Iron Man
Theatrical Poster
Directed by	Jon Favreau
Produced by	Avi Arad Kevin Feige
Written by	Screenplay: John August (uncredited) Mark Fergus Hawk Ostby Arthur Marcum Matthew Hollaway Comic Book: Stan Lee Larry Lieber Don Heck Jack Kirby
Starring	Robert Downey Jr. Gwyneth Paltrow Jeff Bridges Terrence Howard
Music by	Ramin Djawadi
Cinematography	Matthew Libatique
Editing by	Dan Lebental
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	May 2, 2008
Running time	126 min.
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$135 million[1]
Gross revenue	Domestic: $314.5 million Worldwide: $566.2 million [2]
Official website
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Iron Man is a 2008 superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Jon Favreau, the film stars Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, a billionaire industrialist and master engineer who builds a powered exoskeleton and becomes the technologically advanced superhero, Iron Man. Gwyneth Paltrow plays his personal assistant Pepper Potts, Terrence Howard plays military liaison James Rhodes and Jeff Bridges plays Stark Industries executive Obadiah Stane.

The film was in development since 1990 at Universal Studios, 20th Century Fox, and New Line Cinema, before Marvel Studios reacquired the rights in 2006. Marvel put the project in production as their first self-financed film. Favreau signed on as director, aiming for a naturalistic feel, and he chose to shoot the film primarily in California, rejecting the East Coast setting of the comics to differentiate the film from numerous superhero movies set in New York City-esque environments. During filming, the actors were free to create their own dialogue because preproduction was focused on the story and action. Rubber and metal versions of the armors, created by Stan Winston's company, were mixed with computer-generated imagery to create the title character.

Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures, the distributor, planned a $50 million marketing campaign for the film, which is modeled on Paramount's successful promotion of Transformers (2007); Hasbro and Sega will sell merchandise, and product placement deals were made with Audi, Burger King, LG and 7-Eleven. Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive, particularly praising Downey's performance. The film's stars have signed on for two sequels, the first of them scheduled for release on April 30, 2010, while Downey also makes a cameo appearance as Stark in The Incredible Hulk.

Plot

During a business trip to Afghanistan to demonstrate Stark Industries' new weapon, the "Jericho" cluster missile, Tony Stark's (Robert Downey Jr.) military convoy is attacked. During the ensuing firefight, he is wounded by one of his own company's bombs, which knocks him unconscious and embeds pieces of shrapnel in his chest, one fragment dangerously close to his heart.

Approximately 36 hours earlier, Stark avoids his own awards ceremony to gamble at a Las Vegas casino, leaving his deceased father's friend and business partner, Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) to collect the award. As Stark leaves the casino with his entourage, he is approached by Vanity Fair reporter Christine Everhart, whom he charms into a one-night stand at his Malibu house. As she awakens in the morning, she is escorted from the house by Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), who tells her that Tony is away on a business trip to Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, Tony's convoy is attacked, and he is knocked unconscious. Waking up hours later in an Afghan cave, Stark discovers an electromagnet attached to his chest, powered by a car battery and designed to keep the shrapnel from piercing his heart and killing him.

Stark has been captured by the terrorist group Ten Rings, who order him to build a Jericho missile for them. Instead, he and fellow captive Dr. Yinsen (Shaun Toub) begin building a miniature "arc reactor", a smaller version of a power source previously invented by Tony Stark's father, Howard Stark. With the reactor powering his electromagnet, Stark and Yinsen secretly build a crude but strong power armor as a means of escape. Despite breaking free from their cell, Dr. Yinsen is killed in the ensuing escape attempt. In the suit, Stark kills several terrorists, destroying their weapons stockpile and flying away before crash landing in the desert, destroying the suit in the process. After being rescued by the Air Force and returned to the United States, Stark declares at a press conference that his company will no longer manufacture weapons. Stane tells him shortly thereafter that this move is being blocked by the members of the board of directors of Stark Industries.

