About Me
This is the first new title in my 'must watch' film's list! I know that I'm late upon wiring this review since it was released around 2 months ago but I was just too busy with assignments. Since this is the only new title film on my list that I've managed to watch, I just have to write a review about Guillermo Del Toro's passionate work!
Of course I knew very well about the genre; Kaiju and mecha. I have the need to highlight this because the general audience aren't very aware of this genre's traits and beauties. This notion gives me that annoying assumptions that the masses will automatically compare with Transformers; even worse, saying that it's a rip off of the Cybertronians. Screw this people. But that is one of the challenges of tackling the genre and that's the easy part. The hardest part, in terms of writing the story, was creating a solid universe that relinquish gimmick infringement from it's source material such as Godzila, Gundam and, the most common association from the fans of the genre, Evangelion. But what can I see for sure, besides the breathtaking graphics, is the passion put into the film.
Perhaps the primary traits of this film is it's visual; not only with the epic battles but also the story. I am not exactly a visual driven story teller. Heck, I don't even know how one does that. But upon entering film course, I have to and I begin to understand bit by bit. The world's design was Del Toro's dependency on revealing the depths of the film; not much strong dialogues were used. The Jaeger and Kaiju's design tell more stories behind the current conflict. I am the kind of audience who bashes films that has action conquering over story; when exaggerated explosions has no story significance. But the mayhem in this film was indeed significant in ways that reveals character development and monstrous beauties. For instance, when Raleigh Becket piloted Gypsy Danger with his brother, I noticed a different fighting stance when Becket was piloting with Mako Mori.
Which brings me to the next topic about the characters. First of, I've seen Rinko Kikuchi in another all time favorite of mine; seeing her finally in a big Hollywood film puts a smile on my face. It's good to know that she's making it big now. She's very talented and straight away I saw her performance being very good in this film; the distinctive body language and expression tells us all about the character Mako Mori and not the dialogue. And the scene where Mako dwelling in her past was just. So. Amazing. I just can't stand seeing a little girl crying; little Mako was just so helpless. Man, that actress was amazing. Stacker Pentecost was also a good character; it's freaking Idris Elba for god's sake, of course he was awesome! The man, at most times, is always awesome. He was even good in a Mumford & Son's music video, Lover of the light. He was also awesome in Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance! Good god that was an awful movie. But to be frank though, I must say that Raleigh Becket wasn't a memorable character. Mako is more memorable than him. I can't say for sure whether if it was the acting or the writing. Becket seemed one dimensional. He's that typical hero you always see; a loner who's trying to get away from his past. I can't feel the main character's presence in the film. That's the down side of Pacific Rim.
Another aspect I'd like to point out is the amount of strong dialogue's presence in the story. As I've stated, I'm a story drive guy so I have this feeling that the film could have been better if Del Toro took more time with character developments; of the dialogues and relationships. The best representation of character development this film has is the Drift. It's when two pilots share thoughts in order to control the Jaeger. Again, visual dependency is high and the Drift is such a strong way to highlight the relationships such as Mako's with Pentecost. Del Toro even took the time to explore the Drift's concept with Herc and Chuck Hansen; father and son. Such care were given for this story; bit by bit, I'm learning how to tell stories visually. Even character developments were taken to it's fullest potential with the huge battle scenes.
The battles were amazing. I felt every punch and exhaustion the Jaegers had to go through with the Kaijus. Yes, the CGI was breath taking but make no mistakes; it's not just ridiculous action that made it work. Finally, I can see what's happening rather than what we see in Transformers. Sometimes, I can't tell what the hell is happening when the Autobots are fighting. I don't see the punches clearly.
I admire the passion so much. To be frank, I have this assumption that I have to be a very deep artsy guy when dwelling in the film industry. When I ask myself, am I an artistic person? After recalling all of my inspirations and past works, I'm a geek! A fan boy! So, seeing the film made passionately by a self proclaim Otaku gives me hope that I can be myself in this industry. Thank god.
