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Director: Louis LeTerrier

Starring: Edward Norton, Liv Tyler, William Hurt, Tim Roth, Tim Blake Nelson,

Marvel is back up on the silver screen, and the formula of Spider-man/Ironman, etc., is in clear view. That’s not a bad thing, but it doesn’t work as well for novice director, Louis LeTerrier. True, he has the uber-talented Ed Norton to work with, but he is also saddled with what is without a doubt, one of comicdom’s most boring superheroes. The Hulk has limited power of speech, ruling out the snappy patter in the midst of battle, and his ability, which is simply being big, really strong and indestructible leaves his battles looking like a locker room scrap at the Mr. Universe competition. That being said, this is still a decent chase film and LeTerrier shows great pacing instincts for getting the action in, just as things start to lag, and slowing it down when it starts to get repetitive. That judgment was sadly lacking in the 2003 Ang Lee Hulk disaster. The CGI here is a little underwhelming, and the characters and script needed more zip, but this is still a solid action effort.

Ed Norton is Bruce Banner, who is on the run in South America, where he is trying to stay hidden from his single-minded nemesis, Col Ross, control his temper (I like the days without incident angle), and find a cure for his condition. This plan blows to pieces with one little accident and soon Banner finds himself back on the run, pursued by Ross and his aging super soldier, Emil (Tim Roth, looking unconvincing in the role, but what the hell, I like Tim Roth). Along the way, he meets his old flame, Betty (Liv Tyler) and experiences a big reduction in his days without incident number. You can guess where its all going, but getting there is a pretty fun ride, and it even features a cameo by original on-screen hulkster Lou Ferrigno, who also provided the monster‘s voice.

Don’t make me bored. You wouldn’t like me when I’m bored. Luckily, The Incredible Hulk didn’t make me bored, so it is saved from the scathing power of my keyboard. Norton is great, and this film plays like Ironman mixed with The Fugitive, though lacks the sharp dialog of both and Ironman’s lighter, fun moments. Fans of the green smashing machine will find this a more satisfying big screen treatment, and those who think comics should be restricted to Saturday morning papers will still find this film to be palatable enough.

Director: Sam Raimi

Starring: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Alfred Molina, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons

Sam Raimi is back behind the lens, as he carefully tries to re-create the recipe that made Spider-Man the box office champ of 2002. He succeeds at this for the most part, as he works his blend of humor, action, and touching drama and mixes it all up in a Big Apple bowl. The cast of #1 is back with a few additions, the most notable of which is Alfred Molina as premier Spidey villain, Doc Ock. This film is a little darker than its predecessor, and gets a little heavy at times for a light comic book action film.

Tobey Maguire is back as Peter Parker/Spider-Man and if you thought he his life was rough at times before, wait until you see the first half hour of this one, as poor Peter deals with money issues, problems with girls (still M.J. – Kirsten Dunst), friends, family, bosses, landlords, school and even laundry. If this guy got cancer, it would be a step up! Yup, his life is falling apart, and on top of that, he’s seems to be losing his super powers. There are more street musicians with Spider-Man tunes, more run ins with the fantastically amusing J. Jonah Jameson (J.K. Simmons) and yet another awwww moment with his NYC neighbors. Alfred Molina is Otto Octavius, a scientist working on fusion with the help of four intelligent and ultra powerful artificial arms. But, uh oh, something goes wrong, he goes crazy and the Webslinger has another scrap on his hands. Yup, its just like the first one.

Spider-Man 2 set out to give its fans exactly what they liked in the first outing and they succeeded, too well actually. This almost feels like a scene for scene clone of the first film, though it has a new villain and some new ideas for action scenes, which really pick up in act 3 (last 30-45 mins). The end result will win over fans of the first Spider-Man. Thankfully there were plenty of those, because no new ones will be gained here.

Director: Sam Raimi

Starring: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Willem Dafoe, Cliff Robertson, Rosemary Harris, J.K. Simmons

Spider-Man was the film that re-defined super hero films for the 21st century, living up to the promise of the X-Men series that began in 2000. Sam Raimi’s striking visuals takes David Koepp’s masterfully blended script and gives us a well paced mix of action, drama and humor. The characters are natural, likable and particularly well cast. The dialog gets understandably cheesy at times (it is still a comic book movie, after all), but this is still a fitting tribute to the most popular comic book series in the world.

Tobey Maguire is Peter Parker, a clever, but unpopular high school student, who finds his life is turned upside down when he gains the super powers of a spider. He learns of his new abilities, how to use them and the responsibilities that come along with power (Gee, I can think of a bunch of celebrities who seem to have missed that class). His life is a maelstrom, of money woes, family and friend issues and an unsuccessful love life with a beautiful classmate named Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst), but become a lot more complicated when a super villain shows up.

Well developed characters, a compelling story and exciting original action scenes make this a first rate action flick that still manages to have both a heart and a pulse.

Director: Jon Favreau

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard, Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow, Leslie Bibb, Faran Tahir, Shaun Toob

Little known director Jon Favreau (Elf) will be a more familiar name after smashing his way into the comic book genre with this fast-paced visual action intro to what is obviously intended to be an Iron Man series. The script, which has more writers than the bible, is witty and like the uber successful Spider-man trilogy, doesn’t get too serious. Robert Downey Jr. exudes cool charisma with a great performance in the title role and has some enviable back up from Gwyneth Paltrow and a really old-looking Jeff Bridges. The film is flashy and the action scenes could have been shorter and more plentiful. I have never seen more metallurgy scenes in any movie to date, but nonetheless excellent dialog and cool effects keep the viewers entertained while waiting for something big to happen.

Robert Downey Jr. is a billionaire boy genius in the defense industry named Tony Stark who seems to divide his time, albeit unequally, between making scientific breakthroughs and living a jet-setting rock star lifestyle until a business trip to Afghanistan sees him taken hostage by some vaguely motivated middle eastern bad guys. They force Stark, along with the help of fellow hostage, Yinsen (Shaun Toob from The Kite Runner) to build them one of his cutting edge missile systems, Jericho. Unfortunately for the soon-to-be-punished reprobates, Stark isn’t building them a missile system, but building himself a bullet-proof, powered suit to use to escape, which he does, of course. This turns out to be a life-changing experience for Stark, and he decides its time to give back a little to the world by becoming a super-hero. Well, that is one way. Wouldn’t it be easier and more helpful just to build a few hospitals and schools? It might, but it wouldn’t make an action-packed movie.

Iron Man flies into theaters as one off the best of the comic book genre films, thanks in equal parts to a sharp script and an impressive performance by Downey. Imagine Spider-man crossed with Robocop and then blended with the Transformers and you will have some idea of what to expect. Comic book fans and action lovers will flock to it and even a lukewarm, yawning and jaded movie veteran such as myself is looking forward to the next installment. Oh, and for a little foreshadowing of things to come, wait for the credits to end. There is a short little bonus scene.