Stark retreats from public view, focusing on the design of his power suit, refining its size and improving its flight and fighting capability while making an improved arc reactor for himself, which he uses to replace the old one. During his first public appearance since his return to the United States, he is accosted by Everhart, who shows him pictures of Stark Industries weapons in the hands of terrorist groups, including Jericho missiles. Realizing that Stane has been "dealing under the table" by supplying both the Americans and their enemies, and that Stane has been attempting to remove Stark from power, Stark dons the power suit and flies to Afghanistan, rescuing Yinsen's village from the Ten Rings. During the operation, Stark inadvertently attracts the the attention of the United States Air Force and his friend and company military liaison, Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes (Terrence Howard), who dispatches two F-22 Raptors to intercept and eliminate the unknown target. During the dogfight, one of the planes is accidentally destroyed, but the pilot is rescued by Stark, who privately calls Rhodes to reveal that he was the unidentified object. Rhodes later classifies the incident as a training accident to the press.

Determined to amend his mistakes, Stark sends Potts to find the shipping records of Stark Industries, so he can track the illicit shipments and destroy them. While hacking into the system, she discovers that Stane hired the Ten Rings to kill Stark and the group reneged on the deal upon discovering his true identity. She also learns Stane has recovered the power suit prototype and reverse-engineered his own version but that his scientists are unable to engineer the miniature arc reactor to power the new suit. Stane ambushes Tony in his house, using an experimental Stark Industries device to temporarily paralyze him and removing the arc reactor from Stark's chest to power the new suit. As Stane leaves, the dying Stark manages to re-install his first reactor to save himself. Although his first reactor was not designed to power his latest armor, Stark takes it to battle with Stane atop Stark Industries and the surrounding streets, luring him atop the full-sized arc reactor at Stark Industries just as Potts overloads it, killing Stane and destroying the Iron Monger suit.

In the following days, the press has dubbed Stark's alter ego "Iron Man." During his press conference, Stark considers the cover story given to him by his S.H.I.E.L.D. contact, before abandoning it and announcing that he is Iron Man.

After the ending credits, Stark is visited by S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) who warns him that he is not the only 'super hero' in the world, and states he wants to talk about the "Avenger Initiative".

Cast

Robert Downey Jr. plays Anthony "Tony" Stark / Iron Man: A billionaire industrialist, genius inventor, and consummate playboy, he is CEO of Stark Industries, a chief weapons manufacturer for the U.S. military. The son of a Manhattan Project engineer, Howard Stark, Tony is an engineering prodigy, having built a circuit board at 4 years old and an engine at 6 years old, as well as graduating from MIT summa cum laude at the age of 17, shortly after which he inherited Stark Industries following his parents' deaths. He builds a suit of power armor to escape his Afghan captors after being kidnapped while performing a weapons test in the country and decides to help mankind as Iron Man.

Favreau had planned to cast a newcomer in the role,^[3] but ultimately chose Downey (a fan of the comic)^[4] because he felt the actor's past made him an appropriate choice for the part. "The best and worst moments of Robert's life have been in the public eye," the director explained. "He had to find an inner balance to overcome obstacles that went far beyond his career. That's Tony Stark. Robert brings a depth that goes beyond a comic book character who is having trouble in high school, or can't get the girl."^[4] Favreau also felt Downey could make Stark a "likable asshole", but also depict an authentic emotional journey once he won over the audience.^[5]

Downey had an office next to Favreau during pre-production, which allowed him greater involvement in the screenwriting process.^[6] He brought a deeper sense of humor to the film not present in previous drafts of the script.^[7] He explained, "What I usually hate about these [superhero] movies [is] when suddenly the guy that you were digging turns into Dudley Do-Right, and then you're supposed to buy into all his 'Let's go do some good!' That Eliot Ness-in-a-cape-type thing. What was really important to me was to not have him change so much that he's unrecognizable. When someone used to be a schmuck and they're not anymore, hopefully they still have a sense of humor."^[8] To prepare, Downey spent five days a week weight training and practiced martial arts to get into shape,^[4] which benefitted him because "it's hard not to have a personality meltdown [...] after about several hours in that suit. I'm calling up every therapeutic moment I can think of to just get through the day."^[9]

