Panorama of the Mountains
Liam Sullivan's Ideas and Reflections
Favorite Songs by Year
Music Discoveries
My 250 Favorite Albums of All Time
Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
Around the World for a Good Book
Book List '08
Book Lists '09
Book Lists 2012
Favorite Books of All Time
AFI's 100 Years…100 Movies
Cahiers du Cinéma Greatest Films of All Time
The Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time 2012
The Sight and Sound Greatest Films of All Time 2022
Movie Review: Iron Man 3 (2013)
2019-05-04 2019-04-30 ~ Liam ~ Leave a comment
Title: Iron Man 3
Director: Shane Black
Production Company: Marvel Studios
Summary/Review:
I could say that this is the best Iron Man film, but that would be damning it with faint praise. I find it puzzling that Robert Downey, Jr. and his take on Tony Stark are so good in collaboration with the other Avengers, but his solo movies are just self-indulgent excess. And there is a lot of excess in this mess of a movie, just tons of stuff thrown at the screen to see what works. Which makes it so weird that it's actually somewhat entertaining.
Following up on the Battle of New York in The Avengers, Stark is dealing with PTSD. This is the main plot of the first act of the movie, but then seems to be discarded along the way when it comes time to start blowing stuff up. The second act gives Stark a kid named Haley (Ty Sympkins) for a sidekick, with some interesting surrogate father/son dynamics. This is also discarded before the third act. For much of the movie Stark is forced to work without an Iron Man suit, which is also an interesting approach as we get to see Downey, Jr. working things out with cleverness rather than technology. But the absence of the Iron Man suit is atoned for in the explosive finale where he and Rhodey (Don Cheadle) win with a metric shitton of Iron Man suits.
The villain in this movie is Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce), a mad scientist who sought Stark's help 14 years earlier, but Stark rejected him, and so he becomes a supervillain to get revenge. This is totally the premise of The Incredibles and I'm not the first one to observe this. Killian and his henchpeople are pretty absurd and largely forgettable. There is a character played by Ben Kinglsey who is at the center of one of the movie's big twists, and Kingsley plays him so weird that it's actually delightful. Maybe they should've cast Kingsley as the Big Bad instead.
And so I've done it! I've watched all of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, and by the time this post goes live, I will have seen Avengers: Endgame as well (and I'll post that review tomorrow).
Rating: **
Podcasts of the Week Ending May 4th
30 for 30 Podcasts :: Ahead Of Their Time: Long Ball Soccer
This story tells of how Charles Reep used statistical analysis to create a new style of playing soccer, and doomed English football to mediocrity for a generation, because the math was off.
WBUR News :: Do Prosecutors Have Too Much Power?
Laws in the 80s and 90s that took away discretionary power from judges inadvertently gave those powers to prosecutors instead, and now America's criminal justice system is not operating in the fair and just manner it should. Author Emily Bazelon and Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins talk about the problems of overly powerful prosecutors and possible reforms.
BackStory :: Red in the Stars and Stripes
Comrades, socialism has a long and illustrious history in the United States. Did you know that Milwaukee had a socialist mayor all through the 1950s? I'm pretty sure it didn't get mention on Happy Days.
99% Invisible :: Uptown Squirrel
Squirrels are so commonplace among urban fauna that most people give them very little thought. But in the 19th century, squirrels were considered exotic and weren't found in urban parks at all. This episode explores how that changed and why it's important to investigate scientifically the squirrel populations in places like New York's Central Park today.
Running tally of Podcast of the Week appearances:
Afropop Worldwide – 1
The Anthropocene Reviewed – 1
BackStory – 2
Best of the Left– 1
Code Switch – 2
Decoder Ring – 1
Fresh Air – 4
Hidden Brain – 2
Hit Parade – 1
Household Name – 1
Hub History – 1
Memory Palace – 2
More or Less – 1
More Perfect – 2
99% Invisible – 8
The New Yorker Radio Hour – 1
On the Media – 2
Planet Money – 1
Planet Money: The Indicator – 1
Re:Sound – 1
Radiolab – 1
Radio Boston – 2
60 Second Science – 1
Smithsonian Sidedoor – 2
30 for 30 Podcasts – 1
This American Life – 1
Throughline – 4
To the Best of Our Knowledge – 1
Tomorrow Society – 1
The Truth – 2
Twenty Thousand Hertz – 2
The War on Cars – 1
WBUR News – 4
We Need Some Milk – 1
What Next – 1
Categories Select Category Album Review (220) All Time Favorites (145) Beer Reviews (308) Bike/Bus/Train/Walk (36) Blogging A to Z Challenge (257) Book Reviews (1,173) Boston Life and Culture (207) City Stories (5) Creative Writing (9) Faith and Spirituality (28) Friday Fictioneers (4) Frolics and Frivolities (146) Ideas, Opinion & Commentary (130) Libraries and Information Sharing (43) Link Dump (50) Metapost (82) Monthly Mixtape (49) Movie & TV Reviews (1,296) Music (721) Music Discoveries (78) My Year With the Saints (25) Performing Arts Reviews (43) Photopost (187) Podcast of the Week (253) Song of the Week (252) The Sporting Life (97) Travelogue (96) Uncategorized (4)
