Iron Man 3
2013
****
Director: Shane Black
Cast: Robert Downey, Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale, Jon Favreau, Ben Kingsley
While Tony Stark attempts to come to terms with the events of The Avengers, a mysterious terrorist known as the Mandarin catches him off guard. He must pick up the pieces, and hunt down the bad guy(s). Shane Black takes over the directing duties from Jon Favreau for Iron Man's third solo outing. His directorial debut Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was a very enjoyable action comedy, and he gives an injection of that same comic energy to this Marvel franchise, which was getting tired already in the second film. Black turns the wisecracking to eleven and his inventive action scenes put a fresh twist on the formula, as the hero is constantly in and out of his armoured suit. Robert Downey Jr. with his motormouth is the deserved star again, but Ben Kingsley is close to stealing the show with his wonderful turn as the Mandarin.