Howard preparing for the role by riding an F-16 flight simulator

Terrence Howard plays Lt. Colonel James "Rhodey" Rhodes: A pilot friend of Stark, and the liaison between Stark Industries and the military in the department of acquisitions. Favreau cast Howard because he felt he could play War Machine in a sequel.^[10] Howard prepared for the role by visiting Nellis Air Force Base on March 16, 2007, where he ate with the pilots and observed HH-60 Pave Hawk rescue helicopters and F-22 Raptors.^[11] While Rhodes is roguish in the comics after he met Stark, his earlier disciplinarian character forms a dynamic with Stark, and he is unsure whether or not Stark's actions are acceptable. "Rhodey is completely disgusted with the way Tony has lived his life, but at a certain point he realizes that perhaps there is a different way," Howard said. "Whose life is the right way; is it the strict military life, or the life of an independent?"^[9]

Howard and his father are Iron Man fans, partly because Rhodes was one of the few black superheroes when he was a child.^[12] He was a Downey fan since he saw him in Weird Science, and they competed physically on set: "Robert and his competitive ass almost tore my shoulder trying to keep up with him. Because I'm forty or fifty pounds heavier than him, so I'm in there lifting and I pushed up about 225 [pounds (102 kg)] and knocked it out ten times. Robert wanted to go about 235 [106 kg], and he did it. So I'm going to push it up to about 245 [111 kg]. I took him out running and gave him some nice cramps. He couldn't walk after a couple of days."^[13]

Jeff Bridges plays Obadiah Stane: Stark's second-in-command, who wants control of the company. When Stark declares he will no longer manufacture arms, Stane steals the blueprints for the Mark I armor to create his own, bigger version. Bridges read the comics as a boy and liked Favreau's modern, realistic approach. He shaved his hair and grew a gray beard for the role, which was something he had wanted to do for some time. Bridges googled the Book of Obadiah, and he was surprised to learn retribution is a major theme in that particular book of the Bible, something which Stane represents.^[14] The character was called Iron Monger in the comics when he used his armor, but the codename is only referenced in the film when Stane describes himself and Stark as "ironmongers".

Gwyneth Paltrow plays Virginia "Pepper" Potts: Stark's personal secretary and budding love interest. Paltrow asked Marvel to send her any comics that they would consider relevant to her understanding of the character, whom she considered to be very smart, levelheaded, and grounded. She said she liked "the fact that there's a sexuality that's not blatant." Favreau wanted Potts' and Stark's relationship to be reminiscent of a 1940s comedy, something which Paltrow considered to be fun in a sexy yet innocent way.^[15]

Shaun Toub plays Dr. Yinsen: Stark's fellow captive in Afghanistan. He is a surgeon who has traveled the world and was kidnapped by the Ten Rings terrorist group. He saves Stark from death when Stark was injured by shrapnel, and uses an electromagnet to suspend the shards he couldn't remove, lest they cause fatal damage to Stark's heart. He assists Stark in creating the Mark I armor and keeping it a secret from their captors. He also acts as Stark's mentor, teaching him humility during their time together, and his death being one of the principal reasons behind Stark's decision to change the direction of his company. In the comics, Yinsen is Chinese and a physicist, but in the film, he comes from an Afghan village called Gulmira.

Faran Tahir plays Raza: A terrorist hired by Stane to kill Stark, who then orders Stark to build a Stark Industries missile system for his organization, the Ten Rings. Tahir is a fan of the comics,^[14] and wanted to bring humanity to the henchman. "I tried to find ways to show that although he may be the bad guy, there might be a moment or just a hint of vulnerability at times, where he hasn't made the right calculations or there's a certain amount of doubt. Jon was very receptive to that kind of layering."^[16]

Paul Bettany voices J.A.R.V.I.S.: Stark's personal AI, which assists him in the construction and programming of the Iron Man suit. The name of the character is a reference to the comic book character Edwin Jarvis, Stark's butler. Bettany did the part as a favor to Favreau (with whom he worked in Wimbledon) and claimed he did not know what film he was recording the lines for during his two-hour recording session.^[17]

Leslie Bibb plays Christine Everhart: A Vanity Fair columnist whom Stark sleeps with before he leaves for Afghanistan. Later, she appears again, to tell Stark of the Ten Rings in Gulmira and at the end, suspecting Stark of being Iron Man.

