Review of Iron Man 3 (2013) by Ross G — 13 May 2015

After the massive success that "The Avengers" was worldwide, a new phase in the MCU started and it seem appropriate that Iron Man would begin Phase Two as he was the one that started phase one and managed to make the whole MCU possible, but the last time we saw Tony Stark on a standalone film it was in the less than mediocre "Iron Man 2". Did "Iron Man 3" improved over its predecessor?

After the events of "The Avengers" Tony Stark suffers from panic attacks as he has seen the power of other worldly beings. But soon, a new enemy rises from nowhere in the form of "The Mandarin" a terrorist responsible of various bombings inside the USA.

With John Javreau leaving the directing chair, many people wonder: Could Iron Man work without him or Wheadon? So the new landlord, Shane Black, tried to convinced people that he could create the Iron Man sequel audiences have been wanting since 2008. Did Black delivered? Iron Man 3 is a mess from beginning to end: The story is weird mashup of "Batman Forever" and an attempt to make a more serious and "mature" story by making a commentary about the "War on Terror" and Middle Eastern terrorist organizations but failing miserably, the new characters are forgettable and some are even worthless, talented actors are wasted in unnecessary roles, the dialog is at times serviceable but others is incredibly silly, the ingenious settings and writing were thrown away in order to make room for a generic and predicable comic book story, a ballsy and a clever twist that parodies Nolan´s overly serious "Dark Knight Trilogy" but it sadly doesn't work in this film due to the lack of setup, it actually feels more like a retcon than a twist; a lack of well-made action sequences, Shane Black´s directing is unfocused, the comedy is nowhere near as good as the last two films, uneven pacing, the rock soundtrack´s absence takes away some of the charm that the character has, and one of the most improvised and lackluster endings I´ve ever seen on a blockbuster.

Iron Man 3 is the worst film of the Iron Man trilogy. It is a complete mess that leaves not so good expectations regarding Phase Two. Without Javreau´s direction, Iron Man can't shine on its own.