This entire Marvel film franchise kicked off with Iron Man back in 2008, and boy, did it kick things off big. Robert Downey Jr was prime for his second comeback, and he made the role of Tony Stark his own. It was a surprise hit to some, as many had written off Iron Man as a second string character with very little mainstream appeal, but it was a massive hit, and when director Jon Favreau added the post-credits tease with Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury, inviting Stark to join "the Avengers initiative," Favreau thought he was just adding a cute scene for the fans, but Marvel took it and ran with it, and that's how we wound up with The Avengers.
Iron Man 2 hit in the summer of 2010. As a friend of mine blogged today, quite a few folks didn't like Iron Man 2. I know director Favreau went on record as feeling it was rushed to meet the release date. I, however, loved Iron Man 2. As I wrote in my review at the time, I think I liked it because it was the first movie of 2010 that didn't disappoint me. What came out in 2010 before Iron Man 2? Cop Out came out, and even though I'm a Kevin Smith fan, I thought it sucked. Alice in Wonderland came out, and even though I'm a Tim Burton fan, I thought it sucked. But Iron Man 2 did not let me down.
So it was known that #3 was going to happen. There's still no word on the plot. We know that Downey is back as Tony Stark/Iron Man. Gwyneth Paltrow is back as his assistant and girlfriend Pepper Pots. And Don Cheadle is back as Jim "Rhody" Rhodes/War Machine. Some of the new cast members include Guy Pearce as Aldrich Killain, who in the comics, created "the Extremis virus," something that involved nanotechnology that proved detrimental to Iron Man. James Badge Dale is on board as the villain Eric Savin, who in the comics is the cyborg assassin Coldblood, although we've been told he'll be dramatically re-invented for the film. And, even though he's not directing this time out, Jon Favreau is back as Stark's chauffeur and friend Happy Hogan.
Taking over behind the cameras is Shane Black, the screenwriter and director who wrote such classic scripts as Lethal Weapon and The Last Boy Scout. Downey apparently recommended Black for the job after enjoying working with Black on the 2005 action film Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.
While we don't quite know the plot yet, we do know who the villain is. Ben Kingsley plays the warlord known as the Mandarin. The Mandarin is Iron Man's arch-enemy in the comics, and they've been hinting at the Mandarin's appearance for some time. The Mandarin draws his powers from 10 magic rings that he wears, and the terrorist group that kidnapped Stark in the first film, and finances Ivan Vanko in the second film, is known as "The Ten Rings."
And that's all the backstory you need to know. Let's get to the main event, shall we? Here's the first trailer for Iron Man 3.
My thoughts on the trailer? This looks very different that the first two films and even The Avengers. It looks darker, it looks grittier, and looks like someone is really out to destroy Tony Stark. It looks like Stark is going to be thrown through the wringer this time out. As long as they don't forget the sense of fun that I enjoy in all the Marvel movies, I think it'll be good.
Iron Man 3 hits theatres on May 3.
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