Iron Man
2008 has been a good year for superhero flicks.Iron Man started out the high-flying festivities, bringing us Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, a gazillionaire genius playboy who designs weaponry for the U.S. military. He revels in his selfish, hedonistic lifestyle until he is captured by terrorists during a weapons demonstration in Afghanistan. His imprisonment helps him reevaluate his life, and after a spectacular escape, he builds a high-tech powered suit to dish out punishment to the bad guys. Tony’s second in command at Stark Industries, Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) , doesn’t appreciate Tony’s new direction and hides a dark secret.
Forget the cheesy spandex of The Fantastic Four or the geeky pouting of Spider-Man. Robert Downey Jr. dominates this action-packed flick with flair and a witty bad-boy charm that keeps us interested even when the nifty suit is off. Iron Man dishes out all the necessaries: cool superpowers, awesome fight scenes, humor, intrigue, and an understated love story courtesy of Gwyneth Paltrow as Stark’s assistant, Pepper Potts. While not as emotionally deep as the Spider-Man films or as morally complex as this summer’s The Dark Knight, Iron Man is terrific entertainment and the start of what promises to be a fun franchise. If you’re not a fan of superhero flicks, give this one a spin and you might be surprised.
A note of caution: while ClearPlay filters the movie nicely, the special features on the disc contain extended/deleted scenes that have sexual content.
Brian Fuller
Rated PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and brief suggestive content; Runtime: 126 min; Directed by Jon Favreau
Tweens & Teens Movie Night Activity: Iron Man
“Iron Man. That's kind of catchy. It's got a nice ring to it.”
Tony Stark has always enjoyed the wealth and fame that came along with his family business of technology and weapons but never paid much attention to how any of that affected the world around him. Only when he’s threatened by those using his own weapons for evil, does he realize that some things need to change in his life. Tony Stark becomes Iron Man and changes the world, and Family Movie Night, forever! Gather your tweens and teens and enjoy these activities while you watch the first Iron Man movie in a series of 3.
Wear While Watching:
*Things change a lot for Tony Stark when he wakes up to find that he now has an electro-magnet in his chest keeping him alive. Make shirts that look like you have electro-magnets too. Get white t-shirts and draw Arc Reactors on them, or get extra fancy and apply glow-in-the-dark paint to them so they will glow like Tony does. If you want to look like you’re wearing the real thing, you can always order an Arc Reactor Shirt online and wow everyone when you wear it to Movie Night.
*Tony always dresses his best when he’s out on the town. Invite everyone at your Movie Night to dress like you were headed to a party or fundraiser put on by Tony himself. Break out your fanciest dresses and tuxedoes and make it one high class function.
Home Theater Décor:
*Tony’s penthouse office has all sorts of gadgets, technology, art and car posters. Decorate your movie area to look like his workspace by putting up pictures of your favorite sports cars and art. Print some off the internet or wait until your guests arrive and decorate your place together.
*The Iron Man suit is a flashy mix of gold and red. Grab decorations and tableware in the same colors for everyone to easily see what super hero you’re honoring at your Movie Night. To accentuate the glow of the Arc reactor, be sure to add in some glow-in-the-dark decorations or just use glow sticks to light up the night.
Movie Munchies:
*Tony goes overseas to do a weapons demo for some potential buyers. During this part, pass out a Bomb Pop popsicle for everyone to enjoy while they watch the rest of the show.
*Pepper takes good care of Tony and without much mention of what she’s even doing, she brings him wheatgrass shots to keep him going. Serve your guests wheatgrass shots and see if you all feel more like Iron Man when you’re done.
*When Tony gets back to the United States one of the first things he wants is an American cheeseburger. Grab some take-out or fire up the grill and make your own burgers to have for dinner before your Movie Night. You could also order or make some pizza, just like the kind Obadiah brings back from New York for Tony to eat.
Movie Inspired Adventures:
*It’s said that when they started filming Iron Man the script wasn’t complete yet. A lot of Tony Stark lines were ad-libbed by Robert Downy Jr and everyone liked them so much, they just left them. The only problem was that it left poor Gwyneth Paltrow at quite a loss of what to say back multiple times. Play a game of “What’s The Next Line?” by stopping the movie periodically after a classic, snarky Tony Stark comment and take turns coming up with your best impromptu responses. Give out prizes for the best come-backs, the funniest responses and awards if anyone guesses (or remembers) the real next line.
*Play a game of Operation just like Tony teased Pepper about when she was helping him change out his arc reactor. See who would have been the best assistant to Mr. Stark for that job.
*Have a movie marathon by watching this film first and then continuing the adventure by watching Part 2 at home and Part 3 in the theater.
*LyndiLou* - “Yeah. I can fly.”
Rated PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and brief suggestive content; Runtime: 126 min; Directed by Jon Favreau