This year's new title, Pacific Rim, earns a strong 4/5 for it's strong visual story telling and the passion Guillermo Del Toro gave for this film. Perhaps if the main character was given more 'unique' attributes, this film could have been better. The Jaegers beat their way up; surpassing my ratings for this year's 'main event' film Man of Steel . Damn, I put so much hope for the Kryptonian.
OH MY GOD!
It's Eidul Al-adha and it's been months since I posted anything here! A lot has been through with my life which can affect the foundations of this blog:
1. I'm a film student now which brings the question what this blog should be about? I always tried to make my articles 'graphic' based (If it's not about reviews). So, should I just show the short films I did for my assignment?
2. I haven't draw for a long time! The X-factor that drove me to write and procrastinate on this blog.
So many questions yet I gave not much attention to figure it out. While I seek the answers for this question, I'll fill my holidays with this one article. A tribute to Kamen Rider.
It's that time of the year again for Rider Fans: the end of a series and a beginning of a new one! Above is the new fruit/samurai/locks themed Rider. Now that I've done watching Kamen Rider Wizard (The previous one) and Kamen Rider W, I have so much to say about the franchise.
It's safe to say that I'm still a fresh Kamen Rider fan; having to only finish six Rider series. But I can't help to notice the constant teeth grinding cliches' that exists within the franchise. Characters always arrive in the fighting scene on time (With no effort of the writers making it seamless), weakly written punching bags (The weekly monsters to be slaughtered), one dimensional fighting choreography (Every Rider is either a swordsman or Gun fu expert and the main Rider is always both) and bad acting (Just odd body languages).
Of course, there are trademarks that is annoying at a certain point but can't be complained. Such as the toy weapons and gears. Number one rule of getting into Kamen Rider (Especially for those artsy film critics), it's a merchandise-driven show. All of those fancy transformations and the impractical weapons are meant to sell the merchandise to kids and adult collectors. If you complain about that then don't bother watching Kamen Rider in the first place.
Like WWE, I'm having problems of loving these franchises. Both have predictable, boring and repetitive plot devices. That is until I am reminded of the very reason why I love Riders in the first place.
Fang/Joker
One of the hero's power forms in Kamen Rider W; a series I've recently finished watching
Of course, there are trademarks that is annoying at a certain point but can't be complained. Such as the toy weapons and gears. Number one rule of getting into Kamen Rider (Especially for those artsy film critics), it's a merchandise-driven show. All of those fancy transformations and the impractical weapons are meant to sell the merchandise to kids and adult collectors. If you complain about that then don't bother watching Kamen Rider in the first place.
Like WWE, I'm having problems of loving these franchises. Both have predictable, boring and repetitive plot devices. That is until I am reminded of the very reason why I love Riders in the first place.
One of the hero's power forms in Kamen Rider W; a series I've recently finished watching
For Kamen Rider, I always admire the ridiculous amount of creativity. After finishing any Rider series, I always notice the layers of gimmicks of the story. Hence, the fruit/samurai/lock themed Kamen Rider Gaim. And for the debut of Kamen Rider Gaim, here's my own way of a tribute to the franchise.
A story idea
"About a year ago, Mark Rawlins, a private investigator, lost his mentor in a mysterious hurricane incident on an Island during a case they were investigating. The suspect, Alexander Kane, an archaeologist who also lost his 23 year old son in the hurricane blames both Mark and his mentor. Now in the present, Mark stumbled upon supernatural cases that leads to Alexander Kane. His only leads are mysterious artifacts from an unknown culture long time ago whom Alexander Kane recently discovered one of them in his excavations. Suddenly, Mark knew that he was in some very dark secrets that redefines logic. But with help, he might get through all of this madness. That help is Daniel Kane."
