the public spotlight.

I also thought the suit looked incredible. In these superhero movies it's so hard to walk the line between "cheesy" and "bad-ass." This movie screamed "bad-ass" from the get-go and didn't look back.

[rickfc]

Dammit, I missed whatever was after the credits!

YouTube is your friend

It may not be up too much longer, but you can see it for yourself...

[YellowKing]

Thanks a bunch rick - super cool.

Also forgot to mention that when we went to the theater last night there were only 20 or so people there. However, it was such a great crowd. They were clapping when they saw the suit, laughing uproariously in all the right places, and everybody coming out of the theater had big grins on their faces. Really fun night.

[Simon]

Saw it yesterday and really enjoyed it, definitely one of the best comic book hero movies made so far. I've liked Downey Jr. for a long time and he absolutely made the film, I honestly couldn't imagine anyone else in the role. Looking forward to the sequel and hopefully we'll see a lot more action in it.

[SzechuanLlama]

The true battle begins...

[CeeKay]

The true battle begins...

 

[chaosraven]

"Oh real mature! That's not even true!"

Fabulous!

[Blackjack]

So, the Marvel comics writers themselves love the movie too. Although it's not we should expect them to be quoted on the Marvel Web site as saying "Iron Man blows!"  Still, I'm fairly sure these same guys had no kind words to say about the Daredevil, Fantastic Four, Punisher, Elektra, or Hulk movies. So, perhaps it's worth something afterall. 

Marvel Comics’ creators weigh in
http://www.marvel.com/news/moviestories.3551.TGIF%7Ecolon%7E_Iron_Man_Reviewed
I'll boil it down for the easily bored...

Mark Waid: "Perfect. Note-perfect. The best Marvel movie yet. Robert Downey, Jr. is the single best-cast super hero since Christopher Reeve as Superman, and the humor and humanity he brings to the role of the cool exec with the heart of steel is just remarkable."

Reggie Hudlin: "I have to see it again. I actually wanted to see it again right after seeing it, but to properly rank it, I need to see it again. To say it is one of the two best films based on a super hero comic book is a safe designation. Best acting ensemble ever in a super hero film."

Gerry Conway: "It's a genre film that somehow lifts itself out of the genre and is a genuine, legitimate story, first and foremost. What can I say, I liked it."

Robert Kirkman: "'Iron Man' is nearly flawless. It has none of the little bits you have to excuse in most superhero movies. Pepper doesn't get abducted, Tony's helmet doesn't fall off in every scene, there aren't multiple villains who 'team-up,' it's simply a marvelous movie. With Marvel Studios in charge of the movie, you get a sense that the lunatics are running. The asylum—finally—and it makes for better movies. "Iron Man" is the comic book movie people have been waiting for a long, long time. It's finally here and it's awesome."

Joe Kelly: "I loved it. 'Iron Man' has renewed my faith in Hollywood's ability to shepherd our characters to the big screen."

Andy Schmidt: "Great movie. No qualifiers. No comparison to other 'comic book' or 'super hero' movies, no 'if you're a comic book fan,' just a great movie. Entertaining from the opening to the end, well-structured, well-plotted, and extraordinarily well-acted.

David Michelinie: "I liked it a lot, and actually plan to spend theater bucks to see it again."

Aw who am I kidding, I'm not saving you any time by cutting and pasting so much. 

One thing I noticed in the Wash. Post here is studios seem to be lessening newspaper advertising even for blockbusters like IM (the ads for it in the paper are tiny, and they're barely able to fit one or two blurbs). I guess I don't really miss half page ads with "made up quotes," but I was hoping to see (for old time's sake) at least one big fat huge ad with all the appropriate enthusiastic blurbs -- no need to make them up in this case.

I don't know if it'll keep its momentum up in the coming weeks with Speed Racer, the Narnia sequel and the Indy sequel, but ... I'm rooting for it. 

