What a wonderfully rich source of filmed fantasy and science fiction the venerable comic book has become. And to my great surprise and delight, not only have such films become popular financial successes, but they’ve become some of the darlings of the film critic community. Just consider 2008’s summer tent poles. Edward Norton breathed new life into The Incredible Hulk, Heath Ledger turned in an Oscar-worthy performance as The Joker in The Dark Knight, and Robert Downey, Jr. transforms brilliant arms designer Tony Stark into a dedicated anti-warfare one-man army of death and destruction desperately seeking redemption.

Stark is a remarkably creative technocrat who inherited his father’s arms manufacturing company, Stark Industries. With partner Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) left to manage the day to day operations, Stark functions as the genius behind the lethal engineering built into each successively deadly and sophisticated weapons system. And when he’s not tinkering with his collection of exotic cars that includes an Audi R8 for everyday driving and a Saleen S7 for more enthusiastic treks, he’s a libidinous playboy and the irreverent public face of the company.

Stark’s other enabler is his personal assistant, played by Gwyneth Paltrow. She’s brilliant in her own way, anticipating many of his needs, highly skilled, and immeasurably patient as she’s forced to watch his excesses while hiding her undying love for a man who’s quintessentially thoughtless. She even has to buy herself a birthday present using his account knowing full well that it’s exactly what he’d want her to do. She’s no stranger to the fantasy and science fiction film world. In Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (a personal favorite), Paltrow plays plucky, perky Polly Perkins. Here Paltrow plays plucky, perky Pepper Potts. But while Polly is a very aggressive reporter for New York’s Chronicle, a Lois Lane archetype so aggressive that she’ll frequently put her life in danger in pursuit of a story, Pepper is smart enough to run the other way when danger looms. I just wish she had a larger role; the banter between Potts and Stark are among the film’s highlights.

Stark views his place in the world as one who provides the means for democracy to thrive and dominate. He believes that whether the country speaks loudly or softly, it cannot carry a stick too big. Those views are about to change. Stark’s good friend and liaison to the military is Colonel James Rhodes (Terrence Howard). Rhodes is among the officers and combat troops providing escort to Stark in what appears to be the tribal region of Afghanistan. An ambush decimates the detail and Stark is taken captive to be forced to fabricate deep within a cave his most lethal new ground-to-ground tactical missile from a surprising collection of Stark Industries hardware and spare parts.

But his captors underestimate his ingenuity. He simultaneously fabricates servo assisted armor with rudimentary flight capability and ultimately makes a daring escape. He returns to the States in surprisingly good condition; the only permanent damage is shrapnel from one of his own weapons used against him embedded dangerously close to his heart and electromagnetically held from migrating by a new power source he invented in the cave, a miniature variation of a large power reactor at Stark Industries headquarters.

His captivity opens his eyes to a reality that had escaped him. His weapons are finding their way into the hands of brutal terrorists and warlords who are killing the innocent. He determines to fight the villainy from within a highly advanced and sophisticated version of the robotic armor that was the means of his escape. His exploits will become highly publicized and he’ll be dubbed Iron Man. And as he attempts to shut down weapons production at his own company, he will find that his enemies may be found much closer to home.

Screenwriters Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby, Art Marcum, and Matt Holloway have fashioned a smart, glib, entertaining script that never talks down to the audience. It speaks to a world overrun with weaponry and violence provoked by greed, politics, nationalism, and misguided religious fervor. Is it perfect? Of course not. Stark’s very first uncontrolled landing should have shattered every bone in his body. And when he returns to the terrorist camp where he had been forced assemble an advanced missile, he finds them sitting on their launch pads, clearly purchased rather than built locally. (If they were that readily available, why ask Stark to fabricate one and give him the means to escape?)

Downey is a delight. His characteristic irony and irreverence are the perfect embodiment of the pre-Iron Man Stark: self-absorbed, spoiled, self-indulgent, egocentric… a rich smartass. Director Jon Favreau is arguably the greatest surprise. Known for character studies and comedies, I didn’t know he had a special effects laden comic book movie in him. If I had to find one aspect of the film that deserves some criticism, it would have to be the third act. Ultimately logical in light of a plot twist that added valuable spice to the story arc, the climax smacked of Transformers.