The Concept
Alexander Kane believes in the fairy tale of Gaia's Guardians. Mother nature was worried about her earth being destroyed by mankind's parasitic nature so she chose a family to protect it. Instead of violence, Gaia tasked the chosen family to guide the men and women from further damaging her soil; of the ecosystem, consumable energies and many more. With each passing families of every generation, they each acquired a totem that holds their memories; of their sacrifice, love and secrets. Each totem has three distinctive features and they are animals, elements and gems; all representing the families legacy. Not much is known of what these artifacts are capable of but Alexander Kane seeks to find that out.
Upon finishing Kamen Rider W, I notice a huge story possibility in the near ending episodes; a story aspect that can be emphasized in more unique ways. So, this story idea is based on Kamen Rider W and if you have watched the series, it should be very obvious.
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| The heroes of the series. Both men are required to transform into a single Super hero. Guess who's the detective. |
To summarize for those who aren't aware of the show's story, basically it's a detective flick who has superpowers. They investigate supernatural cases but it wasn't emphasized in a way you'd expect. Capiche?
Mind boggling, right? The show's terminology of their source of power is very creative and it inspired me to write the artifact's concept in my idea. The heroes source of power comes from earth's 'memories'. From there, some villainous scientists created the Gaia memories...that looks like thumb drives. Hence, comes my idea of Gaia's Guardians and their artifacts that contains their memories.
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| It's just clever merchandising...okay! Don't ask. |
The heroes and even villains transform by using these Gaia memories. What comes next is who I imagine acting out as Mark Rawlins and Daniel Kane.
From my favorite movie, Mark Ruffalo (left) plays the detective! He's just so cool and charming in this film. Not to mention, the fedora.
And Robert Pattinson to play Daniel Kane. I don't know, I imagined a spoiled rich kid in his 20's...out pops Robert in my head.
Michael Caine as Alexander Kane. For some, when they imagine a wise and charming veteran, they might think of Gandalf. Well, I think of Alfred Pennyworth. Another key point in the plot you should know is that the detective's partner in Kamen Rider W is the son of the main villain. So, their relationship is also important in my story idea.
So, what's the point of these ideas? How does it pays respect to the franchise? This idea is for both fans and non fans alike. I wanted to create different perspectives of seeing the Kamen Riders; of how much inspiration you can get from this merchandise-driven show. Yes, at times the show makes me roll my eyes to a point where it goes white but I have to appreciate and admire the constant fresh ideas every year. It's not easy making a franchise lasted for more than 30 years, you know? So, here's hoping for our favorite franchise to still carry on, Pokemon (Pokemon X & Y's hype is crazy!), WWE, Doctor Who, Digimon, and Ultraman, have a nice day!
This is the main event on my list; a movie with high expectations and anticipation!
Expectations
A writing innovation is what I'd expect from Man of Steel; much like The Dark Knight trilogy. No, I didn't wanted it to be too grounded. I wanted Superman's fictional history to be treated as a mythology; respecting the source material while having a smartly written narrative. As I expected, and thankfully wanted, the film centers Superman as a wondering alien and not that prime example of an old school superhero. And with that, the film started out with good reactions from me. This is gonna be a long post.
The star power of this film is really powerful; even Laurence Fishburne plays as a minor character (Perry White) and his status is very big and talented. Amy Adams as Lois Lane was odd; considering that Miss Lane is infamous for having black hair. However, her performance was superb as to what I'd expect from this talented woman. Henry Cavill as the man of steel himself was spot on. I love him and he was definitely bad ass. Though I can't help to think that Christopher Reeve's influence still impacts to this day. Cavill's nose, blue eyes and jaw had some strong similarity to Reeve's. Michael Shannon, whom I loved in Boardwalk Empire, brought his own flare with General Zod which fit just nice in the universe. To be frank, I don't bother to write about actor/actress's performances because, at most times, they'll perform nicely. But I just feel like I have to due to the enormous names being involved.
Aftermath
Let's continue with the positive, which is how I feel for this film, I love the innovation in general; where they are going with the story is what I'd expected and, thankfully, loved. Superman's story was told from the aspect of a wondering alien which haven't been done before in film. Although it would be new to the general audience but it's somewhat of an old story for hardcore fans. I definitely love the suit, no complaints.
