....just keeps getting better.

     I know that I am a little late in getting this review out, seeing how this film opened last weekend.  I figure that it is better late than never.  I went to a 3D showing Thursday afternoon and I loved it.  First of all there were only four other people in the theater besides me which I LOVE.  I had a whole row to myself.  OK, enough of the small talk, on to the review.  

     Opening seven days ago, this film is the third installment in the Iron Man franchise.  Iron Man 2 was better than the first Iron Man, and keeping with that, Iron Man 3 is better than the first two.  This movie really has it all.  Humor, special effects, bonding with a boy, a terrorist threat, romance and Robert Downey Jr.  Can anyone in the world play the cynical smart ass better?  I think not.  However in Iron Man 3, Tony Stark is toned down a bit.  Suffering from anxiety, probable depression, he seems bored, and thus spends his time building dozens of Iron Man suits.  Downeys' acting is a little understated and spot on for the Tony Stark character.  Things have changed since the first two films and the characters have grown, giving them a lot of added depth.  Which is much more than your typical offering in this genre.  Pepper Potts is played again by Gweneth Paltro and is no longer Starks' assistant but the CEO at Stark industries.  Stark and Potts are committed to each other as they now live together and act much like any other couple with the usual squabbles and tiffs.  Even though this man IS a superhero, he is a superhero with many of the same failings we normal guys possess.  Refreshing.  Don Cheadle reprises his role as James Rhodes, Stark's best friend, and liaison between the air force and Stark industries.  There is a ton of good natured jocularity between the two.  Rhodes helps to keep Stark grounded in ways that Pepper just can't.  In a comical turn, Sir Ben Kingsley plays the evil "Mandarin".  Spoiler alert, he isn't a real terrorist, he's a fake terrorist.  When the truth is revealed many chuckles ensue.  Of course all leads up to the epic final battle which is required for any movie of this genre.  I don't want to give too much away but I promise you will not be disappointed.  This film is filled with all the usual cliche's you would find in a super hero movie.  What raises Iron Man 3 above the rest of the herd is the character development and the ensemble cast which is perfectly balanced by judicial use of CGI effects.  This genre has a formula to follow and Iron Man 3 follows right in step.  Iron Man 3 even introduces a boy, Harley, who ends up helping Tony Stark.  The two bond and as such helps to give the film a heart warming ending.  Ever see that before?  

I thought so.  Iron Man 3 is a very good movie and would make a great date movie.

I give this film a grade of: A-