Iron Man’s most commanding aspect is Robert Downey Jr.  His strength in overcoming the challenge of playing a billionaire prick, who is also a charismatic hero, is impressive.  In doing so, Downey Jr. comes off as high-and-mighty and magnetic simultaneously.  Additionally, he lives up to Stan Lee’s Howard Hughes inspiration, rocks his well-defined goatee, and plays the character with passion.  Considering Downey Jr.’s genuine interest in the Iron Man comic-book character, one would like to think that his three-dimensional portrayal would certainly appease the two-dimensional Tony Stark.

Hand director Jon Favreau the credit for continually leaving viewers thirsty for the minutes that follow.  However, the writers deserve the most merit for scripting an exemplar plot.  Like the storyline of Batman Begins, Iron Man is more prequel than “quel” in depicting the origin of the superhero.  Throughout Iron Man’s set-up, the screenplay establishes the characters and envelopes the viewers in the story.  This allows for the last act to be reserved for the clashing of hero and villain.  Wisely, Iron Man does not succumb to the often-seen (X-Men: The Last Stand, Spider-Man 3, etc.) temptation of pleasing genre fans by incorporating too many of their favorite characters (good and bad) and quickly moving to conflict.In an effort to steer clear of conflict with fans of the series, Iron Man judiciously makes room for sequels.  Iron Man poises Terrence Howard to assume the role of War Machine, leaves the terrorist sect (a mock version of Mandarin perhaps) primed for revenge, and only tickles the romance between Pepper and Tony.  What’s more, if you sit through the credits to catch a clip that will make fans (new and old) “Fury”ous for more Iron Man, you’ll learn the path that the series is slated to follow.  Also, be sure to look for Downey Jr.’s cameo as Tony Stark in the upcoming The Incredible Hulk.