# The Iron Man Movie (no spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 1, 2008, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640 "2008-05-01T17:33:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/161 "2008-05-07T08:14:25Z")
[QUOTE=Phase42] I heard it as “You offered us _trinkets_…” [/QUOTE] That makes more sense, seeing as how a tithing is a tenth of your income, donated to the Church. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/162 "2008-05-07T21:48:29Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] After seeing it again, my nitpick is that I would’ve preferred IM winning the ending battle on skill, instead of a deus ex machina (kinda sorta) type ending, albeit one where the device was there form the outset. Its the first time I can recall a film where the superhero is totally outmatched as well, although I’m sure I’ve read many comics where that’s the case. It could be argued that this was IM’s first time battling a superfoe, but still, I would’ve rather he won by using superpowers. [/QUOTE] Yeah, I felt the same way. There’s a scene in one of the Ultimates comic books where Stark drains his suit dry fighting aliens, and a squad of marines finds him and plugs him into the city’s power grid, recharging him and getting him back into the fight. And knocking out power to about ten square blocks while they’re at it. I was expecting something similar, either with the power grid, or the giant arc reactor itself. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/163 "2008-05-07T21:53:10Z")
spoliers spoilers spoilers Yeah, basically what you end up with is a regular joe saving the superhero- albeit with one of the devices he created. Kind of like having Spider-Man end with Aunt May killing the Scorpion. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/164 "2008-05-07T21:55:12Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS After seeing it again, my nitpick is that I would’ve preferred IM winning the ending battle on skill, instead of a deus ex machina (kinda sorta) type ending, albeit one where the device was there form the outset. Its the first time I can recall a film where the superhero is totally outmatched as well, although I’m sure I’ve read many comics where that’s the case. It could be argued that this was IM’s first time battling a superfoe, but still, I would’ve rather he won by using superpowers. [/QUOTE] Stark ain’t **got** no superpowers but his brains, which he uses to defeat Stane; it’s perfectly fitting. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/165 "2008-05-07T21:56:59Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] Kind of like having Spider-Man end with Aunt May killing the Scorpion. 🙂 [/QUOTE] Hey, she’s a Herald of Galactus. She can do what she pleases. If my terrible sense of humor puzzles you, no, she’s not officially a Herald. It just seems so because she’s an immortal indestructable being :rolleyes: . ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/166 "2008-05-07T22:21:06Z")
**BrainGlutton** , ok, then like Batman ending with Alfred throwing a toaster in the Jokers bathtub after he beat the hell out of Batman. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/167 "2008-05-07T23:07:59Z")
The ol’ Alfred/toaster kill, eh? I think I read that one in high school. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/168 "2008-05-07T23:37:25Z")
I’m still snickering over the Aunt May as herald of Galactus image. I’d pay money to see that. Book or Movie. ---
**Author:** ![neofishboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/neofishboy/32/444_2.png) [@neofishboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neofishboy)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2008, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/169 "2008-05-07T23:46:30Z")
[Be careful what you wish for…](http://photos.ifmagazine.com/graphics/features_movie/golden_oldie.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Who](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Doctor\_Who](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Who)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/170 "2008-05-08T00:07:29Z")
[QUOTE=neofishboy] [Be careful what you wish for…](http://photos.ifmagazine.com/graphics/features_movie/golden_oldie.jpg) [/QUOTE] Yeah, I was about to say — shit, I OWN that book somewhere! ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/171 "2008-05-08T00:08:52Z")
[QUOTE=neofishboy] [Be careful what you wish for…](http://photos.ifmagazine.com/graphics/features_movie/golden_oldie.jpg) [/QUOTE] :eek: I swear I never saw that before! She has the power of Wheatcakes! ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/172 "2008-05-08T12:37:51Z")