As I indulge in the story, I love the scenes where Clark was with his parents. It should have been emphasized more and, yes, the film lacked those heartfelt scenes as it was overshadowed with CGI madness. Clark's scene with Jonathan Kent was one of the highlights in the character developments and I hope he'll return in the sequel; of course, in a form of a flashback. It's kind of funny, you see, because I watched Superman II (For the first time) on that very night after watching Man of Steel. Yes, we can't compare those two due to the gap of years; the technology and mentality. But it's interesting to see the development of General Zod in the 80's to today's Zod. Where 80's Zod was a curious and somewhat arrogant tourist on earth, today's Zod is a man on a mission. That typical conquering alien motive is still there but as we travel deeper in the story, Zod is not a shallow villain; he only wanted the best interest for his people and you could really see that motive being portrayed as humanly as possible. Like Dr. Connors in The Amazing Spiderman (Though a badly written villain), General Zod was the perfect villain to start and expand this new Superman universe.
Having writing all those positive aspects of the film, it's time to point out the flaws and, yes, the flaws are big enough to withhold it's potential of being an epic film. The biggest problem I had was the CGI madness; it overshadowed the character developments. To be more specific, Metropolis was bashed and battered worst than Manhattan in The Avengers. And the characters were almost A-okay with the destruction at the end of the film; there were no trauma or character developments. That bothered me because it did effect it's full potential. Also, the story gave some unnecessary amount of screen time to classic but
minor characters. Perry White, Louis Lane's boss, was important but the
scene where he and a few of his employees ran for their lives (In the chaos of
Metropolis being attacked) didn't help bringing the climax to its fullest
potential.
Yeah, I am aware the mainstream critics aren't a fan of this film as a whole. And I always consider the critics. Though frankly, I had a good feeling of satisfaction when walking out of the theaters and that's where it counts. Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (Gemma Arterton is so stunning!), The Last Stand and Fast and Furious 6 are examples of this year's films I've watched that didn't gave me satisfaction; especially FF 6! Man of Steel didn't live up to it's hype; that's the reality. It didn't gave me that 'Epic' feeling like The Dark Knight Rises did. So, with these two outcomes of mine, here's the verdict:
Man of Steel, this year's main event, earns a 3.5/5. Lesser than Iron Man 3 (Aww [ =( ] ) and The Dark Knight Rises . That rating is for it's right path of innovation; of where the story should be and the lack of character developments from most characters except for Kal-El and Zod.
This Space Opera is also on my must watch film's list. I have this habit of categorizing things and this film is in the new genre section of the list. Others include sequels (Iron Man 3), new titles and animations.
What I like about this reboot of the original TV series is the smart writing; the way it utilizes the universe's fictional history. Like Superhero films, this particular film has a lot of room for me to study.
The reason why Star Trek is in the new genre section of the list is because I am not fond of Science Fiction (Specifically Space Opera); the spaceship dogfights just doesn't stimulates me as much. Heck, I watched the first installment of this reboot on TV. But I am aware of it's huge fandom, both the film and genre, thus leading me to take some note.
First things first, I just have to start with the villain. It is due to a film that I watched two days before this; Fast and Furious 6 was just bad for me. It was spontaneous and I thought 'why not' since I don't do that much often. It is that typical action-popcorn flick that I don't go for in theaters (Making me uninterested in writing a review for it) and I have highlight this one particular point to make you understand my next point regarding Star Trek. I hate the villain. The villain in FF 6 was so forced; trying to make him this bad ass, cold fella who's somehow always 3 steps ahead of the heroes (For the sake of the plot of course). It gives me this idea that people in Hollywood are desperate to make a bad ass villain like the joker because it sells. Whether it's true or not, it was just too forced. That what I was expecting from the villain in Star Trek into Darkness; another planner as the villain. Thank god, he wasn't! (Hence, why I chose the poster with him being highlighted)
Khan, which is an awesome name, is the villain in this year's Star Trek; a re-imagine character from the TV series. He wasn't a cliche' villain, he--maybe the best word to describe him is 'perfect'; specifically perfect in the universe. Khan, at first, simply wanted the safety of his captured crew which has a reflection of a small part of what the story revolves around; a captain's responsibility for his crew. It really hit me when he cries in his prison...man, that was a good scene. Another aspect that I see is that the film, technically, have two villains; the Fleet Admiral Alexander Marcus. It's almost like watching a superhero film because it's the genre that highlights two antagonists very well. The existence of the Admiral helps making Khan's presence more of a multi layered character rather than just a one dimensional villain.
