Iron Man

STARRING: Robert Downey Jr. View Trailer RELEASE DATE: 05/02/2008 DATE SCREENED: 04/29/2008 The Verdict GREAT - See it opening weekend

In 2005 it was reported that Marvel Comics was going to start producing films under the Marvel Studios banner. Instead of selling away the movie rights to all of their beloved comic book characters, leaving them powerless when the rights owner decides to make a movie that in no way captures the essence of what made the comic book character so great, they would now take control of their characters and make the movies the fans of the comics want to see. As a big fan of Marvel comics, this was wonderful news to me. But there was one problem. Marvel had already sold the rights to most of their major characters. Luckily, in 2006 they were able to purchase back the rights to Iron Man, which had already been in development hell for many years. As the first release from Marvel studios, Iron Man will set the standard for all the Marvel Studios productions that will follow. Thankfully, Marvel has set the bar very high.

Iron Man stars Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, the brilliant MIT alum and billionaire owner of Stark Enterprises, the top weapons manufacturer for the U.S. military. Stark is living the life guys dream of. He travels the world on his private jet, making deals and bedding as many women as possible. Things take a dark turn for Stark when he’s captured in Afghanistan and forced to build weapons for some kind of terrorist cell. During the capture he was injured, with shrapnel embedded in his heart. Stark has no intention of really building the weapons. He is shocked to see that these terrorist have a stockpile of Stark Enterprises weapons. Stark’s first order of business is to create a power cell that acts as an electromagnet to keep his injured heart beating. He is assisted by Yinsen, a fellow prisoner, with his 2^nd order of business. Stark plans use the power cell to power a nearly indestructible metal suit that will house weapons and allow the two of them to escape. A crude “iron man” suit is built and Stark is able to fight his way to freedom. Stark returns home, obsessed with building a new power cell and a new Iron Man suit that will house more weapons and allow him to fly. Stark shuts down the weapons division of Stark Enterprises, which does not sit well with his business, partner Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges). While Stark is working to perfect his suit, Stane is trying to take the company right out from under him. Once the suit is ready, Iron Man heads to Afghanistan to take out the terrorists who captured him. When he gets home, he soon discovers that Stane is his real enemy and his original prototype has been used to create another suit. The movie climaxes with our hero facing the supervillian Iron Monger.

The film follows the true origins of Iron Man as close as possible. Afghanistan is a substitute for Vietnam, but that's a perfectly understandable change for 2008. We also have his sidekicks, his personal assistant Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and his friend Jim Rhodes (Terrence Howard). But Robert Downey Jr. owns this film. I wasn’t an avid reader of the comic book, but he seems to play the character perfectly. The standard complaint of most origin comic book films is that the film spends too much time on exposition, and not enough time on action. In this case, the process of how Stark becomes Iron Man is almost as much fun as the action scenes. And the action scenes blew me away. The scene with Iron Man taking out his kidnappers in Afghanistan, and then being attacked by two U.S. planes who don’t even know what they are chasing, is a true classic.

Iron Man has it all. It has the crucial story elements from the comics, with multiple references that only the biggest Iron Man fans will get. The actors give great performances across the board. The action is vicious at times and breathtaking at times, with seamless special effects. Marvel has kicked off the summer movie season with a movie that has exceeded my expectations in every way. Marvel should have been financing their own films since day one. Rush out and see Iron Man opening weekend. My expectations are now sky high for Marvel’s 2^nd release, The Incredible Hulk, which opens June 13^th.

The Forbidden Kingdom

STARRING: Jet Li, Jackie Chan View Trailer RELEASE DATE: 04/18/2008 DATE SCREENED: 04/13/2008 The Verdict GREAT - See it opening weekend

What if Jackie Chan fought Jet Li? Who would win? That might seem like a silly question to most, but it’s a question that has been on my mind since the mid '90s, when I rediscovered my childhood love of Asian kung fu movies. These two men have been the top stars of the kung fu genre since the late '80s, and are the last of a dying breed of kung fu stars who actually studied the art since childhood. Finally, the two square off in The Forbidden Kingdom, and kung fu fans the world over will hope to finally have an answer to that question.

The Forbidden Kingdom follows a teenaged “old school” kung fu movie fan named Jason, who frequents his local Chinatown to buy kung fu DVDs. The kid gets caught up in a robbery attempt by teenaged thugs, in which the old shop owner (Jackie Chan) gives him a staff that “must be returned to the rightful owner”. The staff magically transports him to ancient China. It turns out that the boy is the “seeker” of some ancient prophecy, and he must be the one to return the staff to the immortal Monkey King (Jet Li), who is imprisoned in stone by the evil Jade Emperor. This is all explained to him by a drunken immortal, also played by Jackie Chan. This “drunken master” becomes Jason’s kung fu teacher as they travel across ancient China to return the staff. Along the way they are joined by a teenaged orphan girl, and a monk (Jet Li), both of whom are also kung fu masters. The four of them must face off with a white–haired witch and the immortal Jade Emperor himself in order to bring this staff to the Monkey King. The Monkey King would then be free to end the evil tyranny of the Jade Emperor.

The basic plot description begs the big question, when do Jackie and Jet get to fight? The big fight everyone wants to see happens midway through the film, when Jackie and Jet first meet and fight over the staff. The fight is spectacular, and the highlight of the film. You get to see Jet Li’s speed as he defends himself against the drunken boxing Chan first made famous back in 1978 in Drunken Master. You can to see Li switch to praying mantis, while Chan defends it with Tiger style. This is an old school kung fu movie fan’s wet dream, but then it ends without the final payoff. They stop fighting with no clear winner. It seems that even in the make believe world of movies, neither of these guys was willing to lose to the other, which ultimately prevents this fight from going down as one of the best 1-on-1 fights in movie history. It could have been right up there with Bruce Lee versus Chuck Norris, Jackie Chan versus Hwang Jang Lee, Jackie Chan versus Benny Urquidez, Jet Li versus Yasuaki Kurata, or Sammo Hung versus Lau Kar-Leung. All of those fights had a clear winner.

The big fight isn’t the only thing this film has going for it. The movie never gets boring. There is not much talking before a fight breaks out. Kung Fu choreographer Yuen Woo-ping (most famous for his choreography in The Matrix, but also was Chan’s choreographer back in the original Drunken Master) earns his money putting together a series of kung fu battles that are the best you will see in an American film. Jet Li gets the most screen time, fighting both as the monk and the Monkey King.

I had a great time watching Forbidden Kingdom. So much so that I can overlook the audacity of having a prophecy in which a white kid saves China. But my question still has not been completely answered. I’ve seen Jet Li fight Jackie Chan, but who would win in a fight between those two? I guess we’ll never know for sure, but get out and see The Forbidden Kingdom before these two great stars retire.