Iron Man

Written by Mark fergus, Hawk Otsby, Art Marcum, & Matt Holloway

Directed by Jon Favreau

Rating: 🔥 That’s hot

Arrogant, cocky, and ridiculously wealthy, Tony Stark is the billionaire bad boy genius behind Stark Industries- founded by his father Howard Stark. As his father before him, Stark uses his ingenuity to create weapons for the US Government. On a trip to demonstrate the newest Stark creation in the Middle East, Tony is kidnapped in an ambush and is dangerously injured, saved only by a magnetic implant in his chest done by a fellow kidnapped scientist.

A rude awakening awaits Tony as he realizes that the very weapons he created to ensure American military safety has been sold also to the enemy, and utilized against himself in the very ambushed that left him injured. Forced to build his strongest weapon yet for the enemy, Tony instead creates a mini arc reactor that powers not only the life saving magnetic implant in his chest, but also a suit of armor that allows him to escape his captors. Through his experiences Tony is forced to confront the reality of what his genius is being used for, and whether his conscience will allow him to continue on the same path. His choices are risky and brash, bringing him face to face to his greatest danger yet. 

The Marvel Universe is a wildly successful franchise that has pretty much dominated the cinematic world since the release of Iron Man in 2008. I remember seeing this movie in theaters and being absolutely captivated by Robert Downey Jr as Tony Stark being a hero who toes the line of reality and fantasy so well (honestly I feel like this is the sh*t that Elon Musk would create in the exact same situation). It’s wild to watch this movie now and see how much our (american) cultural climate shaped the whole plot in which this movie is centered around- fear of the Middle East, how important the best tech was (do the words “weapons of mass destruction” ring a bell), and a general disillusionment that was beginning to take place regarding the amount of trust that we could truly put in our government and our capitalistic idealism.

Tony goes through that whole journey in front of our eyes being generally sheltered and oblivious thinking that Stark Industries is only helping the “good guys” to realizing that right and wrong are subjective. The growth that he experiences and the humanity in which he does it makes his character relatable and endearing. And though the female representation is yet again lacking, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) is given depth, power, character development and an over all authority to her that makes you aware that she is definitely the one that wears the pants in the relationship. Under the incredible direction of Jon Favreau (one of my favorite directors ever) this is the standalone origin film that launched the MCU into what it is now, which is the highest grossing film franchise in the world.

Written by Edelia Weston