MarvelBlog Retro Review: Iron Man 3
When The Avengers turned into one of the most successful blockbusters ever, Disney raised the stakes.
The company had purchased Marvel in 2009 but hadn’t put its stamp on the Marvel Cinematic Universe yet.
Kevin Feige had planned a series of films starring Iron Man, Captain America, and Thor, utilizing these projects as Trojan horses to introduce other Avengers.
Executive Producer Victoria Alonso and President of Marvel Studios/Producer Kevin Feige attend the Los Angeles World Premiere of Marvel Studios’ “Captain Marvel” at Dolby Theatre on March 4, 2019 in Hollywood, California. Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for Disney
However, for Phase Two, everyone realized that audiences had heightened their expectations for the MCU.
Disney and Marvel envisioned something grander, a decade-long build to a satisfying resolution.
Alas, before that could happen, some previously announced sequels had to come out. Unfortunately, two out of the next three would disappoint many fans.
Photo: Marvel
Is Iron Man 3 one of them? Yes and no. Here’s my retro review of it.
The Life of the Party
Iron Man 3 starts with a flashback, including a pleasant surprise appearance from someone who died nobly in Iron Man.
Of course, the more significant meetings entail a drunken, horny Tony Stark’s encounters with Maya Hansen and Aldrich Killian.
Aldrich Killian. Photo: Marvel
Stark wants to bed one and mock the other. A more sober individual would have noticed that their combined assets, her intelligence and his drive, would make for a formidable team.
Tony Stark wasn’t a team player at this point, though. Instead, the film follows Iron Man 2’s Demon in a Bottle comic.
Demon in a Bottle. Photo: Marvel Comics
Yes, that’s the one where drunken Iron Man becomes his own worst enemy. Unfortunately, even after the events of The Avengers, he’s still like that.
Oh, and the Extremis storyline from the comics drives other parts of the film.
Project Extremis. Photo: Marvel
That’s the technology that Hansen invents, the one that turns the formerly disabled Killian into an unkillable living weapon.
Stark doesn’t know that he’s the threat, though. His (only?) friend, James Rhodes, has just turned into the Iron Patriot to meet an oncoming threat.
Iron Patriot. Photo: Marvel
The Mandarin has revealed himself. Yes, that’s the dude whose minions kidnapped Tony and left him stranded in a cave. So, this news draws his attention.
So, yes, Iron Man 3 draws from three of its most iconic comic stories. I don’t know whether that’s intentional symmetry or accidental genius.
The Mandarin’s Ten Rings from The Invincible Iron Man. Photo: Marvel Comics
Still, the most significant recurring part of the story is that Stark cannot overcome his natural limitations.
He needs to be the life of the party. He needs to be the smartest man in the room. And he needs strangers to acknowledge both of those truths.
The Mandarin Attacks
Disney cut a $4 billion check for Marvel in 2009. So, the MCU had to turn a quick profit, which it thankfully did.
Even so, the early films from Phase Two reflect a hunger for financial success rather than any sort of long-term plan.
Big Money Deals. Photo: Marvel
Well, there probably was one, but it’s not the kind that we’ve grown to expect over the years.
The behind-the-scenes plan for Iron Man 3, whether Disney admits it or not, was a functional successor to The Avengers, one that earned almost as much.
Photo: Marvel
Ergo, Iron Man 3 features plenty of whizbang action like the destruction of Stark’s Malibu home. It’s a frenetic, gripping bit of cinema.
Stark has developed Iron Man technology to protect Pepper Potts at all costs. She lives with him now, and he’s dropped his life of one-night stands.
Photo: Marvel
For the first time in his life, Stark loves someone more than himself, and it alters his worldview.
As a result of the Mandarin’s attack on Stark’s mansion, the Avenger seeks out his adversary. Alas, a crash landing maroons Iron Man in Tennessee.
Photo: Marvel
Apparently, he ends up in a garage in Rose Hill, a real town that I’ve never heard of, which is amusing since it’s apparently 31 miles from my front door.
Stark meets young Harley, a kid who is a fellow tinkerer. They develop a rapport, the first sign that the billionaire could maybe one day love someone 3,000.
