Iron Man 3 SPOILERS

I saw Iron Man 3 and while I did enjoy the movie I did not really like how they ended it with...

Just curious on what my fellow bombers thought.

BUT HE IS IRON MAN

@scottp:

Do I need a spoiler block if the title says spoilers? I'm guessing not but w/e.

@gamefreak9: You preferred Iron Man 2? Alright.

He did that because they were disposable. He can always build more, and he will!

Loved the movie. I think the best part was Tony Stark / RDJ saying something to the effect of "In the end......I AM IRON MAN".

They'd better renew his contract....There can never be another Iron Man, just as there can never be another Joker.

Anyway, Iron Man 3 was a great way to kick off the summer season. Next up for me is Star Trek, and possibly Superman (they're doing an advanced screening in two weeks, I just haven't found the tickets yet.)

As for the post credits, I expected a Thor 2 tie in, or possibly Avengers 2 teaser..... It was cool what they did though, I think it was fitting, even if it breaks the sort of tradition as of late of teasing the next movie after the credits.

They crammed way too much shit into the ending.

"Mandarin Pearce didn't die by an explosion earlier, but now he'll die by a pole to the face and then an explosion. I'll destroy all my suits, they were only there to sell more toys anyway. I fixed Pepper and then I fixed myself, because now I can but I couldn't earlier, but I'm still Iron Man... Yeah."

Also felt the whole thing had a weird flow, Spy Kids level humor at times (Mandarin Kingsley toilet joke, come on), and very little Iron Man. That Mark 42 suit had to be held together by string or something, completely useless. And all the suits in the end just broke. And if their goal was to create that desperate Iron Man 1 cave moment again, him just duct-taping some stupid Home Alone shit together on a bed doesn't quite do it.

They're basically leading up to him having the suit be integrated into his body, like what happens in the comic version of Extremis, from what I can tell.

And walking out of the theater, I felt like I actually liked it more than the first movie. Yeah, there was a lot of "and all of a sudden all these conflicts are resolved" but overall it was a much stronger final confrontation than either of the first two.

I loved the movie and what I love more is drinking in the sweet sweet nerd rage over the fact that the Mandarin is Aldrich Killian and the other dude is an actor called Trevor Slattery. People getting mad upset over that, I don't know what to say to you but I'm revelling in your misery. This is MGS2 level awesomeness to me.

The real mandarin's motivations are questionable, he essentially just wants to get rich and has gone a ridiculous way about it.

The final battle though, fucking crazy, I can't imagine how Thor 2 hopes to top that. Post credits scene was great too, puts the whole movie in perspective.

Exactly, there are a few things that lead me to believe they'll do this, the first being his ending monologue where he describes his suit as being "a cocoon" (in the original extremis comic the test subjects had cocoons form around them when they were administered the extremis) also, he almost perfected extremis in 1999/2000 and in the present day cured pepper of it, which means he has seemingly perfected it at this point or is at least close.

@gamefreak9: Was just being courteous if someone stumbled across it so they didn't see the ending at the top.

@benny said:

I actually thought that was an *extremely* smart way to do that. Admittedly, I don't actually know much about the Mandarin from the comics but I thought it was really clever and allowed them to heavily advertise the movie with Ben Kingsley without significantly giving too much away.

@CollegeguyMike: Indeed, I must admit I had kinda hoped killian was the main villain all along so I'm glad it turned out that way.

I enjoyed the humor too, "I'm still wondering what happened to the first mouse..." :)

Iron Man 3 was disappointing for me, I actually prefer Iron Man 2 over this. There were a few things I liked, and one of them was actually the Mandarin reveal which is funny because everyone I know hated how they treated the character. I thought it was a fantastic spin to make the character more credible.

Did you guys sleep through the whole movie? The ending is supposed to signify and demonstrate that Tony Stark doesn't depend on his armors. Whether he has the technology or not, he will always be Iron Man. That's the whole deal of this movie and why it is great.