90 Movies in 90 Days: Killer of Sheep (1978)
90 Days in 90 Movies: Slavery by Another Name (2012)
90 Movies in 90 Days: Daisies (1966)
msjadeli on 90 Movies in 90 Days: Killer of Sheep (1978)
Liam on 90 Movies in 90 Days: Killer of Sheep (1978)
Archives Select Month January 2023 (50) December 2022 (41) November 2022 (40) October 2022 (52) September 2022 (28) August 2022 (31) July 2022 (34) June 2022 (27) May 2022 (36) April 2022 (42) March 2022 (37) February 2022 (31) January 2022 (40) December 2021 (34) November 2021 (36) October 2021 (43) September 2021 (39) August 2021 (44) July 2021 (38) June 2021 (33) May 2021 (41) April 2021 (36) March 2021 (36) February 2021 (37) January 2021 (43) December 2020 (43) November 2020 (27) October 2020 (34) September 2020 (35) August 2020 (36) July 2020 (36) June 2020 (38) May 2020 (38) April 2020 (64) March 2020 (37) February 2020 (28) January 2020 (32) December 2019 (45) November 2019 (31) October 2019 (31) September 2019 (40) August 2019 (28) July 2019 (25) June 2019 (8) May 2019 (34) April 2019 (59) March 2019 (31) February 2019 (30) January 2019 (28) December 2018 (38) November 2018 (18) October 2018 (23) September 2018 (58) August 2018 (31) July 2018 (28) June 2018 (34) May 2018 (34) April 2018 (32) March 2018 (32) February 2018 (38) January 2018 (20) December 2017 (36) November 2017 (27) October 2017 (38) September 2017 (13) August 2017 (9) July 2017 (14) June 2017 (2) May 2017 (17) April 2017 (31) March 2017 (15) February 2017 (23) January 2017 (7) December 2016 (23) November 2016 (18) October 2016 (32) September 2016 (22) August 2016 (31) July 2016 (41) June 2016 (39) May 2016 (54) April 2016 (51) March 2016 (70) February 2016 (47) January 2016 (41) December 2015 (43) November 2015 (8) October 2015 (19) September 2015 (25) August 2015 (17) July 2015 (19) June 2015 (12) May 2015 (20) April 2015 (15) March 2015 (22) February 2015 (19) January 2015 (19) December 2014 (23) November 2014 (5) October 2014 (18) September 2014 (5) August 2014 (12) July 2014 (8) June 2014 (8) May 2014 (5) April 2014 (20) March 2014 (32) February 2014 (24) January 2014 (19) December 2013 (51) November 2013 (39) October 2013 (14) September 2013 (19) August 2013 (8) July 2013 (8) June 2013 (9) May 2013 (8) April 2013 (7) March 2013 (9) February 2013 (11) January 2013 (12) December 2012 (13) November 2012 (3) October 2012 (3) September 2012 (29) August 2012 (26) July 2012 (4) June 2012 (3) April 2012 (5) February 2012 (1) January 2012 (2) December 2011 (9) November 2011 (2) October 2011 (4) September 2011 (6) August 2011 (6) July 2011 (19) June 2011 (19) May 2011 (6) April 2011 (8) March 2011 (14) February 2011 (23) January 2011 (21) December 2010 (13) November 2010 (15) October 2010 (20) September 2010 (26) August 2010 (34) July 2010 (18) June 2010 (12) May 2010 (15) April 2010 (16) March 2010 (26) February 2010 (7) January 2010 (13) December 2009 (12) November 2009 (22) October 2009 (3) September 2009 (18) August 2009 (24) July 2009 (28) June 2009 (22) May 2009 (18) April 2009 (28) March 2009 (34) February 2009 (28) January 2009 (14) December 2008 (25) November 2008 (14) October 2008 (17) September 2008 (20) August 2008 (14) July 2008 (11) June 2008 (13) May 2008 (22) April 2008 (13) March 2008 (12) February 2008 (51) January 2008 (51) December 2007 (29) November 2007 (13) October 2007 (28) September 2007 (30) August 2007 (40) July 2007 (28) June 2007 (33) May 2007 (39) April 2007 (41) March 2007 (36) February 2007 (43) January 2007 (30) December 2006 (37) August 2006 (1) January 2006 (1) October 2005 (1) May 2005 (2) April 2005 (2) March 2005 (5) February 2005 (2) January 2005 (5) December 2003 (3) October 2003 (1) September 2003 (1) June 2003 (4) May 2003 (8) March 2003 (1) February 2003 (1) January 2003 (5)
99% Invisible Adventure Album Review Album Reviews Animals Animation Architecture Around the World for a Good Book Audiobook Audiobooks Baseball Beer Beer Reviews Biography Blogging A to Z Challenge Book Reviews Books Boston Cambridge Catholicism Classic Film Classic Films Comedy Comics Crime Documentary Documentary film Drama England Events Faith Family fantasy Fiction Fun Stuff History Holidays Horror indie rock Ireland Jamaica Plain Librarians Libraries Local Massachusetts Memes Metapost Movie Reviews Movies Music Music Discoveries Mystery New England Craft Beer News New York City original photographs Photographs Photopost Podcasts Podcasts of the week Politics Review Reviews Romance Science Science Fiction Soccer Song of the Week Sports Thriller Time Travel Travel TV TV Reviews Walt Disney Company
The Best of Panorama of the Mountains
Boston Marathon 2014
Remembering Pete Seeger
A Tour of Massachusetts' Author-Illustrators
Hipsters Go Berserk
Baseball Celebrity and the End of the Steroid Era
The Best Beatles Songs You've Never Heard
Stadium Naming Rights
Confessions of a St. Patrick's Day Curmudgeon
Commuting with Kids in Boston
Extreme Napping
Idea: The Librewery
Let It Snow x 3
Mix Tapes
Shea Stadium: A Personal History
Walking Washington Street
What Do Presidents Do When Their Term Is Up?