The Ohio Sci-Fi and Horror Marathons

The first IRON MAN movie is probably the best of the recent wave of comic book flicks - a fast, witty and even wise origin story with a recognizably "human" superhero. And, it wasn't just an Iron Man show. There was also Tony Stark and a pretty touching love story with Pepper Potts.

The second film was a pretty big betrayal. It made the mistake of many a sequel, substituting bigger special effects, louder explosions and flashier action sequences for the human drama that was the core of the original. Plus, they brought in a then trendy actor to garner attention (Mickey Rourke, hot off his 'comeback' with THE WRESTLER. The 'comeback' didn't really last and he's back doing stuff like JAVA HEAT and sequels to THE EXPENDABLES and SIN CITY).

But, the IRON MAN series was lucky and survived II's debacle that could have killed other franchises. Not only did it still have it's ace in the hole - Robert Downey Jr. - but, a featured appearance in the superhero tag team film THE AVENGERS. Downey and Tony Stark shined in this otherwise bloated epic.

Now, comes IRON MAN 3. It's definitely better than II - much better. Still, there's a bit too much going on for its own good. Too many subplots, and, yes, too much in the way of wearying "exciting" action set-pieces. And, while a valid topic, it is getting a bit too easy to use "terrorism" as a backdrop in movies from THE DARK KNIGHT to TREK to not one, but two, White House under siege flicks coming this year. I'm not in the "too soon" crowd, but, this is getting dangerously close to not only over-usage, but, verging on piling on (how many vaguely "Russian" student bomber subplots are we going to see in the coming years on TV and in the movies?)

Fortunately, you still have Stark & Pepper at the center. Although it's still a bit odd to see an Oscar-winning actress play "the girlfriend" (Natalie Portman is also doing the second banana thing in THOR. You would NEVER see Daniel Day Lewis playing "the boyfriend" in a female-centric series).

The villains are good, and I've rarely seen - the usually intense to the point of looking like his bald head is about to explode - Ben Kinglsey have so much fun with a role. He's a hoot.

IRON MAN 3 is certainly worth seeing. The question is whether the series will survive the threatened departure of Robert Downey Jr.? He admits that he is pushing the age where he can't handle all the physicality (he apparently broke an ankle shutting down production for a while) much longer, although he has been announced to be in AVENGERS II. I can see "Tony Stark" continuing to be part of the series, but, not necessarily IN the Iron Man suit all the time.

Possible Minor Spoilers:

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Long Live the Orson Welles Cinemas