Also, who actually prefers Iron Man 2 over this? The script, direction, acting, and structure on Iron Man 3 is much much better. That's undeniable. The final battle with Mandarin was excellent, he didn't just die with a pole to the face, he died because of the extreme strength Pepper achieved, Iron Man wouldn't be able to pull that off. Which is another thing I really liked. Pepper's character is just so much better. They made her bad ass and a good companion to Tony Stark.

The only complaint I had about Iron Man 2 was that it seemed like two different stories welded together. I'm not a comic book expert so I wonder if it really was two stories glued together.

Personally I was really pleased with it. Probably one the best third movies in any franchise, regardless of genre.

My observations:

• Really steps up the overall complexity of the plot in relation to the previous movies. A number of twists, even if some of them are a little too predictable.
• For better or worse, not a lot of setup for the Avengers stuff this time around. Seems like a weird move to be making, but the movie stands up on its own merits more as a result.
• Loved some of the armour callbacks towards the end, particularly the Silver Centurion.

Regarding the ending, blowing the armours and getting rid of the arc reactor was something I'm okay with. A lot of people don't seem to realise that RDJ's portrayal of Stark doesn't really match the comics that well (it's still a lot of fun to watch), so starting over with the tech and gradually removing his physical handicap brings him into line with the 616 a little more. I guess we'll see how that goes when Avengers 2 rolls around.

In what movie does he fight Captain America? Because from what I remember about that one of them was a dick, and one of them just died. And from what you are telling me of this movie it just sounds like every other superhero movie ever.

None of them?

It was a shit movie.

That fucking kid ruined everything.

I thought the movie was pretty shit to be honest.

That is all.

I thought this was probably the most out of character Iron Man movie out of all of them. I feel like they really wimped out with Tony Stark's character by giving him PTSD from the events from The Avengers. There was pretty much no reason for that... if anything, it would have been more daring/interesting if they had kept it more like the comics and made him an alcoholic. How many times was he actually in the suit? Like two maybe? Where did he learn how to be a secret agent and take on an entire terrorist organization by just using some stuff he bought at Home Depot? Why was the bad guy such a dick?

There was just a bunch of stupid moments in this movie. People are using the excuse of saying "oh it's just more comic bookey", but to me it was just a lot of silliness that made it not as enjoyable as the last two movies.

I don't know...it would make sense that the events in The Avengers would make Stark have PTSD. That was the craziest thing he had ever seen or done and he was pulling a suicide run that probably clinically killed him (for a little bit). Without that Stark would have no motive beyond "I want too..." for the reason why he so desperately wants to protect those people.

If I had a complaint it was Killian place in the story seems a bit arbitrary. They really needed to invent a reason that motivated him to set in motion all such an intricate plot where it could have been as simple as "I hate pop-culture".

I thought it was almost as good as the first one - ie, really damn good. Only difference being I'd say this was very good for a comic book movie, but not bother with that couching for the first.

Anyway - I absolutely do not understand the nerd rage. Having read all of the Iron Man comics until just after the Extremis arc (you know, including the arcs where Iron Man was the freaking secretary for defense and other bonkers shit), I thought it was fine from that perspective, too. Sure they changed up AIM and Extremis, but who cares?

In the comics, Stark elects to get Extremis so he can interface directly with machines such as his suit (because he adds so much to the suit to keep up with villains that it gets to the point where he has to ship it in containers just to have it with him). He then essentially has super strength and super healing along with being effing Iron Man - things that the character frankly doesn't need.

There is totally precedent for him not needing the magnet AND him starting over with his suits. As others point out, the "I AM Iron Man" statements in the end and the "Tony Stark Will Return" stuff post credits should totally be enough for anyone, because that's all that really matters.

