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Iron Man
Interview with Marvel's Kevin Feige and director Jon Favreau
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Pedigree: Jon Favreau directs Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Gwyneth Paltrow and Jeff Bridges in this first cinematic outing for one of Marvel's most prestigious superheroes. Estimated budget: $150 million. Predicted box office: $200 million (US gross), $450 million (worldwide).
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You may or you may not have noticed but in 2008, you won't be able to swing an enchanted hammer without hitting a big-screen superhero, whether it's Batman or Hellboy or Hulk or even Hancock. But, before the cynics yell "over-saturation" and gleefully wait for the bubble to burst, consider these words from a man who knows a thing or ten about the genre.
"It's only a problem when they all become too similar," says Kevin Feige, Marvel Studio's President Of Production and producer of the studio's first fully self-funded movie, Iron Man. "The good news is that next summer, they're all different."
And when it comes to Iron Man, he's not kidding. Although it is about a billionaire playboy, that's as far as Batman comparisons go.
It involves Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), a devil-may-care genius weapons manufacturer who is mortally wounded while visiting Afghanistan. Captured by local rebels, Stark - who has a piece of shrapnel inching towards his heart - is forced to build a super-weapon, in the form of an armoured suit. Donning the suit, which has a magnetised chestplate that keeps the shrapnel in place, Stark escapes to America, where he continues to refine the technology, and becomes Iron Man, a gold-and-red avenger with super-strength, repulsor beams and supersonic flight. But on the inside, Stark's conscience is slowly eating away at him. Clearly, this is not your average superhero flick - it's James Bond meets Tom Clancy meets... Charles Dickens??!
"If anything, it's a bit like A Christmas Carol," explains director Jon Favreau, taking time out from shooting the movie's final showdown between the red-and-gold Mk. III Iron Man and Iron Monger, who's clad in a bigger and more powerful take on the original grey armour. "Tony's a guy who's living under the umbrella of privilege, and he's feeding the military-industrial complex. As the movie goes on he sees the real-world effects of it, and there are certain nuances in the hero that are informed by those discoveries."
So it's not all blam-blam, then. Indeed, all the signs are that Favreau is crafting a smart and sophisticated blockbuster, with the excellent trailer hinting at a confident and nuanced performance from Downey Jr., and some astounding effects as a CG Iron Man takes to the skies to outpace a fleet of fighter jets. Although Favreau is determined that, with the end product, you won't be able to tell where the practical suits end and the pixels begin. "It's a lot more expensive to show Iron Man on the screen when you have ILM animating it," laughs Favreau. "There's a lot more Robert Downey than there is Iron Man!"
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