So maybe it’s bad form to return to the blogging universe with such a positive review. Some may comment that I’m the Paula Abdul of movie reviewers, and I would be hurt. Maybe I’m not the most critical, but I know what I like and I know what’s worth discussing. Disagree with me? Fine, post a comment. Just don’t call me Paula.

Synopsis:
A naive but brilliant weapons manufacturer has his eyes opened when a missile demonstration leads to a life-changing experience. Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is all about weapons, girls, and money. He’s never questioned the direction of his company, Stark Industries, which was founded by his father, a scientist on the Manhattan Project. While in Afghanistan for a weapons demonstration, Stark is seriously injured during a kidnapping. Now he requires an electromagnet to repel shrapnel from one of his own weapons from reach his heart. Seeing the error of his ways, he develops mechanized armor (the Iron Man suit) powered by the small and ingenuitive arch-reactor to free himself of his captors and right the wrongs his weapons have brought upon the world. At his side are his computer AI, Jarvis, his military-liason-best-friend Rhodey (Terence Howard), and his lovable assistant Ms. Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow).

Review:

Seeing as its a little late to review the movie, I’ll keep my likes and dislikes about the film itself brief, ok, maybe not that brief.

Acting: This by far is the strongest aspect of this movie. Robert Downey Jr. (let’s call him RDJ for short) is great as Tony Stark. Though I’m a semi-Marvel junkie (Amazing Spider-man, Ultimate Spider-man, Ultimate Fantastic Four, etc…), I’m not too familiar with Stark’s character. I can’t speak for the trueness of the portrayal, but I can say that RDJ makes Stark the center of this film, not Iron Man. RDJ is funny, but beyond that, you can see Stark’s problems with drinking start to show. You can also clearly see the character’s transition from genius playboy to superhero.

Gwyneth Paltrow is nothing more than window dressing for the cast. She’s a good actress, but her character didn’t have to do much. Terence Howard on the other hand was perfect as the sidekick, with just enough seriousness to make it funny. The reference to War Machine was fun. Of course, the little cameo at the end was also great but I’ll save that for those who haven’t seen the movie yet.

Effects and Action: I can’t complain about the effects. Most of the films today have a certain CGI clean look to them. Its hard to say that this is superb effects, but they’re in no way shabby. Iron Man looked impressive in every battle sequence. The sequences with Iron Man and the jets was incredibly fun and the fight with Iron Monger was intense, albeit short. I guess that would be my one comment, the movie was light on the action, or at least it felt light on the action. Its not like I was left feeling like I needed more, but if you look at the number of fight sequence in the film, there weren’t a lot.

The Media: By media, I mean the actual Blu-ray discs (BD). The BD version of the movie comes with a host of featurettes and extras. Because I’m a little dorky, I bought the special edition from Target that looks like the Iron Man mask. It sports a bunch of making of documentaries (all in HD), the film of course, and deleted and extended scenes. I have to say, some of the deleted material was fun to watch, and the making of had some interesting facts. In the suit-test sequences, they had RDJ in a wire rig that held his arms and legs as opposed to his waist. This gave the scene a touch of realism, because he was balancing himself with his hands and legs, just like Iron Man.

Fuzzworthy?: Most definitely. For a Marvel fanboy, RDJ stalker, or BD collector, this is a must own. If you don’t like comics, action movies, or anything staring Robert Downey, Jr. then stay away. I definitely recommend the purchase, its all around fun, with good effects and some nice acting. Not HD’d yet? No worries, single- and double-disc SD dvds are available everywhere.

Iron Man (Ultimate Two-Disc Edition) [Blu-ray]

Overall Rating: ****

Superman Returns @ IMDB

Synopsis:
After a mysterious five year absence, Superman (Brandon Routh) returns to Earth to find a world that has learned to live without him. His life as Clark Kent seems to pick up where it left off, but the love of his life, Lois Lane (Kate Bosworth) has moved on and now has a five year old child. Now the Man of Steel must find a way to deal with the cost of his absence and take on the most notorious criminal mastermind of all time, Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey). Superman Returns continues the Superman saga but picks up after Superman II.

Review:
Its difficult to think that this new incarnation of the Man of Steel could possibly compare to the one imortallized by the late Christopher Reeve. In truth, no one can play Clark Kent like Reeve could, but Routh was not bad. I’ll be frank, I felt that if this movie was going to crash and burn in a ball of kryptonite laced flames, it would be Routh’s fault. I have nothing against him personally, but he got selected for the part strictly on his appearane. He supposedly looks like Christopher Reeve, but I’ve never seen the resemblance. He didn’t do a bad job and he seemed to get the dorkiness of Clark Kent correct.
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Overall Rating: *****
V for Vendetta @ IMDB

Synopsis:
In the near future, the end of the world has come and gone. A Third World War has ravaged the world and mysterious plague killed thousands in Great Britain. But through it all “England Pervails” as a totalitarion state under the leadership of High Chancellor Sutler (John Hurt). Using a mask of Guy Fawkes of the famed Gunpowder Treason, a vigilanty known only as “V” (Hugo Weaving) uses his amzing agility and strength to open the eyes of the British people. He is unwavering in his use of terrorist tactics until he meets a young girl named Evey Hammond (Natalie Portman). Will V succeed in saving Britain?

Remember, remember the fifth of November,
Gunpowder treason and plot.
We see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot!

Review:
A friend of mine said it best as we were leaving the movie theatre: “It’s rare that you see a perfect movie, and this was a perfect movie.” I can do little but agree with him. This movie was amazing and I could find nothing wrong with it. V for Vendetta is an adaptation of graphic novel/comic book series of the same name by Alan Moore. This movie was action packed, dramatic, touching and enthralling.
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Overall Rating: ***
Doom @ IMDB

Synopsis:
When things go terribly wrong at a Martian research facility, the marines are sent in to secure the situation. Sarge (The Rock) and his team of marines must fight genetic abominations hell-bent on eating them while protecting the gate back home called the Ark. Crazy weapons and hand-to-hand combat bring all of the action from the hit game to the big screen.

Review:
I gave this movie three out of five stars, but that rating needs a few qualifications. I have to say that the movie was entertaining. It also was a pretty good adaptation of a video game to a movie. For a bad adaptation, see House of the Dead. Let be honest though, this movie didn’t have anything that screamed “great!” I’ve seen action movies that grab you and they really keep you engaged for the full two hours. It was definitely entertaining, but it doesn’t quite compare to movies like The Transporter or Kiss of the Dragon.
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