Thursday, May 30, 2013

Iron Man 3 & Star Trek: Into Darkness Review


Due to my being busy with other projects during the two weeks in which Iron Man 3 and Star Trek: Into Dankness came out consecutively, I am forced to do a joint review of the two films.

Iron Man 3 Review:

The third installment in the Iron Man film series has a lot to accomplish. The film has to stand on its own merits as well as introduce Marvel Studios’ Phase 2 (the series of films leading up to The Avengers 2). Finally, the film must also deliver a satisfying conclusion to the Iron Man film trilogy. Having seen this film, I believe that Iron Man 3 is a great conclusion to the trilogy.  However, I believe that as a whole, it falls just short of expectations.

Iron Man 3 is directed by Shane Black (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, his only previous directing credit), and not directed by Jon Favreau, (the director of the first two Iron Man films). Black does a fine job and the action is well shot. The film is at its heart, a character piece. Robert Downey Jr. returns as Tony Stark/Iron Man, and he is as witty and entertaining in the role as ever. In this film, Tony is suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after the events of The Avengers, when he met gods and aliens and almost died. Tony’s PTSD is mainly given a comedic spin, with frequent panic attacks. While Tony’s PTSD could have been developed more, and his character arc is not quite as believable as it was in the original Iron Man, he is still a well-rounded and likeable character. All the side characters are also back and given expanded roles: Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Jon Favreau as Tony’s guard Happy, and Don Cheadle as Colonel Rhodes, aka War Machine. In this film however, the War Machine armor has been given a new function and paint job by the US government, this time as Iron Patriot. This is because of the threat of super-terrorist, The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) as well as the terrorist group AIM, headed by Aldrich Killian (Guy Pierce). These treats push Tony to his limits, and make him question himself as both a person and a crime fighter.

Star Trek: Into Darkness Review

This is the second film in a new series of Star Trek films. While I enjoyed the first film in the new series, Star Trek (2009), I feel that this film is even better than the first. So far, it looks like this new franchise is off to a good start; however, it is clear that old, classic series’ of shows and films still looms over this one, both for good and for ill. Into Darkness picks up where the first film left off: Jim Kirk (Chris Pine) and the Enterprise crew are on a routine mission getting acclimated to their new responsibilities. However, they don’t have much time to get settled before Admiral Marcus (Peter Weller) sends them into Klingon space to capture Starfleet fugitive John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch). As always, things are not as they seem, and Kirk, Spock (Zachary Quinto), Bones (Karl Urban), and the rest of the crew are pushed to their limits. Beaming into the cast is Dr. Carol Marcus, (the Admiral's daughter), whom Star Trek fans may remember from Star Trek II: the Wrath of Khan. As previously mentioned, there are additional references to Classic Trek in the film. These references are fine up to a point, but they eventually become gratuitous and kind of lame. At the risk of spoilers, that’s pretty much all I have to say on that subject.

Both Iron Man 3 and Star Trek: Into Darkness, are great popcorn action films. I personally enjoyed Star Trek a little more than Iron Man. Still, both films were very good and served their franchises well. I recommend both of these films.