Agree with **GuanoLad**. Marginally above average. Establishing details. Check. Birth of super hero. Check. Contrived conflict. Check. Big action sequence. Check. Set up the sequel. Check. Sure, it was good. I liked the cast. Paltrow did a lot with very little. Good summer blockbuster fare. Working out the engineering details was pretty good. Some nice humourous bits (Jim Kramer, e.g.). But, it brought absolutely nothing new to the table. It was completely by-the-book. There was nothing wrong with it, but what is there to get excited about anymore with this kind of thing? Complete waste of Favreau’s talents. This could have been done just as well by Michael Bay. Jarring non-stop Audi placements, and a very awkward burger king placement. “I need a hamburger. A real, American hamburger. Press conference, too, but first, A HAMBURGER.” Burger King? Might have been more redeeming if he kept drinking, and whoring through the whole thing. Hopefully **Hancock** and **Hellboy 2** will make people realize that this whole thing is getting played out. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/173 "2008-05-08T13:01:17Z")
At last! Someone to share my little corner of this rather heavily imbalanced room, or indeed planet. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/174 "2008-05-08T13:25:37Z")
Don’t forget the cliched killer talks to the hero a bit, then leaves him for dead without making sure he’s dead. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/175 "2008-05-08T13:36:18Z")
[QUOTE=Trunk] Jarring non-stop Audi placements, and a very awkward burger king placement. [/quote] You forgot Dell! > [@](#): > > “I need a hamburger. A real, American hamburger. Press conference, too, but first, A HAMBURGER.” Burger King? I said exactly that to my wife in the theater. “He wanted a real hamburger so he went to _Burger King??_” > [@](#): > > Hopefully Hancock and Hellboy 2 will make people realize that this whole thing is getting played out. Nah. The same romantic drama/comedy formula’s been getting used since the dawn of time and it stays popular. People don’t see these types of movies for something new and innovative. ---
**Author:** ![bouv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bc8723/32.png) [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/176 "2008-05-08T15:56:27Z")
[QUOTE=Wee Bairn] Don’t forget the cliched killer talks to the hero a bit, then leaves him for dead without making sure he’s dead. [/QUOTE] Well…again, this sort of has to happen for the movie to work. We’ve established by this point that you HAVE to have a mini-arc reactor for the suit to work, so Obidiah needs one. He has to take Tony’s, because he thinks that’s the only one in existence (he doesn’t realize Tony has a new one and the old one is in his lab.) If he killed Tony…well, end of movie and everyone would be like “WTF? They killed Iron Man and there wasn’t even a fight between the two armored dudes?” So you have to do that scene. The other option would have been for Obidiah’s team to actually make a mini-arc reactor, which might not have been that bad an idea, cause they could have just made it five-ten times the size, cause there’re not as good, and the other suit could have worn it like a backpack, or something. But then Iron Man would have kicked his ass using his smaller, and better, arc reactor. Iron Monger didn’t seem to have repulser rays, so Tony would have just given him several full charges from his chest blaster and that would have been that. ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/177 "2008-05-08T16:12:03Z")
[QUOTE=neofishboy] [Be careful what you wish for…](http://photos.ifmagazine.com/graphics/features_movie/golden_oldie.jpg) [/QUOTE] Aunt May’s been to the Wizard of Plastic Surgery for some implants. She’s also been pumping iron. ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/178 "2008-05-08T17:40:44Z")
[QUOTE=Trunk] This could have been done just as well by Michael Bay. [/QUOTE] _M’sieur makes the joke, no?_ ---
**Author:** ![Trunk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/87869e/32.png) [@Trunk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trunk)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/179 "2008-05-08T18:27:13Z")
[QUOTE=Baldwin] _M’sieur makes the joke, no?_ [/QUOTE] Not at all. Actually, working off the same script, I suspect Bay probably would have done it better. Action sequences were definitely below average in this, not as good as Transformer’s action. At some point, they started getting these directors with a little more “cred” to try their hands at blockbusters. Just another aspect of the marketing. Probably in two years or so, we’ll get a good Favreau movie that he WANTED to make and was allowed to do so because of the cash he raked in for this. Like Clooney making “Good Night & Good Luck” with his Ocean’s money. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640/180 "2008-05-08T18:29:25Z")
[QUOTE=Trunk] Like Clooney making “Good Night & Good Luck” with his Ocean’s money. [/QUOTE] Clooney would be well advised to leave Danny Ocean’s money alone. That guy gets serious when his stuff is messed with. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-iron-man-movie-no-spoilers/447640.md?page=10)