Iron Man 3 – 3D (12A) ****

Iron Man 3 – 3D (12A) ****

Dir: Shane Black

Starring: Robet Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Guy Pearce, Don Cheadle

Synopsis: Tony Stark is still suffering after the events of New York (see Avengers Assemble) when a terrorist known as the Mandarin begins to tear down his world. With his suit broken, he desperately tries to find and stop this formidable enemy.

Verdict: Shane Black really makes the latest in the Iron Man franchise his own, successfully keeping it faithful to the character of the Jon Favreau films while giving it more intensity and that touch of darkness that makes it stand out.

The story is darker and more intense than the previous films, which we all knew already from trailer scenes of Iron Man tapped underwater in the rubble of his own house, Pepper Potts in a restraint and the broken armour in the snow. All hints from the trailer seem to point to a possible hiatus/break for the Iron Man side of the whole Avengers storyline of the Marvel Universe.

Downey Jr. returns to the role well, bringing forward not just the charismatic persona that we’re used to, but the troubled side that first emerged when he faced his mortality while being subjected to palladium poisoning - now accentuated since the events of The Avengers. His performance of both these aspects is as good as we’ve come to expect, expressing the fear/panic of anxiety attacks while still retaining the sort of sense of humour that his Tony Stark never seems to be fully able to relinquish.

There are some fairly unbelievable moments in the film (I know, it’s a work of fantasy, but even these are farfetched for its own storyline and what I’ve come to expect from the character development), which make you think: ‘Huh? Why did they write this?’ These little niggling moments bring the end product down a little as they’re difficult to ignore being as important to the plot as they are, but it would have been an improvement if the moments in question were written more in tune with the characters.

One of the primary appeals of these films is the special effects which, as you would expect from Marvel are fantastic. The big attention grabbers from the trailer are the destruction of starks cliff-top mansion and the arrival of a whole host of suits without pilots. I loved the CG detail that was put into the house collapsing into the ocean (with the circular living area’s resemblance to the crashing Enterprise from the Star Trek: Into Darkness trailer catching my eye), and the work put in to the sheer variety suits that have been designed - battle damage and the now classic head-up display that is associated with the ‘in helmet’ shots.

The only downside is that they still haven’t cracked that pesky 3D (then again, who has?). At times it felt like there wasn’t any 3D: at times it was apparent, flecks of ash floating across the screen and the like, but nothing that jumped out of the screen and impressed me.

Oblivion (12A) ****

Oblivion (12A) ****

Dir: Joseph Kosinski

Starring: Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kurylenko

Synopsis: It is several decades since the world was attacked by alien invaders: humanity won the war, but the Earth was left irreparably damaged. A mop-up crew are left to protect fusion reactors from the remaining invaders whilst humanity leaves for Titan, but Jack Harper (Cruise) begins to question his mission.

Author’s note: Firstly, I want to apologise for disappearing for six months. After a recent meeting with my lecturer from university, I’m going to pull my finger out and try to write more, as he said it is better to keep writing even if you feel it isn’t very good as it helps to bring you out of the rut. So, here it goes.

Verdict: Oblivion is a good science fiction story, with all the elements working together to make it. The familiar landmarks of New York dotted about in a landscape that is nothing like the city that we have seen destroyed in sci-fi films on countless occasions, the idea of the exodus to Saturnian moons, the futuristic technology portrayed and the presence of the alien enemy is all classic to the genre.

One of the things I enjoyed about it is how, unlike recent ‘alien invasion’ flicks where the film has been about the invasion (Battleship, Battle Los Angeles, Skyline) - the fight to save the world against the aggressors, Oblivion is the aftermath – yes there’s still some hostility, but it’s not an all-out ‘HOORAH!’ propaganda piece for the US Military that we have been getting recently.

Based on a graphic novel penned by Kosinski himself, the story is good when you wrap your head around some of the intricacies that develop as the film progresses (no spoilers, I promise!). Cruise plays a role similar to that of Ray in The War of the Worlds. Not in a panicky sort of way, but in the character’s seriousness and determination, and also the occasional loss of not knowing what to do at certain points.

Cruise gets the most screen time in this film, with the supporting cast being just that – ‘supporting’. Morgan Freeman’s role is short and sweet, the old and wise character that comes so naturally to him thanks mainly to his voice. Kurylenko, Andrea Riseborough and Melissa Leo, while not the only other people in the film make up, in all honesty, the only other really important characters of the film.

The standout factor of Oblivion is the same as in last year’s Prometheus, the use of special effects (CGI and models etc) to create a fantastic backdrop to the story. Canyons dropping down from ‘ground’ level made of the buildings of New York, the top of the Empire State Building poking out of a sand dune, Brooklyn Bridge submerged in the earth – the scenery is jaw dropping, especially when combined with the epic nature of the music, scored by French band M83.

The other headline grabber of the film, the bubble-ship that Harper uses to jet around the post-apocalyptic world, has been the sort of poster-girl for the film. Based on the Bell-47 helicopter, and resembling a dragonfly - especially with its folding ‘legs’ – the little flying machine has some of the most grabbing scenes in the trailer (back flipping off a platform a few thousand feet in the air) and carries out a pivotal role in the film, although some of the things this relatively small ship is meant to be able to stash away inside various compartments is ridiculously unbelievable!