![iron man 2008 iron man 2008](https://image.tmdb.org/t/p/w300/55RIH0MvyCRKLjx1RjEICF9SvAj.jpg)
![iron man 2008 iron man 2008](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BMTM0NjIwNzAyN15BMl5BanBnXkFtZTcwNjEzNTIzMw@@._V1_.jpg)
IRON MAN 2008 MOVIE
If anything, the shocking thing here is that this film sets a strong precedent for its main female character/love interest, that is never really followed through on in any subsequent Marvel movie (aside from Peggy Carter, God rest her soul). Okay, it's not incredibly enlightened or progressive, but at this time, I think it's to the film's credit that Potts is written the way she is, especially considering this is all based on dated source material that has always focused predominantly on male characters and never cared much for the female ones. The fact that the film writes her as someone who knows Stark better than anyone else, is closest to him emotionally and - across all the Iron Man films - the person who makes him become a better man, is a considerable service to her character.
![iron man 2008 iron man 2008](https://cdna.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/034/327/654/large/anirudh-mahansaria-or-anigraphicsd-final-ironman3-posterspy.jpg)
I know it seems that she is the put-upon assistant forced to do his bidding, but that's literally her job at this stage. I think the chemistry with Gwyneth is fantastic and it presents a dynamic that is not only desperately needed in this film - an actual match for Tony Stark when literally everyone else in this film, including Happy and Rhodey, just put up with his bullshit - but is an interesting relationship already. Matt: I have to side with Ali too (sorry Becky). In any case, she has the expression and the tone of a woman who has spent a lifetime dealing with her male boss's unbelievable bullshit, which is quite hard to capture. I mean, yes, she's only playing a supporting role in someone else's story, but it's called Iron Man, it's not called Pepper Potts, because that would be a silly name for a movie, even one about a character called Pepper Potts. Pepper Potts is nothing more than an archetype and it's interesting to think how few movies would let that slide nowadays.Īli: I'm actually going to disagree with Becky because I think the character of Pepper Potts is quite important to the overall story, in that she's what keeps Tony grounded and keeps him connected to his humanity. I was surprised how little it had dated in terms of SFX, but what does date it now less than 10 years later is how underwritten the female characters are, pre-Black Widow. Everything is literally resting on Iron Man's shoulders. Where the later films water down the charisma they up the ante with all the smashy-crashy stuff. The only difference here is that it genuinely feels fresh and off-the-cuff, and in copying this style for the rest of the MCU, it's clearer to understand the criticism that has been levelled at the later films for being too formulaic, because by comparison, they can often feel like they contain watered down cover versions of the energy and charisma that this one has.īecky: Favreau is definitely more of an actor's director, and compared to the latter Marvel movies it shows here - I remember thinking at the time that there wasn't nearly as much action as I expected. Every film feels part of the universe that this film built (excepting perhaps The Incredible Hulk). The loose, semi-improvisational dialogue and fast-paced quipping in this film basically set a tone that Marvel have set their entire formula on. As you say, this is surely all down to Favreau. It struts around with all the confidence of any Marvel movie released in the last couple of years. Matt: Yeah, it's weird watching the film again and seeing that it has the confidence of a movie launching a massive franchise, but that's totally at odds with the history of production and the fact that it was seen as a huge gamble by Marvel at the time. It's weird going back to watch the first Iron Man and thinking how no one involved had any idea how massive this thing would become. That goes to show just how much of the entire franchise has been built on the back of the first Iron Man movie and what Jon Favreau - but mainly Robert Downey Jr - achieved in that first shot at capturing Marvel on film. Like, if Iron Man never existed and the MCU was launched with Thor or Cap or something, and you released the exact 2008 version of Iron Man today, it'd still slot quite neatly into the fold. Ali: I guess what I wanted to discover by rewatching the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe was how much the movies have changed since its inception, but I have to say, even going as far back as Iron Man, the tone is still mega consistent throughout.