[Blackjack]

Since I'm rooting for Iron Man to continue to do well, I'm sorta monitoring the box office.

If you were wondering if Speed Racer might race by it (given pretty mixed reviews, it doesn't look to have a Matrix style time at the box office), Friday's results don't indicate that Speed got up to speed. 

Box Office Mojo estimates
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/daily/chart/
Friday, May 9
-Iron Man ($15.3 million; $3,722 per screen)
-What Happens in Vegas ($6.7 million; $2,084 per screen)
-Speed Racer ($5.85 million; $1,622 per screen)

Things could change over the weekend soitainly when families flood into matinee shows.

Still, IM made about $24.3 million Monday-Thursday. So it's doing pretty steady, fwiw.

Echoed by Variety:

'Iron Man' soars over 'Vegas'
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117985451.html?categoryid=13&cs=1

Go, Iron Man, go! 

[CeeKay]

OK, someone doesn't want me to se this movie.  I step out the door to head on over to the theater, and guess what?  the tornado warning sirens start going off.  Looks like nothings going to happen now as it all passed to the north of my location but I definitely won't make the show in time  and I have tentative plans that exclude the later shows.

[chaosraven]

OK, someone doesn't want me to se this movie.  I step out the door to head on over to the theater, and guess what?  the tornado warning sirens start going off.  Looks like nothings going to happen now as it all passed to the north of my location but I definitely won't make the show in time  and I have tentative plans that exclude the later shows.

Ororo Monroe will NOT be ignored, as is offended to be considered a one-night-stand.

[Crux]

So I finally got to see it this afternoon. Fucking awesome. Since there is little chance I'll get to see the new Indy flick in theaters due to the baby, this is enough to keep me going until Dark Knight. Hopefully. Still it was beautifully paced, very well acted and just all-around a blast.

[CeeKay]

OK, so my plans fell through and I finally saw it at a later show that wasn't interrupted by tornado warnings.  It was pretty good (doesn't beat out Batman Begins though), fast paced with a decent setup.  I liked the way they worked in the Mandarin reference plus the hint at War Machine and I had forgotten what SHIELD actually stands for but chuckled when they said the full name out loud.

Now bring on Indy!

[Graham]

I finally saw it today, and I was really happy I could finally see it.  Great great movie.  I liked the plot and liked the touches with the Mandarin, War Machine, and the Avengers.

First movie in a while, but looks to be a really good summer.

[Arnir]

I really enjoyed the movie both as a movie in general and as a super hero movie.  Very good.

[The Grue]

I finally saw it today, and I was really happy I could finally see it.  Great great movie.  I liked the plot and liked the touches with the Mandarin, War Machine, and the Avengers.

First movie in a while, but looks to be a really good summer.

I must have missed Mandarin during the movie.  Can someone tell me when he made a cameo?

[Victoria Raverna]

I think maybe they refered to the ten rings organization. I don't think Mandarin made a cameo in Iron Man movie.

[CeeKay]

I think maybe they refered to the ten rings organization. I don't think Mandarin made a cameo in Iron Man movie.

yep, that's the reference.

[Blackjack]

Spoiler for Hiden:

The "Ten Rings" logo -- the early bald guy villain in Afghanistan is presumably a member of a Mandarin-affiliated organization (or it may just be a subtle reference for fans' sake) -- is sort of a vague reference to The Mandarin in the movie, fwiw.

Speed Racer was, in fact, a speed bump this weekend.... 

http://www.boxofficemojo.com/weekend/chart/

- Iron Man ($50.5 million/$12,284 per screen)
What Happens in Vegas ($20.2 million/$5,604 per screen)
- Speed Racer ($20 million/$6,220 per screen)

It sounds like Warners is already in a bit of panic mode cause the sad reality is a $120 million budget movie (Speed Racer) that only makes $20M on  its opening weekend in summer is in serious financial losses mode (even with DVDs and overseas stuff). It's not likely to improve with the Narnia and Indy sequels opening the next couple of weekends.

