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“Tony Stark makes me feel he’s a cool exec with a heart of steel…”

Boy, that song brings back a sea of nostalgia. No, I was not born in the 1960s, but I did enjoy reruns of the Iron Man cartoon in the 90s. You actually hear the orchestra version of this theme in the movie, much to my glee.

I wasn’t really an Iron Man fan. Back when I collected Marvel comic books, I was more of an Uncanny X-Men addict. I wasn’t too excited by the prospect of an Iron Man movie, which was worsened by the fact that Spider-Man 3 (a.k.a. Emo-Man!) didn’t exactly endear Marvel to me.

Shock upon shock! I actually enjoyed the entire 2 hour 20 minute ride! Not only did Robert Downey Jr. fit the genius/playboy/millionaire role like a glove, he was pretty darned funny about it, too. It was a far cry from how stuffy I remembered Tony Stark was in the 60s. Here he’s like the happier version of DC’s Batman. It helps that Downey is surrounded by a brilliant cast of supporting characters, from Terrence Howard’s Jim Rhodes to Gwyneth Paltrow’s Pepper Potts to Jeff Bridges’ Obadiah Stane. Add Stark’s mechanical assistant Jarvis and you have one heck of a team. I could tell you, there wasn’t a scene where I wasn’t affected, whether it was Tony Stark delivering a half-meant punchline or when terrorists were picking on hapless little village people. My head was screaming for more when I realized that we were nearing the ending.

As for the effects, I have no words. My colleague Haya has them: “Iron Man wasn’t interesting. But with the CG, gosh! He’s so cool!” ‘Nuff said.

It’s also interesting to note that Iron Man’s theme is a song by the same title, performed by Black Sabbath. I’ve been listening to this band’s music before, courtesy of my boyfriend Nicco, and I was amazed at how it upped the film’s kick-ass level.

Fun!

Iron Man: Entertainment at its finest. Just don’t forget to stay until after the credits roll. You know how it is with Marvel movies. They usually leave the good stuff at the end.

Rating: 8/10