Regardless, this film is visually intriguing, laced with humor and pathos, built on a genuine foundation of a topical issue, and filled with appealing characters. It’s one comic book movie that should not be missed.

The Video: How Does The Disc Look?

The film’s theatrical aspect ratio of 2.40:1 is presented in a superb high definition transfer compressed with the AVC video CODEC. I can’t be sure, but the film’s palette seems to evolve as Stark is transformed from selfishness to selflessness. This does not affect my scoring of the transfer, since I believe it was an artistic decision. The earlier scenes seem a tad harsh, almost a reflection of Stark’s world view and a reflection of the harshness of his treatment. But as Stark warms to the idea of altruism, the palette seems to warm. Oddly enough, this is most evident in the appealing palette of the Iron Man suit with its golds and metallic reds. Video dynamic range is excellent; I didn’t notice any crush on either end. Shadow detail is maintained in the nighttime scenes. Chroma is outstanding, from neon gaudiness to natural flesh tones to the red/orange of many fiery explosions. Small object detail and finely grained textures are outstanding, from the architectural details of Stark’s impressive home to Paltrow’s freckles. That the transfer print is pristine should come as no surprise; I suspect a direct digital transfer of this effects laden film. Well done, Paramount.

The Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?

The disc’s terrific audio track is in Dolby TrueHD 5.1. That the viewer is utterly immersed is apparent almost immediately. During the desert ambush, gunfire erupts from every direction. Enable EX dematrixing for the best possible aural presentation. The surround channels are almost constantly alive, putting you within an applauding audience for an award ceremony or caught in the onscreen action. Deep, solar plexus pounding bass is present to punctuate every impressive explosion. Dynamic range is outstanding, with visceral gunfire and a sound effect for Iron Man propulsion that sounds like it was borrowed from a space shuttle lift off. Even more subtle sounds, like the servos of the industrial robots in Stark’s home workshop or the clinking of glasses, are very persuasive. I had a mixed reaction to the blend of typical action orchestral score and rock motifs, but the acoustic instruments are reproduced with pleasingly faithful fidelity. Despite all the sonic fireworks, dialog remains distortion-free throughout. This is a demo-grade track.

The alternative languages are in French and Spanish, both in Dolby Digital 5.1. Optional subtitles include English, English SDH, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

The Supplements: What Goodies Are There?

The supplements are spread across two discs, a thoughtful means to maintain a healthy bit budget for the feature film. Let’s begin at the beginning with disc one. After a considerable BD-J load delay, Hall of Armor (1.78:1, 1080p) offers an interactive opportunity to explore the look and functionality of four robotic suits, from the crude device Stark fabricated in a cave to the huge abomination constructed at Stark Industries. Not only are there detailed rotational images of each, you can select indicator icons on each to open text windows with technical details.

The Invincible Iron Man documentary (47:04, 1.78:1, 1080p) is organized into six parts. It’s a comprehensive look at the comic book series and how it evolved into graphic novels. Origins begins with creator Stan Lee describing the genesis of the comic book character. Writer Gerry Conway, artist John Romita, Jr., artist Gene Colan, and others participate. Friends and Foes examines the dominant villains and allies from the comic series. The Definitive Iron Man is a discussion of the nature of the armor and other artists’ experiences on the comic. Demon in a Bottle takes us on a diversion to alcohol as an addiction that plagues Stark. Extremis and Beyond discusses the evolution of the character and how the character went beyond its more simplistic origins. This is a graphic novel series as opposed to comic books and, like other such works, elevates the maturity of the material. Ultimate Iron Man seems to be a start-from-scratch reimagining of the character and his antagonists.

There are eleven Deleted/Extended Scenes (23:56 aggregate, 2.40:1 and 1.78:1, 1080p). They add little to nothing to the storyline with perhaps one exception. A party in Dubai helps make the flying range of the suit more credible.

The last extra on disc one is the option for some BD Live action, which I can’t access quite yet, so let’s move on to disc two.