[CeeKay]

oh yeah, Prince Caspian is due out this week.  I was going to go see Speed Racer (it really seems like a movie that'd be best seen on a really big screen) but Caspian may get my money this weekend, and then the following weekend is all Indy 

[coopasonic]

I was going to go see Speed Racer (it really seems like a movie that'd be best seen on a really big screen)

I'm pretty sure it's in IMAX also if you want your rainbow vomit on a really big screen.

[rshetts2]

Robert Downey Jr. owned this movie!  Tony Stark could be an ass but you still had to like him.  Downey walked that line to perfection.  This movie is gonna clean up!
 Oh regarding Speed Racer,  a few friends of mine saw it and said it was "good, not great" and warned me that the special effects are definately not suitable for people prone to seisures or motion sickness.  With all of the movies coming out in the near future, Speed is relegated to a rental for me.

[Blackjack]

I actually saw Iron Man for the third time today. My mom and I thought my visiting aunt would like to catch it, and this was after we caught the Indiana Jones movie again (also 3rd for me, 2nd for my mom). We were pretty impressed how packed the theater was for Iron Man this long after initial release. It is still packing them in pretty good. 

My brother took his family to it a while back, and while he, my niece and nephew loved it, my sister-in-law apparently walked out during the scene early on when a key character is threatened with a hot metal ingot. Apparently not realizing a character's not going to *really* eat a hot metal ingot in a PG-13 movie. 

SuperHero Hype caught up with director Jon Favreau, about what will be on the Iron Man DVD, and his hopes -- he hasn't officially been hired to direct it yet though it seems a no-brainer -- for Iron Man 2 (which already has an April 2010 release date set):
http://www.superherohype.com/news/ironmannews.php?id=7297

Favreau: Yeah, we are going to do a commentary. I just got delivered a whole bunch of extras that look really, really good. We had cameras on the set all the time. They put together something for "Iron Man" that spans from the first story meetings, to designing the suit, all the way through mixing it up at Skywalker Ranch, through the premiere. There are hours and hours of great stuff that will be available eventually

He's excited about doing more Iron Man movies, and perhaps even an Avengers movie, but doesn't believe he could do both in their current release schedule (of Iron Man 2 in 2010, and Avengers in 2011). Hopefully Marvel Studios won't start rushing things.

Anyway, it's a neat interview, and you can tell Favreau knows a lot about the "Marvel-verse" and the characters.

[Blackjack]

Iron Man looks to pass the $300 million mark today:
http://www.reuters.com/article/entertainmentNews/idUSN1929677720080619
I think I read it's making roughly the same amount internationally so far.

[McNutt]

I had no idea Spider Man 3 made that much money.

[rickfc]

I had no idea Spider Man 3 made that much money.

After 2, people weren't expecting it to be such a turd...

[JCAnejo]

The wife and I finally made it out to see Ironman last night. Wow that was extremely average was hoping for so much more. How can you take a Super Hero that has been around for ages and make him a new creation just baffles me.

[McNutt]

How can you take a Super Hero that has been around for ages and make him a new creation just baffles me.

I don't understand this statement.  Are you saying the movie should be in the 60s?

[rickfc]

How can you take a Super Hero that has been around for ages and make him a new creation just baffles me.

I don't understand this statement.  Are you saying the movie should be in the 60s?

+1

[PeteRock]

Batman has also been around for ages, but in order to jumpstart the franchise the Batman Begins filmmakers started back even before the beginning to present an origin story of the superhero.

Except for the Schumacher abominations in the Batman series, Ironman is also an origin story presenting how the superhero came to be.

[hepcat]

How can you take a Super Hero that has been around for ages and make him a new creation just baffles me.

I don't understand this statement.  Are you saying the movie should be in the 60s?

i think that's what he's saying.  however, the comics themselves constantly update characters for new generations (john byrne's superman, for example) so why should movies not be able to do the same thing?