Iron Man 3: The man behind the suit

Action, adventure, thriller, sci-fi, explosions, visual effects, soundtracks, sound effects, cool dialogues and overall badass-ness is what has come to be expected of anything that has to do with the Iron Man franchise. This includes the Iron Man trilogies and other like projects which the superhero has been associated with over the last few years. The good news is that the third film in the Iron Man trilogy has kept up to the standards which it was expected to uphold.

Post his collaboration with The Avengers initiative and their final showdown in New York City, where Tony Stark almost lost his life in a battle with aliens, the man behind the suit is suffering from post traumatic stress disorder as a new villain arises to destroy the American dream and all that it is associated with. Mandarin has claimed responsibility for several bombings on American soil as he declares war on the United States and issues public threats to the President that his time and his country’s reign is coming to an end. Tony becomes increasingly aware that he may not always be around to protect the one he loves most, Pepper Potts, and so prepares himself through nights of insomnia for a war that may eventually be his last in some way or the other. As the number of incidents increase and Tony’s own friends are dragged into the battle, he makes his own public announcement vowing to put an end to Mandarin and all that he stands for.

While the previous films were directed by Jon Favreau, Iron Man has Shane Black credited 

for the role of director. Overall, the style of the film is maintained from the previous two films in the trilogy with similar visual and sound effects being employed as well as a similar tone of the film which banks between action and mild character humour. Robert Downey Jr. once again plays the role of Tony Stark/ Iron Man to his personal strengths as he portrays the badass, rebellious nature of the character with a playful sense of humour that it is known for. Gwyneth Paltrow deserves a special mention for her performance in this film as she plays Pepper Potts and holds her own as the female lead in a sultry avatar which is much sexier than was ever witnessed before.

Overall, this film shows Tony Stark in a more human light than the previous films. As he grapples with his previous near death experience, his dependence on his machinery and technology is evident as he begins to have panic attacks with every mention of his previous battles and how the presence of his Iron Man suit is essential to help him calm down. The character of Tony Stark, which is always portrayed as a confident and cocky playboy billionaire, is torn apart to show his natural instinct as he deals with his issues as any other person would and comes to terms with his fears to accept his own ingenuity and intelligence along with his instincts and desires.

The use of 3D doesn’t really do much for the film; and neither is it required for most other films honestly. But Iron Man 3 is a real treat to watch for a full blown Hollywood production that has managed to live up to its own standards as a top film in the genre of action.

Pan's Labyrinth: In the world of a little girl’s imagination

Imagination is one of the greatest gift human beings ever received. It is through imagination that we dare to dream, to create ideas that did not exist before, to think beyond ourselves and actually make things happen. Imagination can also be a brilliant defence mechanism or a way of escaping from our mundane lives when it becomes too much for us to handle. Especially for children, imagination is a great boon of keeping yourself entertained and possibly having an alternate world to go to when the difficulties of the current one seem overwhelming.

Ofelia is a young girl living with her pregnant mother in the fascist Spain of 1944. Her mother has remarried a tyrannical army officer and Ofelia must accompany her mother to her stepfather’s post in the middle of the forest where Ofelia’s mother will give birth to his son. Ofelia was always obsessed with fairy tales and when she comes across a fairy at the encampment, Ofelia is ever willing to follow her into the forest and through a labyrinth. After reaching the centre of the maze, she meets an old faun who tells her that she is the lost princess of a faraway land who has escaped into the human world and must complete three tasks to prove her royalty and return to her father, the king. Ofelia agrees to complete the tasks unaware of her mother’s troubled pregnancy and the impending war between the army commanded by her ruthless stepfather and the rebels who oppose him.

Pan’s Labyrinth was directed by Guillermo del Toro and released in the year 2006. Crafted with a style that brings about a balance between the real and the imagined, this drama-fantasy film has plenty of positive points and a livid script which can be quite confusing. The film lies in a grey patch between the realistic human world with the ongoing Second World War and the imagined world of the protagonist, Ofelia. Because of the dates and actual human timeline added to the plot, it becomes difficult to figure out if the magic and fairy tales told in the story are meant to be real or imagined by the protagonist. At the same time, with the magical events in the film that cannot be explained by rational thinking the audience can’t help but believe that the magical events are actually meant to be real and not just a figment of Ofelia’s imagination; an example of this would be Ofelia escaping from a locked room using a magic chalk given to her by the faun.