Clark Gregg appears throughout the film as Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D.,^[18] and Samuel L. Jackson appears as their head Nick Fury following the credits. Jackson has previously 'appeared' as the version of Nick Fury used in Marvel's Ultimate Marvel imprint.^[19] Other cameos include Iron Man co-creator Stan Lee (whom Stark mistakes for Hugh Hefner at a party),^[20] and director Jon Favreau as Stark's bodyguard/chauffeur Happy Hogan.^[7] Audioslave and Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, who provides additional guitar music for the film, has a brief cameo as a guard.^[21] Jim Cramer, star of CNBC's Mad Money appeared as himself, commenting on the investment opportunities ("Sell, Sell, Sell") of Stark Industries.^[22] Rapper Ghostface Killah cameoed in a scene where Stark briefly stays in Dubai while returning to Afghanistan, but it was cut from the theatrical release for pacing reasons.^[23]

Production

Development

In April 1990, Universal Studios bought the rights to develop Iron Man for the big screen.^[24] Stuart Gordon was to direct Universal's low-budget film.^[9] By February 1996, 20th Century Fox acquired the rights from Universal.^[25] In January 1997, actor Nicolas Cage expressed interest in being cast for the lead role,^[26] and in September 1998, actor Tom Cruise had expressed interest in producing as well as starring in the film debut of Iron Man.^[27] Jeff Vintar and Iron Man co-creator Stan Lee co-wrote a story which Vintar adapted into a screenplay. Jeffrey Caine (GoldenEye) rewrote Vintar's script.^[28] Director Quentin Tarantino was approached in October 1999 to write and direct Iron Man.^[29] With no deal made, Fox eventually sold the rights to New Line Cinema the following December.^[30] By July 2000, the film was being written for the studio^[31] by Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio,^[28] and Tim McCanlies.^[32] McCanlies's script used the idea of an Ultimate Nick Fury cameo to set up his own film.^[28] New Line entered talks with Joss Whedon, a fan of the character Iron Man, in June 2001 for the possibility of the director taking the helm.^[33] In December 2002, McCanlies had turned in a completed script.^[34]

In December 2004, the studio attached director Nick Cassavetes to the project for a target 2006 release.^[36] After two years of unsuccessful development, and the deal with Cassavetes falling through, New Line Cinema returned the film rights to Marvel. Screenplay drafts had been written by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar and David Hayter, but they were not retained. New Line's script pitted Iron Man against his father, who becomes War Machine.^[37] In November 2005, Marvel Studios worked to start development from scratch,^[38] and announced it as their first independent feature, as Iron Man was their only major character not depicted in live action.^[6]

In April 2006, Jon Favreau became the film's director, with Arthur Marcum and Matt Holloway writing the script.^[39] Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby worked separately, with Favreau compiling both team's scripts,^[40] and the script received a polish by John August.^[41] Comic book staff Mark Millar, Brian Michael Bendis, Joe Quesada, Tom Brevoort, Axel Alonso and Ralph Macchio were also summoned by Favreau to give advice on the script.^[42]

Favreau had wanted to work with Marvel producer Avi Arad on another film after the Daredevil adaptation.^[6] Favreau celebrated getting the job by going on a diet, and lost seventy pounds.^[9] The director found the opportunity to create a politically ambitious "ultimate spy movie" in Iron Man, citing inspiration from Tom Clancy, James Bond and RoboCop.^[43] Favreau also described his approach as similar to an independent film, "[i]f Robert Altman had directed Superman",^[6] and also cited Batman Begins as an inspiration.^[44] He wanted to make Iron Man a story of an adult man literally reinventing himself, and realizing the world is far more complex than he believes.^[45] Favreau changed the Vietnam War origin of the character to Afghanistan, as he did not want to do a period piece.^[10]

