Iron Man review

It doesn’t seem that many years ago that Robert Downey Jr was making headlines for all the wrong reasons – the talented actor from movies like Chaplin and Less The Zero was arrested, imprisoned and cautioned for his drug addiction, while his first ‘comeback’ as love interest in Ally McBeal in 2001 ended when he fell ill once again. Then, following quietly superb performances in movies like Zodiac and A Scanner Darkly, Downey Jr went from being Hollywood’s cautionary tale to a megastar overnight thanks to Iron Man, an action-packed summer blockbuster from actor/director Jon Favreau (Elf, Zathura).

And he’s perfect as Tony Stark, a wealthy industrialist who is captured while in Afghanistan by some bad guys who want him to build a weapon for them. Instead, he creates a special armoured suit to help him escape. Back home, he decides building weapons of mass destruction may not be the best thing, so with the help of his secretary/right hand gal Pepper Potts (Paltrow, remembering she can be sexy) he devotes his time to the fight against evil, much to the annoyance of his business partner Obadiah (Bridges).

Part espionage thriller, part comic book blockbuster, part war movie – this is a smart, 21st century action adventure for teens and grown-ups… and don’t forget to keep watching until the end of the credits when a very special cameo performance is revealed…