Another point is Spock and Kirk's chemistry. It really is the center of the film and I can see why the two are very popular in pop culture. I, especially, preferred Spock because the idea of him being an alien that thinks emotions are irrelevant is shown very well. It's not easy to do write such things, the slightest error in the dialogue might diminished that idea. And his character development of accepting his human half; of being afraid of death is just so awesome. What about Kirk's death? It was used well but it was very cliche'. Perhaps, that's the only big flaw of the film to me. Kirk's death was too cliche'.
On a side note, I am aware that each of the crew has a place in the fan's hearts. As a series, the opportunity of highlighting each of them are wider compared to movies. Interestingly, Nyota Uhura, Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Scotty and the rest were presented well; each having their own strong amount of screen time. The Klingons made an appearance...very interesting. I'm not a Trekkie. I knew this pop culture phenomenon through the documentary. Through that, I knew that the series produced and actual alien language that now has been used to translate a few books. So, yeah, it was interesting to see them. We even get to here Zoe Saldana speak some Klingon.
In summary, the film is an okay introduction for me to the Space Opera genre and I hope I get to write some good science fiction story in the future. I give Star Trek Into Darkness a 3/5 for a damn smart writing.
Here are past works I made for my assignments labeled "Serious Steps" .
But I am working on a post and it's coming soon. Before that, I just wanted to write about the upcoming series, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. No, I'm not going to be all geeky for this series. I just had to write about this because, to me, it's has a huge possibility of changing the Comic Book landscape forever!
No, it's not being geeky! Just think for a second of the possibility!
It's a tie-in series to the Marvel's Cinematic Universe; a hoard of Marvel superhero films that escalated in The Avengers. Yes, we've seen tones of movie tie-in series but this one is somewhat different in terms of it's basic plot. First of, it's a series to the universe which means we're not gonna see forced stories just to cope or catch up with the films; the room for creativity is wide enough for a solid writing. Secondly, and if I haven't emphasize this enough, the show is a true leap forward in the comic book industry. Why, you may ask; it's no stranger that comic books heavily relies on rosters of characters and the series allows those lesser titans in the roster a chance to appear in live action. Yes, it's that simple, commonly unattended, uproar of fans to see their favorite heroes come to life. Finally, we can see unattended heroes like Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Black Cat (Who seems impossible to be brought to life due to possible'gimmick' infringement of Cat Woman) and even, the Inhumans! The bridge between the colorful pages of comics and live action could almost be diminished.
Well, that's all there is to it for positive expectations. In the more depressing possibilities, there is the tendency of television series of using the drama genre quite annoyingly. For example, there is DC's Smallvile. I am aware that the show did well but alas, for fans of my taste, it was just too dramatic. Ridiculous conflicts of miss-communication between gals and pals. Don't get me wrong, the drama always make the story more strong; it's just to what are they crying for is bothering me. I just can't bear that the character has to deal with his girlfriend being dramatic while he has to save the freaking world! I would be like 'Woman, stop being selfish! The man needs to stop the train from exploding!'. But hey, that's what that sort of drama--okay, let's just call it chick flick. That's what chick flick wants from the audience; a reaction of love or hatred towards the characters. There is also, and I shall make it brief, the C.S.I. investigating shit. I hate it. Don't put it in there.
Agent Coulson is back...yeah, I'm not that excited about it. Intrigued but not excited.
