Lesser of two sequels

By Chris Toronyi

Expectations. Man, I had them for Iron Man 3. I so badly wanted it to be the best superhero movie to date. The original Iron Man, which we'll call 'The 98s' was one of the best ever made in my opinion. It had everything you'd want in a movie - a great script, iconic actors, amazing action and a main character that made it the gold standard for summer movie making. I know I'm making the original seem like it was the best ever, but we all know that's Batman. Also known as the INVINCIBLES. So, we move on, forward if you will to the third installment.

Iron Man 3 had everything going for it - an amazing marketing and PR campaign and of course the charisma that is Robert Downey, Jr. And let's not forget the cast and director who had also brought heavy expectations.

Were my expectations for the film too high? Probably. I'm very critical to begin with and also include elements of bias. I'm pretty sure I was hoping for an INVINCIBLES performance and got something along the lines of - wait for it - what we'll call 'The 2011s.' The final product looked tired and as if it had run out of ideas.

I'm not sure where the blame goes, as with any movie there are multiple people involved. Too much studio and producer involvement? Could have been. Too much CGI? Maybe. Poor editing? Who knows. A lot of things contribute to the success – or lack thereof – of a movie.

Expectations have a funny way of ruining the moment you're in. I wanted so badly to soak it all in and take it for what it is, but just couldn't do it because of the first movie. You know, the one I call 'The 98s.' There's no real good in thinking that the movie needs to be better than it is, or should be.

I need to understand why it is sometimes, and use that lens to enjoy it. I need to step back, take a deep breath and enjoy the moment instead of spending energies on details that only do harm to my enjoyment of the movie. Details that really just don't matter.

Oh, and not sure if you noticed, but the movie did bring in a huge amount of revenue to Disney both internationally and domestically. Even Paramount (sold the rights to Disney in 2010) will make close to 100m or 9 per cent of the movie's projected revenues. Sound investment for both no matter what some people think of the movie's quality.

Maybe I need to watch Iron Man 3 again. Maybe I need to watch it for what it is, not for what I think it should or shouldn't be. Maybe I'll enjoy it then. Just maybe.

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