Movie Moan - The Mandarin Debate
Tue, May 7, 2013
It's the debate that will rage on for decades: what did you think of the twist?
If you saw Iron Man 3 (judging by the $176 million worth of tickets sold), you know what we're talking about. To those spoiler sensitive chaps, our lips are sealed in this text.
Joining the British Gentleman Agent Phil and his loud-mouth sidekick Jamie this week are special guests Justin Korthoff and Randall Maynard.
It's a full-blown spoiler-filled discussion about the beginning chapter of Marvel's Phase 2. Everything is covered from that twist-that-shall-not-be-named, who Jamie was relieved to see alive at the end more than any other character, Phil actually disagreeing with Randall (What a bastard!) and this possibly being the end of Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark.
Download the audio only MP3 version right here:
Reader Comments (1)
What a waste of a villain and while it's better than that piece of crap called Iron Man 2 (which isn't saying much tbh), it's still a let down in regards to the story and especially the creative choices around the entire thing.
Minor quibbles:
- Obligatory flashback scene with laughably bad acting by Guy Pierce who is on par at that point with Uma Thurman's Pamela Isley before the transformation though he's much better thankfully as Killian later on.
- One of the most shoehorned and wasted Stan Lee cameos ever.
- Wasted (that's a key word for this movie) after the credits scene with Banner that shows nothing for the future films and this is supposed to be the start of "Phase 2".
- Shane Black's Christmas fetish once again popping up here.
- Why was Rhodey even in this movie? Nothing came of the Iron Patriot plot point. It's like they wanted to do a condensed version or start the SR Act here but in the end, NOTHING happened.
Ugh too many problems to point out so let's just go on to the heavy ones:
The best sequence in the film (AF1 rescue scene). Supposed to show off how heroic Stark is, as is referenced throughout the film, and it turns out he's not even in the suit. Badass scene all for a throwaway bus gag.
Stark needing 20 suits to survive every little hit, fall, accident in the climax. Then proclaiming he's "still Iron Man" w/o the armor?? F**k off Drew Pierce.
As good as The Avengers was this is exactly the problem it was setting itself up for in the post solo films. Where were they? You're telling me a branded terrorist like The Mandarin (Slattery) is executing people left and right and Captain America is nowhere to be found? If not him then how about BW or Hawkeye? All those references to The Avengers and none are found here except in a post credits scene.
And of course the inclusion of the PTSD story point where it's set up nicely and carefully woven throughout the movie but ultimately leads to nowhere as Stark has either beaten it or suppressing it in the end. Either way it's left unresolved and unsatisfying.. just like the rest of the movie.
The Mandarin.... pfft I don't even know where to begin. Granted, it's better to avoid the exact comic book interpretation of the character with the live action version, but of all the story choices you can go with, they pick the switch-a-roo card on it.
What a damn shame if this is RDJ's final solo Marvel film. To see his great acting go to waste in something like this.