The (Iron) Man of the moment

In theaters Friday: Body of Lies, City of Ember, Quarantine

New on DVD: The Happening, The Visitor

A funny thing happened when I finally watched Iron Man last weekend. Not only was my disinterest in the comic book adaptation vindicated—it was a fun in spots, but overall incomprehensible, inconsequential and slow—but I also realized just how great it is that Robert Downey Jr. is finally clean, sober and earning the respect and the lead roles he has deserved for a long time. This is the guy who just a few years ago was slumming through Ally McBeal guest spots between court appearances. Now he’s got two huge hits this year in Iron Man and Tropic Thunder and has been tapped as Sherlock Holmes in Guy Ritchie’s much talked-about reimagining of the brainy detective.

Without his likeable, often quick-witted portrayal of playboy weapons manufacturer Tony Stark, Iron Man would have been a total loss. I really can’t understand those who say they liked Iron Man better than The Dark Knight, unless character development, high stakes, thought-provoking themes and suspense must be more interesting to me than to those folks. OK, so Stark is kidnapped in the Middle East and forced to make a missile. Instead, he builds a super suit/killing machine while simultaneously realizing that being in the weapons business is unethical. So what does he do when he escapes and returns home? He holds a press conference where he states that he’s no longer building weapons, then goes home immediately and starts building a weapon, the Iron Man suit, so he can fly around and kick butt. I just don’t get the message here. Things seem muddied. So I’m not sure why Downey Jr. is now fighting terrorists, and on top of that I have no idea why his partner is so intent on taking over the company and rubbing him out. Maybe the problem is that the villain here is played by Jeff Bridges. You don’t cast Jeff Bridges as your villain! He’s the easy-going mentor, the loving but flawed father. For crying out loud, he’s The Dude! I just didn’t buy it. Hopefully director Jon Favreau and his writers can come up with a sequel where the stakes run a little higher than intra-office politics and Downey Jr. is allowed to explore the consequences and the challenges of his character’s bizarre life choices. That might be an Iron Man I’d want to see.

Though Iron Man disappointed me, Downey Jr. was great in the role, and I can’t wait for his next performance. For the latest on his turn as Sherlock Holmes, click here.

Those looking for the next underground indie hit, dig this: The Pleasure of Being Robbed. This is a little independent drama—literally, it’s only 70 minutes long—that wowed audiences at the Cannes Film Festival. Robbed is written by 24-year-old Joshua Safdie and his star Eleanor Hendricks, who plays a lost young woman who finds pleasure in lifting things from other people. IFC Films released it in a limited run this week, but look for it to pick a pocket or two on DVD before the end of the year.