8 THE DIAMONDBACK | THURSDAY, MAY 1, 2008 Opening tomorrow: ≠ Mister Lonely Starring: Diego Luna, Samantha Morton, Werner Herzog, David Blaine, Anita Pallenberg ≠ Fugitive Pieces Starring: Rosamund Pike, Stephen Dillane, Rade Diversions Serbedzija, Rachelle Lefevre, Larissa Laskin ARTS MUSIC LIVING MOVIES WEEKEND REVIEW | IRONMAN !"##$%&'" %&( An updated plot and a great performance from Robert Downey Jr. make Iron Man worth seeing

don’t speak but almost become characters BY COURTNEY POMEROY Staff writer because of the way he interacts with them. Once Stark’s design is complete, the There is no old woman spouting words story really begins to unfold, and we learn of corny wisdom inIron Man, no redhead that Iron Man doesn’t mess around. Be- who is always in need of rescuing and, cause of his hyper-efficient weapons, it is best of all, no supernatural hero trying to impossible for his enemies to take people avenge anyone’s death. There is, howev- hostage, and there is no mythical “Kryp- er, a badass scientist who just wants to tonite” to slow him down. His Terminator- get his kill on. esque appearance is more intimidating Robert Downey Jr. stars in this updated than any spandex suit, and sends the cor- version of the comic book classic, and with rect message — he is there to fight, and he his sarcastic, successful performance, Iron will probably win. Man kicks off the summer’s blockbuster The flight scenes don’t look fake, and the season in a hard-to-ignore way. battle scenes excel, in stark contrast to last Tony Stark (Downey Jr., Charlie year’s summer blockbuster Transformers, Bartlett) is the womanizing CEO of his in which action sequences fell flat. Al- dead father’s weapons company and the though there are some fights during which mastermind behind every missile, bomb metal faces off against metal, the scenes and weapon of mass destruction it cre- are exciting and dynamic in a way Trans- ates. But his genius turns on him when he formers never was. goes overseas to present a demo of his Another aspect of Iron Man that will most recent weapon. When leaving the keep audiences interested is the use of testing site, his convoy is ambushed and modern-day events in the superhero’s nar- Stark is taken captive. rative. Though comic books have taken a When he regains consciousness, he turn toward the present-day— for exam- finds Yinsen (Shaun Toub, The Kite Run- ple, Frank Miller’s Batman is off fighting ner), the man being held prisoner with terrorists in the Middle East — most genre him, has lodged a large electromagnet into films have stayed buried in the past, with- Stark’s chest in order to keep the metal out a whisper of current events. However, pieces of shrapnel away from his heart. Iron Man’s reference of everything from Not long afterward, Stark is asked by his the war in Iraq to MySpace makes the film captors to replicate the very weapon he not only more relevant to today’s audi- had been showing off in the desert before ences but also more enjoyable. he was taken hostage. When he is present- While Downey steals the show, the ed with boxes of his own company’s prod- characters surrounding Stark also add ucts to build it with, he realizes the a lot of spunk to the story line. Although weapons he created for the American Paltrow doesn’t appear too often, she is CRUCIAL SUPPORTERS forces have somehow fallen into the hands funny and sharp-tongued when she of their enemies — and he’s pissed about it. does, and Howard and Downey have a Although the captors promise to let him clear comical chemistry. Jeff Bridges, go if he builds the missile, Stark assumes who plays Stark’s older business part- they are lying and instead goes to work ner, Obadiah, is hardly recognizable building a rough draft of Iron Man, an iron with his shaved head and thick beard, suit that will run on the brand-new battery- but he does a great job playing a jolly powered magnet in his chest. Three but suspicious man with a thirst for months after he is first taken into captivity, money and power. And in one of the PEPPER POTTS (GWYNETH PALTROW) he walks out of the makeshift workshop best-played cameos in a long time, Iron (a.k.a. random cave) covered in crude — Man creator Stan Lee appears as Hugh yet still terrifying — metal armor. He man- Hefner during one red carpet scene. ages to get away, and once he’s back in the Director Jon Favreau (before this, he States he decides to make a change in his directed 2003’s Elf with Will Farrell) may company, starting with his prototype. be new to the superhero genre, but he is Once Stark is out of the life-or-death sit- already upping the ante for Marvel uation, Downey brings a sense of personal- movies to come. In fact, he’s already ity to the superhero character. He has a planning for two Iron Man sequels, and JIM RHODES (TERENCE HOWARD) quick wit with his assistant Pepper all of the main characters have signed on (Gwyneth Paltrow, The Good Night), his for both. With a first installment as good best friend Jim (Terrence Howard, The as this one, let’s hope production goes Perfect Holiday) and even with himself. quickly enough to kick off next summer’s While slaving away in his workshop, te- blockbuster season with a bang. diously trying to perfect the suit’s capabili- ties, he works with a number of robots that [email protected]

OBADIAH STANE (JEFF BRIDGES) MOVIE: Iron Man | VERDICT: 1/2

Need more graphic violence in your life? These films are coming up:

X-MEN ORIGINS:WOLVERINE THE DARK KNIGHT SIN CITY 2 HELLBOY 2 HANCOCK TENTATIVE RELEASE:May 1, 2009 RELEASE: July 18, 2008 TENTATIVE RELEASE:TBA TENTATIVE RELEASE:July 11, 2008 TENTATIVE RELEASE:July 2, 2008 HYPED FOR: HYPED FOR: HYPED FOR: HYPED FOR: HYPED FOR: Hugh Jackman’s awesomeness. Christian Bale is the best Sin Cityreceived tons of critical Can Guillermo del Toro do any A funny superhero movie that isn’t This prequel should be nothing Batman the franchise has had in praise in 2005, and the possibility wrong? After the smash that was based on any kind of comic book? short of fantastic. years. Also, Heath Ledger. that Angelina Jolie may star in Sin Pan’s Labyrinth, fans of the director Intriguing — and Will Smith can DETAILS: Enough said. City 2is a lot to get excited about. have anxiously waited for Hellboy 2. only help, right? Wolverine isn’t the only X-Men DETAILS: DETAILS: DETAILS: DETAILS: member getting a prequel — The film’s final trailer is The film’s script has been written, Del Toro wants to create a third Smith as an alcoholic superhero Magneto is currently being supposed to come out next but because of Robert Rodriguez’s Hellboy, but he also wants to hated by most of the public is a defi- written, and rumors are Sir Ian week, but it’s already leaked on involvement in Barbarella, produc- recreate Frankenstein, Dracula and nite change from his typical roles, and McKellan is already signed on. the Internet. Sweet! tion has stalled. Boo! The Wolf Man. Baller. could be either great ... or disastrous.