So, that is all for this brief post. I haven't posted something like this in awhile; feels rewarding somehow. Also, I can't wait to write for the next post; it is sure to have some decent amount of my art piece. I am now still touching up the works.
Salam and have a good day everybody!
Alright, this is another quick post.
I often see labels aren't used as proper page breakers in blogs. I try to use mine as a page breaker; to make sure the movie lovers goes to the movie reviews and possible employers to my artworks =P hehe~ And so, here's some new title cards I design for the benefit of the readers. If you have the time, I would gladly appreciate if you guys would give some feedback. Please and thank you! =D
To be frank, it always bothered me that the bland pencil sketches are the thumbnails of my posts. Yeah, I know it means that I should make more colorful artworks but putting this title card as the thumbnail might also give some mystery, curiosity and anticipation to the posts. Check the posts here!
I feel like there should be some explanation of what this label specifically refers to. Well, it's basically my attempt of bottling up various topics (That does not specifically involve arts, reviews or tropes) into one; it varies to lists of 'must see' films to sharing songs. I also show some progress of my personal artworks. Check them out here!
And the final title card is a new one! Since I am now an art student, it's time to add some more arsenals in my blog. I'm no longer just a kid who's trying to make it in the art world. It's kind of funny how I am able to use Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop now; considering that I found some old art work I did when I was 12 and I was using Microsoft Paint! Man, that is sad. Well, enough of that and let's get into this new label.
I've written some posts regarding genres and story ideas in the past. I've learnt about tropes around a year after creating this blog. Although not most posts are specifically tropes (In fact, some of them are made up), I still use this term as it's a proper term to refer to these posts. Of course, I'll try to use some actual tropes. In case you're not aware of what is trope or, at least, to what I'm referring to, here's the definition as explained in the website TV Tropes.org:
"Tropes are devices and conventions that a writer can reasonably rely on as being present in the audience members' minds and expectations."
As for Movie reviews, book reviews, Islam and Serious Steps (Labels that I'm still using), I'm just gonna use a proper picture as the thumbnail. Besides, I think having the movie poster as the thumbnail is more than enough to let you know what topic I am writing about.
So, that is all for this post. I hope the title cards would help in getting more readers and as well more satisfactions from them. Again, constructive criticisms is always welcomed!
This is the first 'must watch' movie in my 2013's list! When I took a glimpse at the first trailer, I said to myself:: This might be the Iron Man that we all deserve. The trailer portrayed Tony's legacy as a character very well and that is the theme of battling your own demons. Wouldn't you know, the movie did just that. The change was just so drastic, I was almost speechless to how far they change it from a popcorn flick to a deep story.
In Iron man 2, the story was based on one of the character's key story arc in the comic books. 'Demon in a bottle' portrays Tony Stark's struggle as an alcoholic. Honestly, the movie didn't executed it well because of the number of actions; overshadowing the emotional points of the film. I, personally, wasn't fond of the villain. His gritty style and background was just forced. His idiom was also, to me, ridiculous.
"If you could make God bleed, people would cease to believe in him, there will be blood in the water, the sharks will come."
-Ivan Vanko/Whiplash-
Really? I get the god bleeding part but sharks? It just seems too random. Plus, I could barely see his final armor design and it wasn't even promoted with posters.
Thankfully, Iron man 3 resembles Tony Stark's legacy very well with character build ups, plot twist, respecting the source material (However, this is debatable, I would get into that later) and metaphors. We get to see more of Tony without the suit; revealing more and more depths of what the character is like in person. I especially love how some scenes portray Tony's emotional reliance with this armor; like how the Mark 42 suit activates during his sleep or when he dragged it in the snow after his mansion was destroyed.
Now, to me, the film used the source material very well. After watching the film, I read an article regarding the comic book that it was based on; Extremis (Thank god I read after the film or that would be major spoilers for me). In the comic, the power of Extremis is popular for turning Tony Stark into a cyborg but as you've already seen the film, Tony didn't used it. The power and story of Extremis was used very well, to me, as we get to see a more suitable super powered villain for Iron Man. It seemed like the Iron Man movie franchised would never use super human beings as it focuses more on Science and gadgets. The Extremis resolves around Scientific explanation and heat based powers. The heat based powers were simple and strong enough to fit in this Iron Man story. This is the part where it's debatable, The Mandarin's plot twist.
