Ranking the Franchise - Iron Man

I just rewatched all the “Iron Man” movies. I like them, although he’s definitely not my favorite superhero or Avenger. It’s because of Robert Downey Jr. that I really enjoy watching these films. Today I will be ranking all three “Iron Man” movies.

3. Iron Man 2 (2010)
Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a good movie. But of the three, this is the one I liked the least. Mostly because of how Tony Stark doesn’t really develop much in this film. At the end of “Iron Man 2” he is exactly the same as at the start of the first. And Mickey Rourke doesn’t get enough to do as the villain. Don Cheadle though is a great addition to this franchise, who took over the role from Terrence Howard. And the introduction to Scarlett Johansson’s character is also pretty cool. “Iron Man 2” isn’t more then an acceptable follow-up to an important first film.

2. Iron Man 3 (2013)
“Iron Man 3” was a better sequel. The film is iron strong (no pun intended) and we actually saw great character development with Tony Stark. Not just as Tony but also as Iron Man. I really liked the fact that Tony has to fight for what’s right with and without his suit. I liked the twist of the Mandarin, but Guy Pearce as Killian is not always convincing as the villain.

1. Iron Man (2008)
The movie that was the base of the current Marvel Cinematic Universe. And a great origin story. Pretty straight-forward, but because of Robert Downey Jr. it has become a phenomenon. Downey Jr., the only man that can play a likeable asshole.

10s Movie Review - Iron Man 2

Director: Jon Favreau
Genre: Action/ Science Fiction/ Adventure
Runtime: 124 minutes
Year: 2010
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johansson, Jon Favreau, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sam Rockwell, Samuel L. Jackson, Mickey Rourke, Leslie bibb, Olivia Munn, Don Cheadle, Kate Mara, Paul Bettany, John Slattery, Clark Gregg, Garry Shandling

Description: With the world now aware of his identity as Iron man, Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) must contend with both his declining health and a vengeful mad man with ties to his father’s legacy.

Review: Two years before the sequel was released, “Iron Man” was an unsuspected hit. It was a straight-forward comic book tale that made it special due to its great lead.
Although the first film wasn’t very surprising, the last scene where Tony reveals to the public that he is Iron Man, was. This created the path for a sequel. Tony Stark, aka Iron Man, is nothing like the other superheroes out there. Heroes like Spider-Man or Batman see their task as a burden and try to keep their identity hidden. But Tony is someone living the good life and not being ashamed of it, but simply has an eccentric hobby that he uses to fight bad guys. This is no different in “Iron Man 2”.
Tony makes it seem easy to live as a superhero with his identity out in the open and you wonder why some of them want to keep their identity hidden. Well, the government pressures him to hand over his inventions. And his character reveal draws the attention of a Russian criminal that has some unfinished business with the Stark family. This Ivan Vanko gets, after his first confrontation with Iron Man, help from a guy named Justin Hammer. He is a weapons manufacturer who is always one step behind Tony. An alliance with Vanko could work for both Hammer as Vanko.
Ivan Vanko is played by Mickey Rourke, who got his Hollywood comeback due to “The Wrestler”. But in “Iron Man 2” there is not a lot for him to do. Babbling in a Russian accent, but mainly silent, he is mostly physically present in the action scenes. Another newcomer to the film is Scarlett Johansson, who is Tony’s new assistant. First it seems like a thankless role, until it’s uncovered who she really is. But the best newcomer is Don Cheadle, who takes over the role of James Rhodes from Terrence Howard, who played this role in the first film. A character being played by a different actor than the previous film is a tough job, but Cheadle nails it and we’ve already forgotten about Howard.
The intention of a series is that you see a clear development in characters, in this cast Tony Stark. But at the end of “Iron Man 2” he is just the same guy as the first film. In doesn’t dig deep enough to give Tony the development he needs.
“Iron Man 2” is a fun and very entertainment sequel, that is mainly good because of an excellent performance by Robert Downey Jr.

Rating: 3/ 5

00s Movie Review - Iron Man

Director: Jon Favreau
Genre: Action/ Drama/ Adventure/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 123 minutes
Year: 2008
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Terrence Howard, Clark Gregg, Leslie Bibb

Description: After being held captive in an Afghan cave, billionaire engineer Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) creates a unique weaponized suit of armor to fight evil.

