He ain’t makin’ a new mitt for baseball! That’s gazillionaire Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) to the right, who has a computer/science laboratory/factory in the basement of his Malibu Beach home that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. He’s building something that’s more than just a weapon, but it ain’t no baby bottle!
PHOTO COURTESY OF MARVEL STUDIOS/PARAMOUNT PICTURES.
SEBRING, May 5, 2008 – You can’t keep a good man down:
Not when he’s clothed with thick, red and gold titanium and has rockets in his feet and hands to launch him to 85,000 feet at supersonic speed;
And not when he has electromagnetic repulsors and missiles and ack-ack built into his armor; and not to mention a host of other goodies, like a heads-up computer display, a dry-humor computer named Jarvis, and a sexy assistant who gently talks back to him even as she supports him with her undying loyalty.
Throw in an evil villain, terrorism, treachery, and cloberrin’ time action (okay, that’s a Fantastic Four word – so sue me), and you get the box office smash of the weekend.
Iron Man pummelled its competition. The Robert Downey Jr. starrer grossed $100.75 million for the May 2-4 weekend, easily bodyslamming Made of Honor, which had a decent haul of $15.5 million. Baby Mama finished in third with $10.33 million.
Iron Man plays at the Fairmount Cinema Square while Made of Honor and Baby Mama reside at the Carmike Cinema.
Iron Man’s debut is the second largest debut in film history for a non-sequel film and the 10th largest among all films ever. Worldwide outside North America, Iron Man filled its coffers with another $96 million, and when one adds receipts from early release shows on Thursday, Iron Man’s take is over $200 million for the weekend. In North America, it averaged a whopping $24,500 per theater.
Despite a month that will be filled with blockbusters Speed Racer, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Iron Man should hold its own. It rated 94% at rottentomatoes.com, the highest rating ever for any superhero film. Friday to Saturday ticket sales rocketed up by 17%, a sign that word of mouth is strongly favorable toward the film.
The film has done it with superb direction and casting. Actors Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Terrence Howard perform with strength and panache. Acting is often downplayed in superhero movies, giving way to special effects and a stream of explosions and fantastical action. Yes, you have to have those in a superhero film, but it remains for the actors to tie everything up and deliver the package with credibility and power. Like no other superhero film before it, the players of Iron Man succeed with the good story and script they were given.
On a scale of 1 to 5 reels, 5 being the best, Sebring Cinema and Sports on Friday rated Iron Man:
Filed under: Sebring movies, box office | Tagged: Baby Mama, box office weekend May 2-4 2008, Carmike Cinema, Fairmount Cinema, Gwyneth Paltrow, Iron Man, Jeff Bridges, Made of Honor, Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard
Iron Man was practically flawless as a super hero flick; it drops pretty obvious hints that would indicate a sequel as well… i’m thinking the next one should be equally great