Having inherited his father's skill, "Tony Stark" is supplying just about every bit of military hardware to the US Government. On a trip to Afghanistan, however, his convoy is ambushed and he is seriously injured. He awakens in a cave, held hostage by insurgents, and with the help of co-captive "Yinsen" (Shaun Toub) must use all of his skills to stay alive and to find a way out of his predicament. Cannibalising just about every bit of kit he can find, he concocts a power source to keep him alive and a suit of armour that enables him to fight his way out. Once free, he determines to further hone this flying suit of armour and use it for the common good. His business partner "Vanko" (Jeff Bridges) soon realises there are other, more lucrative, uses and a conspiracy is soon afoot. Can "Stark" thwart him and save the day? As ever, there is no jeopardy whatsoever - what this is, is a fun action adventure with loads of top notch visual effects and quite a bit of humour in a script well delivered by an on-form Downey well supported by Gwyneth Paltrow and a solid cast. The "Iron Man" stories are not the most complex. It's a pretty linear depiction of good and evil - though it does, at the start, demonstrate some of the ironies of the weapons supplies industry. It's overly long, we spend just a bit too much time getting going, but once it does - it is worth a watch on a big screen.