WEB of Spider-Man #3. Photo: Marvel Comics
As a mentor, Stark’s a known commodity in the MCU, as he’s negligently almost killed Peter Parker multiple times, albeit usually with the best of intentions.
With Harley, he really gets more of a friend than anything else, which works well. Unfortunately, JARVIS is on the fritz, and Happy’s not around. So, the Avenger is lonely.
Extremis and the Mandarin
In rewatching the film, I’m somewhat surprised by how isolated this project is. We meet two former soldiers who gain Extremis powers. It’s a big deal.
The premise hasn’t been explored much in the MCU since then. Similarly, while we’ll get some clarity on the Mandarin in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, his presence here is a misdirect.
Photo: Marvel
You likely understand the inference, but I won’t spoil it for those who don’t.
Really, that’s Iron Man 3 in a nutshell. It promises the Mandarin and Extremis. But, unfortunately, it takes liberally from both without doing anything of note with either.
Meanwhile, all we get from the aftermath of Demon in a Bottle is that Stark’s monogamous now.
Photo: Marvel
Iron Man 3 counts as more of an action spectacle than anything, as demonstrated by climactic events on a plane.
Now, this scene works brilliantly even now, almost a decade after the film’s release. Watch this rescue:
That’s intense and satisfying and exceptionally well executed. The same cannot be said for Killian and Hansen as characters.
In fact, an extremely diplomatic Rebecca Hall later indicated that many of her scenes didn’t make the final cut. She signed on for one movie and got something entirely different.
Rebecca Hall in Iron Man 3. Photo: Marvel
As for Guy Pearce as Killian, well, he’s one of my favorite actors ever. He’s Generic Avengers Bad Guy here, though.
One second, he’s hitting on Pepper Potts. Later, he’s choking her. Not much happens between the two encounters to justify the change in moods.
Photo: Marvel
Ben Kingsley does deliver tremendous entertainment as Mandarin, but you should know why it’s still something of a disappointment.
Extremis leads to gorgeous CGI-intensive action fights. The Mandarin works well as a misdirect about the true villain of the piece.
Symbiote Extremis armor. Photo: Marvel Comics
Is that enough for such iconic Iron Man storylines? Not really.
What I Like about Iron Man 3
Compared to the next film in the MCU timeline, Iron Man 3 is The Godfather. I want to stress that now.
In truth, there’s plenty to like about the film. The relationship with Harley works so well that he returns at Tony’s funeral in Avengers: Endgame.
In Avengers Endgame (2019), Harley, the boy who helped Tony in his garage in Iron Man 3, is visible at Tony's funeral pic.twitter.com/WP0JheozhC
— Hidden Movie Details (@moviedetail) January 17, 2021
I actually got a kick out of that, as this seemed like the most frequently asked (non-time travel) question as people debated that film.
Showing Stark with a fellow tinkerer was a good idea, as was that thank you present segment. It’s a Willy Wonka-type children’s fantasy that makes kids love Iron Man even more.
Photo: Marvel
The fight scenes work quite well until the end. There’s even an Iron Giant reference that I somehow missed the previous times I watched.
Pepper Potts also receives an Extremis upgrade that mirrors a good idea from the comics. She became Rescue a couple of years before the movie came out.
Photo: Marvel
Later, she turns into quite the badass due to some Extremis shenanigans.
Also, the movie includes a swerve wherein someone seems to die, and it does boil my blood even now. So, that part is mission accomplished.
Final Thoughts on Iron Man 3
For a few years after this movie came out, I argued against all the film’s critics. I found their complaints overly negative for what’s a pure action flick.
Now, I must admit that the same complaints I have about Michael Bay movies fit here. It’s less a well-crafted story and more a series of solid ideas.
Photo: Marvel
As a whole, the sum falls far short of its parts. That goes doubly so after I just watched The Avengers, which remains damn near perfect to this day.
Iron Man 3 is more of a B movie with some A+ scenes. But, given what we’ve watched from these characters since then, it definitely feels…dated.
Photo: Marvel
Strangely, I wouldn’t say that about either of the other two Iron Man movies. So, it’s the worst in the franchise to date for me.
