"I loved you in A Christmas Story, by the way."
Iron Man 3 is - quite simply - insanely entertaining. To follow Avengers Assemble was always going to be a tough act, but the strategy here of starting small and personal gives the film and the key relationships a real grounding, with sufficient well-made nods to set it firmly in the current Marvel film universe. After what seems like a rather simplistic opening with seemingly clumsy in-your-face narrated story-setting, which places the events nicely in the trilogy's timeline, this device pays real dividends by the very end. Shane Black handles both big and small scenes faultlessly, and his real ear for dialogue shines through. He also creates a very good balance between 'new Bond' realism and fantasy/comic-book elements. Downey Jnr and Paltrow are on absolutely top form (and impressively so), with the latter being given considerably more to do in this instalment, and Guy Pearce and Sir Ben Kingsley make effective villains (even though a sharper goal would not hurt). There is so much more here than even the trailers displayed; the destruction of Stark's house in particular has the same iconic impact as the original Enterprise's destruction in The Search For Spock, and there are so many moments that are genuinely heartstopping, heartbreaking, jaw-dropping and utterly fan-pleasing. Brian Tyler delivers a superb musical score, the visual and physical effects are astonishing, and the frantic huge-scale finale is a complete joy to watch. The usual post-credits scene this time does not set up any future Marvel productions but is well worth the wait, as it is beautifully played and genuinely funny. If this does prove to be this cast's final outing in an Iron Man movie, Iron Man 3 is a fantastic way to go.
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