The film’s plot was intended by the director to be up to the explanation of the audience. By that definition, it gives the viewer plenty of opportunity to use their own imagination and rational thinking to decide their own understanding of the film.

The Other Guys: The screw-ups try to make it big

Living in the shadow of someone else is always terribly disappointing. You are looked down upon and always have a much higher standard set for you which becomes difficult to live up to. It is also difficult to have to take up the reins when that someone else has moved on since you are then expected to fill in their shoes which is no easy task. That task becomes even more difficult if you are a screw-up, which is seen in the 2010 movie The Other Guys.

Terry was a motivated cop who wanted to make a name for himself as one of the top cops in New York City. Unfortunately for him, countless mistakes on the job led him to being confined in the office with Allen as a partner. Allen is an over-calculating detective who is happier doing research work instead of being out in the line of action. Terry and Allen are forced to sit at their desks and file the paperwork of the top detectives in the city, Danson and Highsmith. They are constantly bullied in their department for being ‘the other guys’ who don’t solve any cases but are forced to do the dog work of the rest of the department. When Danson and Highsmith meet their untimely deaths, every duo in the department has their sights on the unofficial label of top dog. Terry and Allen have to get over their spite for each other and get past their own shortcomings to make sure they finish ahead of every other cop duo in the city.

Directed by Adam McKay, this movie brings together the repertoire of Mark Wahlberg as an action star and Will Ferrell’s comedic relief. It is meant to be an action-comedy flick but isn’t here-or-there in either of the genres. It actually blends the worst of both genres since it doesn’t provide edge-of-the-seat action nor does it have laugh-out-loud funny moments.

There is nothing much that can be said about this film. It has a routine style to it and brings nothing special to the table in terms of plot and execution. As an action movie, it is poor. As a comedy, it’s worse. In fact, it’s a sad testament of what passes off as comedy in today’s industry.

A Christmas Story: All I want for Christmas

If there was something you wanted more than anything else in the world, wouldn’t you try everything you could to get it? Especially if it was Christmas and you felt that you have been nice enough to deserve it! But as a child it becomes difficult to convince your parents to buy you that exciting toy you really want. Such is the case in the 1983 film A Christmas Story which was directed by Bob Clark.

Ralphie is a well behaved nine year old boy who has been a good kid all year long and wants only one thing for Christmas: a Red Ryder BB Gun with a compass in the stock and “this thing which tells time”. Unfortunately for Ralphie, he faces strong objection from everyone he tries to convince to get him the gun which includes his parents, his school teacher and even Santa Claus at the mall, and all this because they are afraid that he will shoot his eye out. Ralphie is adamant to have his Red Ryder BB Gun and tries his level best to convince his parents to get it for him by being a good kid in the days leading up to Christmas. Unfortunately for Ralphie, a few incidents involving his friends’ mischief, a run in with a couple of bullies and a handful of episodes where he is heard cursing dent his hopes of ever seeing his beloved Red Ryder BB Gun. Somehow Ralphie must try and rescue the situation if he is going to have his wish fulfilled this Christmas.

The film is riddled with creative styles in the execution. The film has been made to seem as a live-action cartoon film with the use of sound effects which are native to cartoon shows. There is also use of cutaways and transitions in the format that is witnessed in a cartoon show, thus lending to the intended style. There are many subplots in the main story which bring about comical effects for example Ralphie’s fathers winning of a lamp shaped like a leg which his mother disapproves of or the ‘triple dog dare’ which is known among Ralphie and his friends and eventually leads to one of his friends freezing his tongue to a lamppost. Overall, there are plenty of instances of comedic relief during the course of the film.

The film is considered a classic Christmas movie. The only problem which is always overlooked when it comes to this film is the reinforcement of materialism. The story portrays a child who is desperate to receive a desired present in the holiday season which unfortunately reiterates the idea that getting gifts are crucial for someone to be happy during the festive season. It is abysmal that a film which encourages materialism has been hailed as a great especially after it wipes out all the good work that other films and documentaries do in highlighting the idea of giving back to those in need which should be the true message sent out for the festive season.

Albeit the film has plenty of creative inputs and a unique style, a major problem with the film is that it lacks a good entertainment value; and a film doesn’t even need a good, deep message for that!