Review: “Iron Man” was the first movie in the MCU. Tony Stark is on top of his weapon imperium and he loves the good life: gambling, fast cars, beautiful women and fancy gadgets. Stark is good at making weapons, but never really thought about the people it might affect. After a demonstration, Tony is kidnapped in an Afghan cave. He has to replicate the ‘Jericho’, some sort of super rocket. Instead he makes an armor to escape.
It's an origins story: the hero, that lives a life without purpose and decides to use his expertise to fight evil.
Tony Stark is, on paper, not a very sympathetic paper. He is a hedonist, makes weapons, is a bit arrogant and a real womanizer. And since he is the hero, you have to make him likeable somehow. And by casting Robert Downey Jr. that actually happened. Downey Jr. is completely believable, but he never seems to take himself too serious. And it’s really hard to dislike him.
The film isn’t as action packed as you might think, but has a great build-up of the main character.

Rating: 3,5/ 5

90s Movie Review - Se7en

Director: David Fincher
Genre: Thriller/ Drama/ Crime
Runtime: 127 minutes
Year: 1995
Starring: Morgan Freeman, Brad Pitt, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kevin Spacey

Description: Two detectives, a rookie (Brad Pitt) and a veteran (Morgan Freeman), hunt a serial killer who uses the seven deadly sins as his modus operandi.

Review: “Se7en” is a dark, smart thriller by director David Fincher. A serial killer murders people according to the seven deadly sins. We are all guilty of it sometimes, of one of those sins.
We follow detectives William Somerset and David mills. Somerset is about to retire and gets the task, in his last week, to get rookie Mills ready for the job. Their view on the job, and on life in general, is very different. Mills is energetic and aggressive, while Somerset is thoughtful, experienced and well-read. The serial killer they are tracking down chooses his victims based on the seven deadly sins: sloth, greed, gluttony, pride, lust, envy and wrath. All of the victims are guilty of committing one of those sins.
Because the characters are so different from each other, they complement each other perfectly. Both Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman are great in their roles and form a good combination. Kevin Spacey steals the show in the final act of the movie.
Not only the script is brilliant and the acting is great. The dark, sad atmosphere is crucial for the film and gives it the effect it needs. The constant rain and dark shadows enhance the dark tones of the movie.
“Se7en” is an unforgettable thriller, that you will never get tired of. It stays intense, no matter how many times you watch it.

Rating: 5/ 5

100 Movie Challenge 2016 - # 54: Hush

Director: Jonathan Darby
Genre: Drama/ Thriller
Runtime: 96 minutes
Year: 1998
Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Lange, Johnathon Schaech, Debi Mazar

Description: Helen (Gwyneth Paltrow) is the young girlfriend of good-looking Jackson Baring (Johnathon Schaech). When Helen gets pregnant and marries Jackson, they decide to move to his hometown, Kilronan, and have a baby there. But his mother Martha (Jessica Lange), who lives there, starts to do weird things, and obviously she's not too friendly to Helen.

Review: Helen and Jackson live a happy life. When Helen gets pregnant and she doesn’t feel safe in their New York apartment anymore, they decide to move in with Jackson’s mother and have the baby there. But mom Martha is not as nice as she seems.
“Hush” is a predictable film and for a thriller not a lot happens. Everything evolves around lies an manipulation, but nothing really ‘thrilling’ happens.
The acting isn’t all that memorable, only maybe for Jessica Lange. She is a fantastic actress, but this is probably her worst performance ever.
“Hush” was watchable, but also easily forgettable.

Rating: 2/ 5

Top 5 Thursday: Gorgeous Women That Got 'Ugly' for a Movie

Hollywood is full of gorgeous, beautiful and radiant women. But the most fantastic ones are the actresses that dare to be ugly for a role. Here are my five favorite transformations.

5. Sandra Bullock in "Miss Congeniality"
Bullock played the tough cop Gracie Hart, who walked and talked like a man before she was transformed into a Miss America contender.

4. Salma Hayek in "Frida"
I think Hayek is every man's dream. She is beautiful, curved and has a sexy accent. The unibrow is maybe the ugliest feature of her role in "Frida".

3. Gwyneth Paltrow in "Shallow Hall"
Although this isn't a very good movie, I really liked Paltrow in this film. Funny thing: when Paltrow started wearing the fat-suit, none of the people passing her would meet her eye.

2. Cameron Diaz in "Being John Malkovich"
It's not just the look that's weird, the character of Lotte is also pretty strange. Diaz with her frizzy hair is very memorable.

1. Charlize Theron in "Monster"
Theron is the most breathtaking actress and that makes it so amazing that she went full on ugly for her role in "Monster". That's what I admire about Theron, she truly doesn't care about her beauty, just about her performance. Fantastic.

They almost made the top 5: Nicole Kidman in "The Hours" and Renee Zellweger in "Bridget Jones's Diary"

Pic Spam: Gwyneth Paltrow

There's only one reason why I'm dedicading this pic spam to Gwyneth Paltrow. I loved her guest role in "Glee". She's coming back to the show and I'n looking forward to it. Here are some of here best pictures.