Choosing a villain was difficult, because Favreau felt Iron Man's archnemesis, the Mandarin, would not feel realistic, especially after Mark Millar gave his opinion on the script.^[42] He felt only in a sequel, with an altered tone, would the fantasy of the Mandarin's rings be appropriate.^[46] The decision to push him into the background is comparable to Sauron in The Lord of the Rings,^[44] or Palpatine in Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope.^[46] Favreau also wanted Iron Man to face a giant enemy. The switch from Mandarin to Obadiah Stane was done after Bridges was cast.^[23] Stane was intended to become a villain in the sequel.^[42] Crimson Dynamo was also a villain in early drafts in the script.^[7]

Filming

Production was based in the former Hughes Company soundstages in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, California.^[47] Favreau rejected the East Coast setting of the comic books as many superhero films were set there, and he wanted to avoid repetition in his film.^[10] Hughes was one of the inspirations for the comic book, and the filmmakers acknowledged the coincidence that they would film Iron Man creating the flying Mark III where the Hughes H-4 Hercules "Spruce Goose" was built.^[14]

Filming began on March 12, 2007,^[48] with the first few weeks spent on Stark's captivity in Afghanistan.^[49] The cave where Stark is imprisoned was a 150-200 yard (150-200 m) long set, which was built with movable forks in the caverns to allow greater freedom for the film's crew.^[10] Production designer J. Michael Riva saw footage of a Taliban fighter in Afghanistan, and saw the cold breath as he spoke: realizing remote caves are actually very cold, Riva placed an air conditioning system in the set. He also sought Downey's advice about make-shift objects in prison, such as a sock being used to make tea. All this created greater authenticity.^[14] Afterwards, Stark's capture was filmed at Lone Pine, and other exterior scenes in Afghanistan were filmed at Olancha Sand Dunes. There, the crew had to endure two days of 40 to 60-mile an hour (60 to 100 km/h) winds.^[14]

Filming at Edwards Air Force Base began in mid-April,^[50] and was completed on May 2.^[51] Exterior shots of Stark's home were digitally composited on footage of Point Dume in Malibu,^[23] while the interior was built at Playa Vista, where Favreau and Riva aimed to make Stark's home look less futuristic and more "grease monkey".^[14] Filming concluded on June 25, 2007 at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada.^[52] Favreau, a newcomer to action films, remarked "I'm shocked that I [was] on schedule. I thought that there were going to be many curveballs." He hired "people who are good at creating action", so "the human story [felt] like it belongs to the comic book genre".^[9]

There was much improvisation in dialogue scenes, because the script was not completed when filming began (the filmmakers had focused on the story making sense and planning the action). Favreau acknowledged that improvisation would make the film feel more natural. Some scenes were shot with two cameras to capture lines said on the spot. Multiple takes were done, as Downey wanted to try something new each time.^[23] It was Downey's idea to have Stark hold a news conference on the floor,^[9] and he created the speech Stark makes when demonstrating the "Jericho".^[5]

Brian Michael Bendis wrote three pages of dialogue for the Nick Fury cameo scene, with the filmmakers choosing the best lines for filming.^[42] The cameo was filmed with a skeleton crew in order to keep it a secret, but rumours appeared on the Internet only days later. Marvel Studios's Kevin Feige subsequently ordered the scene removed from all preview prints in order to maintain the surprise and keep fans guessing.^[53]

Effects

A scale model of the "Iron Monger" suit

Favreau wanted the film to be believable by showing the construction of the suit in its three stages.^[10] Stan Winston, a fan of the comic book, and his company built metal and rubber versions of the armors. They had previously worked on Favreau's Zathura.^[14] Favreau's main concern with the effects was whether the transition between the computer-generated and practical costumes would be too obvious.^[54] Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) was hired to create the bulk of the visual effects with additional work being completed by The Orphanage and The Embassy; Favreau trusted ILM after seeing Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End and Transformers.^[14]

The Mark I design was intended to look like it was built from spare parts: particularly, the back is less armored than the front, as Stark would use his resources to make a forward attack. It also foreshadows the design of Stane's armor. A single 90 pounds (41 kg) version was built, causing concern when a stuntman fell over inside it. Both the stuntman and the suit were unscathed. The armor was also designed to only have its top half worn at times.^[14] The Embassy created a digital version of the Mark I.^[55] Stan Winston Studios built a 10 feet (3.0 m), 800 pounds (360 kg) animatronic version of the comic character "Iron Monger" (Obadiah Stane),^[14] a name which Obadiah Stane calls Tony Stark and himself earlier in the film. The animatronic required five operators for the arm, and was built on a gimbal to simulate walking.^[14] A scale model was used for the shots of it being built.^[23]