My first reaction:
I laughed (It was meant to be funny and it was). I was impress that the film went that far with a major plot twist. A straight action popcorn flick has no good twist. So, I knew then that this film was intended to be a good story. But after watching a few reviews, I realized that Batman Begins sort of had a similar thing going on with Ra's Al Ghul (One of my favorite movie comic book villains). The thing is, that plot twist was both awesome and respectful because in the end, Ra's Al Ghul does exist as a person. The Mandarin, technically, doesn't. The Mandarin was just a symbol, a media conspiracy, a face for evil and if you think about it, it's really good writing. The problem for some fans is that The Mandarin was used. The Mandarin is an iconic villain for the Iron Man comic book and I understand that. Personally, I see the Iron Man movie franchise uses Science and gadgets as it's theme (Then again, it could be change due to The Avengers). The Mandarin is a supernatural character and I just don't see him fitting in the film. Be that as it may, Ben Kingsley was just awesome! He actually pulled it off. It was interesting to see The Mandarin was portrayed as a middle eastern man. The Mandarin's lines were also executed well; distinctive and threatening. It was all diminish with the plot twist. What about Aldrich Killian? Was he good?
Aldrich Killian, so far, is the best villain for Iron Man. He's a genius billionaire playboy himself; a worthy rival for Tony Stark. His background story with Tony before the events of Iron man was also just nice; it wasn't forced or cheesy. The fact that Killian used The Mandarin gimmick just shows you how dangerously smart he can be. So, in summary, with the case of The Mandarin's plot twist, I approve of it.
What about other characters? Well, it's pretty interesting to see how they used the Iron Patriot 'name'. Iron Patriot was actually Norman Osborne in the comics. But here, it was just a change of name and look for War Machine. The movie itself even mocked the name. By the way, War Machine was changed to Iron Patriot because it would be suitable name for a hero that represents America which is a pretty darn good reason for me. And here's another interesting plot point in the movie that I feel like they use the idea of Tony being injected with Extremis; Pepper Potts was injected with it. I like it because it's something that you don't see with love interests. Sure, she was cured in the end (As was Tony with his chest) but it still had an effect towards the ending where Pepper gets the last hit instead of Tony.
Last but not least, the Iron man suits. It seemed like everybody got to wear a suit...even the president! Though I was glad that it wasn't too forced. Like when Tony gave the suit to Pepper to save her; it wasn't a brief epic moment for her to be action packed (But she got it in the end). The suits were just awesome; no complaints. I'm even planning on buying Mark 42 figure. Oh yes, speaking of Mark 42, the suit was really weak in arsenals. It was a prototype suit; no heavy weapons but it was able to be controlled with Tony's thoughts. The suit could also be broken apart unlike the other suits that were only in one piece (I loved it very much by the way). Another aspect of the film that regards the suit is that the film is a giant leap for the Iron man story. Maybe it's just me but superheroes need to age in films. You won't see a perfect or a mature deconstruct story of the hero in the early years of it's film debut. Take a look at Batman for instance. He had a series in the 60s, a dark movie in 1989 and a few bad ones. It took more than 5 decades for Christopher Nolan to arrive and save The Batman mythology. It's a major leap for Iron man because the story is now deep story, a remarkable story of 'facing your demon', Iron Patriot is there (New comic book characters usually won't be on screen unless it's been around for a long time), The Mandarin (Whom is Iron Man's arch nemesis though, again, this is debatable) and the ever popular House party protocol (The suits). I guess, Marvel is really stepping up in the game.
Man, this review is long. Longer than The Dark Knight Rises review . But I'm still a Batman fan! So, with all this being said; I have to give Iron man 3 a 4.5/5 for a major leap of faith.