I was really into it. I really liked how for most of the movie Tony was working without his usual resources but pulling off some good and proper heroism without the suit. I sort of felt it was a nice answer to "without the suit what are you?" Question Captain America posed in the Avengers. It felt like him showing that even without his suit or his facilities he's still Iron Man, which I really liked. Was a nice way to put him in a bad place, much better I feel than the way Iron Man 2 did it which was simply "You're dying from cancer. Quickly! Invent a magic triangle to solve that!" Translated to better action and more tension. Also really like how the final act wasn't dull like it was in the original Iron Man.

I don't mind for a second that he didn't have his full suits and shit with him all the time, way I figure having a dozen suits on you makes matters rather predictable anyway. He just had one with a really cool albeit unfinished feature that was also broken for a lot of the film. Then he called in a bunch of unfinished WIPs to wreck shit up in what was a fantastic finale. Then he destroyed them because him designing so many of them was him being driven crazy by the alien threat and, after the events of the movie, he feels confident without 40 suits because he knows he can do this thing without the suits if he really needs to.

He's Iron Man and the Thor preview was pretty damn cool.

Really?

I thought The Dark Knights Joker was pretty great, but it wasn't a show stopper. Certainly no better than Mark Hamil's.

I really enjoyed Iron Man 3 and I thought that the ending was a fitting one for Tony as a character and how much he has grown throughout his adventures.

I really enjoyed Iron Man 3 and I thought that the ending was a fitting one for Tony as a character and how much he has grown throughout his adventures.

When they got to the "kid" portion of the film I had like ptsd flashbacks of "Cop & a Half" and "Kindergarten Cop" going through my mind. I knew Shane Black was directing it so I knew we'd have some buddy cop romp to this flick but didn't know we were taking a memory lane stroll through every plot device used in 80's and 90's buddy cop flicks. All we were missing was a good "Tango and Cash" and "Turner and Hooch" reference, though I think arm robot thingy was kinda like a dog so maybe the latter was covered.

Did this movie also kinda rip off Batman Begins with the reveal?

- Found a Tango and Cash reference in Iron Man 3: Shit Blows Up.

Jack Nicholson was pretty cool too. They can all be rebooted...invented or whatever. So is the life blood of comicdom.

Fact: The Tarantino-style credits were the best part of the movie.

My main problem with the movie is it felt tonally broken. You had Tony Stark dealing with PTSD and combating terrorists. Yet his character never seemed effected by anything that happend for longer than 10 seconds, after which he just reverts back to one-liner man.

Which is fine in the other movies, when the stakes are relatively low but the opening of this movie made it out as though the Mandarin was causing complete havok and that it effected Tony Stark, but it didnt, nothing did, he was back to his quips in no time, even after Pepper's supposed death he was still one-liner man.

I didnt want this movie to be Batman or anything but I felt this was even more wacky than the first two films and it bothered me. That and the lack of AC/DC which at this point is kind of the soundtrack (and part of the soul) of the movie franchise.

I could have done with about a half hour more of Guy Pearce melting people.

I could have done with about a half hour more of Guy Pearce melting people.

That's kinda the point though, right? Tony Stark is kinda stupid impulsive, fond of grandiose gestures, and extremely frivolous with his money.

I appreciated the bait and switch, but am a little bummed out they squandered the Mandarin on this. Basically there can be no real Mandarin in the movies from here on out because that wouldn't make sense. I realize he's an incredibly hokey villain but I would have liked to see them try to make him work, ten magical alien rings and all. There will never be a Fing Fang Foom on the big-screen in 3D.

They already made him an alcoholic in 2, which he overcame. PTSD is more interesting than alcoholism twice in two movies IMO.

I asume they destroyed the armor and the arc reactor at the end cuz Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man contract was ending and someone said it's not even sure if he will be in The Avengers' sequel.

I find it funny that people discuss storylines and try to make conclusions when the movie clearly just goes "fuck it, you don't care if this makes sense". I mean, nothing in the movie stands up to any sort of scrutiny and it's pretty clear that if the franchise keeps on going nothing that's happened in other movies matter.