The I Am Iron Man documentary (1:49:00, 1.78:1, 1080p) is organized into seven parts. The Journey Begins describes the film’s origin and how it came to Paramount. Director Jon Favreau, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jeff Bridges, and Robert Downy, Jr. are among the participants. Detail overflows, from setting up offices to dense production designs. Favreau takes us through the suit concepts. We see storyboards and animatics. We also watch as the previz is created to lay the foundation for the film. I was fascinated to learn that the building once used by Howard Hughes to build the enormous Spruce Goose has been converted to the Playa Vista soundstages and that’s where part of the film was shot. It’s here that I also learned that Stan Winston Studio was hired to create the suits. The Suit That Makes Iron Man unveils the final suits. Stuntmen describe the experience of working in the suits and we see how they learn to create believable movements. We also see Downy learning how to deal with wirework. The Walk of Destruction concentrates on several sequences: the terrorists’ cave; the Disney Hall sequence; the weapons demonstration in the middle of the desert; the aftermath of Stark’s escape; and, climaxes with the escape firefight. Grounded in Reality begins with Favreau giving himself an extended cameo as Happy Hogan. We learn about three days of shooting at Edwards Air Force Base, where Favreau describes Terrance Howard’s character and we learn that real Air Force officers were used in the sequence. Much time is spent on establishing Stark as engineer, inventor, and tinkerer. Beneath the Armor begins with descriptions of cameos. It segues into Favreau’s approach of allowing his players the freedom to adlib and improvise. We learn about the cinematographer and production designer. I was interested to listen to Gwyneth Paltrow comparing her experiences with Sky Captain and Iron Man. The production then moves to Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas for the end of principal photography. It's All In The Details takes us to post-production and Skywalker Ranch. The director takes a meeting with the ILM artists and reviews some of the latest footage. Revealed here is that Jon Favreau had himself digitized in a motion capture suit for some of the CGI. We quickly discover that the director is remarkably detail-oriented. From there he moves into one of the Skywalker Sound mixing stages, the Akira Kurosawa, to review the mix for one of the action set pieces. We next learn about subcontractor Prolog that executed the graphical 2D and holographic user interfaces Stark employs at home and in the suit. They also supported the look of the opening credits. A Good Story, Well Told takes us to a postproduction meeting in which the team discusses what it’s going to take to meet the release date. We briefly watch a colorist at work. Favreau expresses some apprehension concerning what’s left and the film’s ultimate reception. Clearly, his apprehension was completely unfounded. All the chapters are punctuated with behind-the-scenes sequences and lots of comments by the participants.

Wired: The Visual Effects of Iron Man featurette (27:01, 1.78:1, 1080p) is an even more detailed look at the CGI and practical effects. ILM may have done the bulk of the work, but two other CGI houses participated. The Embassy did the work on the first suit. The other CGI house is The Orphanage, founded by ex-ILM artists. They executed the suits’ Heads-Up Displays. And that takes us to ILM for an even more in-depth look at its work. This is a delightfully detailed extra that’s a balanced blend of the technical and the artistic.

Robert Downey, Jr. Screen Test (6:03, 1.85:1, 1080p) is self-explanatory. A locked camera focuses on the actor as fellow players run lines with him.

The Actor's Process (4:13, 1.85:1, 1080p) shows Downey and Bridges rehearsing a scene at Palya Vista with Jon Favreau participating. It’s interesting to watch these professionals dissect the scenes.

The Onion (2:38, 1.33:1, SD) is a satirical news story about how Paramount is transforming a 90-second trailer to a feature-length motion picture.

There are four theatrical trailers (8:14 aggregate, 2.35:1, 1080p), teaser, theatrical, international B, and international C.

And there are extensive collections of stills galleries: Concept Art; Tech; Unit Photography; and, Posters.

The extras have their own set of subtitles: English; French; Spanish; and Portuguese.

The 126-minute film is organized into fifteen chapters.

Final Thoughts

This is one of the best films I’ve seen based on comic book source material. An excellent script, great direction, fine performances, and wonderful production values draw the viewer in and the willing suspension of disbelief never falters. The Blu-ray Disc offers superb audio and video experiences and a remarkably generous set of supplements. Very highly recommended.


Here’s a note about the apparent duplicate Buy Guide. Our I.T. people are still hard at work on a large project and have not yet had the time to modify the underlying site database formatting code to accommodate the new 0-to-10 rating scales. So until they do, for HD on disc, I’ll insert this note and a Buy Guide at the end of the review text and leave the conventional 0-to-5 Buy Guide blank.