The Mark II resembles an airplane prototype, with visible flaps.^[23] Iron Man comic book artist Adi Granov designed the Mark III with Phil Saunders.^[56] Granov's designs were the primary inspiration for the film's design, and he came on board the film after he recognized his work on Jon Favreau's MySpace page.^[44] Saunders streamlined Granov's concept art, making it stealthier and less cartoonish in its proportions.^[14] Sometimes, Downey would only wear the helmet, sleeves and chest of the costume over a motion capture suit.^[14] For shots of the Mark III flying, it was animated to look realistic by taking off slowly, and landing quickly. To generate shots of Iron Man and the F-22 Raptors battling, cameras were flown in the air to provide reference for physics, wind and frost on the lenses.^[57] For further study of the physics of flying, skydivers were filmed in a vertical wind tunnel.^[58]

Music

See also: Iron Man (soundtrack)

Composer Ramin Djawadi is an Iron Man fan, and still has issues of the comic from the late 1970s. While he normally composes after watching an assembly cut, Djawadi began work after seeing the teaser trailer. Favreau clearly envisioned a focus on "heavy" guitar in the score, and Djawadi composed the music on that instrument before arranging it for orchestra. The composer said Downey's performance inspired the several Iron Man themes (for his different moods), as well as Stark's playboy leitmotif. Djawadi's favorite of the Iron Man themes is the "kickass" because of its "rhythmic pattern that is a hook on its own. Very much like a machine." The other themes are "not so much character based, but rather plot based that carry you through the movie".^[59] Guitarist Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave contributed additional guitar work to the movie's soundtrack.

Release

Downey promoting the film in Mexico City

The premiere was held at the Greater Union theater at George Street, Sydney, on April 14, 2008.^[60] The film was released worldwide except for Japan between April 30 and May 7, 2008, with Japan to receive the film in September 2008.^[61] The film will be released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc on September 30 in North America.^[62]

Marketing

Marvel and Paramount modeled their marketing campaign for Iron Man on that of Transformers.^[63] Sega released a video game based on the film, which included other iterations of the character.^[64] A 30-second spot for the film aired during a Super Bowl XLII break.^[65] 6,400 7-Eleven stores in the United States helped promote the film, and LG Group also made a deal with Paramount.^[63] Hasbro created figures of the Mark I and Mark III armor, as well as Titanium Man (who appears in the video game) and the armor from the World War Hulk comics.^[66]

Worldwide, Burger King and Audi promoted the film. Jon Favreau was set to direct a commercial for the fast-food chain, as Michael Bay did for Transformers.^[63] In the film, Tony Stark drives an Audi R8, and also has an "American cheeseburger" from Burger King after his rescue from Afghanistan, as part of the studio's product placement deal with the respective companies. Three other vehicles, the Audi S6 sedan, Audi S5 sports coupe and the Audi Q7 SUV, also appear in the film.^[67] Audi created a tie-in website, as General Motors did for Transformers.^[63] Oracle Corporation also promoted the film on its site.^[68] Estimates for the cost of marketing Iron Man ranged from US$50 to $75 million.^[69]

Reception

Iron Man received highly positive reviews from film critics. On 1 May 2008, the film was identified as the "best-reviewed film of the year so far" by Jen Yamato of review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, with the site reporting that 93% of critics had given the film positive reviews, based upon a sample of 107.^[70] As of June 26, 2008, the site was reporting that 93% of critics had given it positive write-ups, based upon 208 reviews.^[71] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the film has received an average score of 79, based on 38 reviews.^[72]