While I enjoyed the movie to a certain extent I feel like they're starting to drift too far into the niche comic book market where they're sorta desperately grasping at "cool" ideas. It was fun for it's over the top action scenes etc, but there's not much beyond that.

Let me put you out of your misery, he will definitely be in Avengers 2. He's simply renegotiating his contract and wants a bigger slice of the pie. I don't blame him, the first avengers is the Tony Stark show anyway and his $50m salary in comparison to how much that movie made is probably a little low!

I was a little disappointed for the most part. There was some really funny smart dialogue and I kinda liked how he spent a lot of the movie not in the suit, was interesting to see him deal with that. The plot was kinda nonsense though. Things were set up and then went nowhere. The anxiety attacks he was having just felt like a way to tie the movie into Avengers it didn't really go anywhere. I dunno still better then 2 I enjoyed it but it felt like a bit of a missed opportunity.

I find it weird that people are pining for alcoholism in these movies despite it being largely a contained storyline in the comics that only sees occasional nods since it was introduced thirty years ago. It's sort of like how Hank Pym slapped his wife once and suddenly became the epitome of domestic abuse.

Much dumber action, much better actors/acting, terrible plot, great dialogue, much smarter humor; weird overall.

I really liked it. More than 2, though not as much as the first. I was feeling kind of iffy on it in the first half, but probably around the scene where they pull the great reveal of who the Mandarin really is, I started to enjoy it a lot more. The ending tied things up real nicely, too. I hope to hell that RDJ comes back for The Avengers 2, though. It wouldn't be the same without him.

Also, that last action scene was bombastically insane. Love it. After the final fight in Iron Man 2 was such a cop-out, it was nice to see something appropriately awesome in this one.

I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, minus a few caveats.

Unlike the popular consensus that seems to be going around on the internet, I liked how the movie threw away the Iron Man suits for a good portion of the movie and looks into what Tony Stark does when he can't rely on his "super power." It ultimately showed that his Iron Man suits are just a byproduct of his true power, which is mechanical ingenuity. The movie also avoids the potential problem of being action-lite when going the route of "removing the super powers from the super hero." One of the best action scenes is after Tony frees himself in Aldrich's lab and fights the security team with a gun in one hand a repulsor in the other.

I've also seen son backlash concerning the humor in the movie. People are complaining about it having way too many jokes and quips throughout the entire thing. My only answer to that is, "Really?" Iron Man, and all of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, have been playing it light-hearted from the start. This isn't Nolan with the Batman franchise. Additionally, Tony Stark is suppose to be this sarcastic asshole who uses witty banter even during serious and dangerous encounters. It's a bit of a defense mechanism on his part so the brevity of the situation doesn't overwhelm him and prevent him from thinking his way out.

My main gripes with the movie though were:

1. The kid. The actor did a fine job playing the role, but it felt like that portion of the movie was solely made to appeal to the young audience that super hero movies attract. At the same time though, I wonder if people like me have a bias against the idea of a kid having a hand in saving the world. It could be the reverse issue whereas child audiences enjoy a movie or TV show where someone their own age plays an integral part of the story (giving them a character they can "see" themselves as), adult audiences groan at it because they themselves cannot relate to that character at all.
2. The underground storage with all the extra Iron Man suits that were used in the last battle. This is a logical story problem that I have with the movie. Once Tony Stark was able to repower Jarvis in his Mk. 42, why didn't he have one of the dozens of other working suits sent to him so that he can fly into Miami and bust into Aldrich's mansion to get the Manderin?

@thesoutherndandy said:

I thought they used his anxiety attack to good use for the most part. His PTSD from the Avengers is the catalyst that had him constantly creating Iron Man Suits. The Iron Man armor became his dependency. This was best shown in the scene where he and Rhodie are at the restaurant and Tony freaks out when one of the kids brings up what happened to him in New York. Right when the fear of the unknown enemy is triggered, the first thing he does is run straight into his Iron Man suit.