Among the major trade journals, Todd McCarthy in Variety called the film an "expansively entertaining special effects extravaganza" with "fresh energy and stylistic polish",^[73] while Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter praised the film while nonetheless finding "disappointment [in] a climatic [sic] battle between different Iron Man prototypes [...] how did Tony's nemesis learn how to use the suit?"^[74] In one of the first major-daily newspaper reviews, Frank Lovece of Newsday lauded the film's "emotional truth [...] pitch-perfect casting and plausibly rendered super-science" that made it "faithful to the source material while updating it – and recognizing what's made that material so enduring isn't just the high-tech cool of a man in a metal suit, but the human condition that got him there".^[75] A.O. Scott of the New York Times called the film "an unusually good superhero picture. Or at least — since it certainly has its problems — a superhero movie that’s good in unusual ways."^[76]

Among the specialty press, Garth Franklin of Dark Horizons commended the "impressive sets and mechanics that combine smoothly with relatively seamless CG", and said, "Robert Downey Jr., along with director Jon Favreau [...] help this rise above formula. The result is something that, whilst hardly original or groundbreaking, is nevertheless refreshing in its earnestness to avoid dark dramatic stylings in favor of an easy-going, crowd-pleasing action movie with a sprinkle of anti-war and redemption themes".^[77] IGN’s Todd Gilchrist recognized Downey as "the best thing" in a film that "functions on autopilot, providing requisite story developments and character details to fill in this default 'origin story' while the actors successfully breathe life into their otherwise conventional roles".^[78]

Among major metropolitan weeklies, David Edelstein of New York magazine called the film "a shapely piece of mythmaking [...] Favreau doesn't go in for stylized comic-book frames, at least in the first half. He gets real with it — you’d think you were watching a military thriller",^[79] while conversely, David Denby of The New Yorker put forth a negative review, claiming "a slightly depressed, going-through-the-motions feel to the entire show [...] Gwyneth Paltrow, widening her eyes and palpitating, can't do much with an antique role as Stark's girl Friday, who loves him but can't say so; Terrence Howard, playing a military man who chases around after Stark, looks dispirited and taken for granted".^[80]

Box office

In its opening weekend, Iron Man grossed $98,618,668 in 4,105 theaters in the United States and Canada, ranking number one at the box office,^[81][82] giving it the 11th-biggest opening weekend,^[83] ninth widest release in terms of theaters,^[84] and the third highest-grossing opening weekend of 2008 behind Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and The Dark Knight. It grossed $35.2 million on its first day, giving it the 13th-biggest opening day.^[85] Iron Man had the second-best premiere for a non-sequel, behind Spider-Man. It had the fourth-biggest opening for a superhero movie.^[86] Iron Man was also the number-one film in the United States and Canada in its second weekend, grossing $51.1 million,^[81] giving it the 12th-best second weekend and the fifth-best for a non-sequel.^[87] On June 18, 2008 Iron Man became the first movie of 2008 to pass the $300 million mark for the domestic box office.^[88][89]

As of July 23, 2008, Iron Man has grossed $566,282,659 worldwide — $314,551,977 in the United States and Canada and $251,730,682 in other territories.^[2]

Sequels

Jon Favreau planned Iron Man as the first in a trilogy, and has signed on all the original actors.^[10] Favreau believed the sequel will allow a latitude in tone,^[5] and explore darker story elements such as alcoholism, which he intentionally set aside from the first film.^[3] Downey noted "the next one is about what do you do with the rest of your life once you've completely changed. [...] I think the drinking and all that stuff would be a good way to confront his age, to confront his doubts, to confront the fact that maybe Pepper gets a boyfriend." Downey and Favreau met with Shane Black, who suggested they model Stark on Robert Oppenheimer, who became depressed with being "the destroyer of worlds" after working on the Manhattan Project.^[90] Terrence Howard added this would be the manner in which his character would become War Machine, like in the comics: Rhodes built his own suit after temporarily becoming Iron Man when Stark succumbed to alcoholism.^[91] Favreau perceived depicting Iron Man's nemesis, the Mandarin, as a challenge, as he finds the use of the character as a metaphor for communism dated.^[5] He did work references to the Mandarin into the first movie, primarily with the terrorist organization named the Ten Rings.^[23]

The day after the film's opening weekend, Marvel Entertainment announced an April 2010 release date for Iron Man 2.^[92] Howard stated filming is set to begin in March 2009.^[93] Justin Theroux is writing the script.^[94]

See also: Avengers (comics)#Film

References