Movie Review: the Ironman Trilogy

  Kevin and I watched Iron Man 3 over the course of 2 evenings.  (I can't stay up late, though I do have more energy than I did first trimester. Still, this pregnant mama gets tired.)

 We've watched the first 2 of the trilogy as well, so this will be a quick review of the whole series.

  Let me say that first of all, we've mostly enjoyed the Avengers movies.  In GENERAL, the main characters are noble people attempting to help others.  The violence is massive, but it is more "bloodless" than some.  Let me put it another way.  Lots of people die.  Lots.  Some die unpleasantly. But all in all, blood and gore are not the major selling points.  When people die, there is a reason beyond trying to titillate the audience.

  So let's see, the Avengers movies include the Iron Man movies, a Hulk movie, Captain America, and 2 Thor movies. 

  Iron Man is our least favorite character but we liked him best in the 3rd movie.

  I'm HUGE into worldview.  I'm HUGE into analyzing the behavior of people and evaluating whether our "heroes" are really worth emulating or admiring.

  In the first Iron Man movie, Tony  Stark is a genius billionaire with the moral compass of a lamprey, except that is probably insulting to the lamprey.  His company cheerfully produces weapons of war and sells them without a thought to the victims of the weapons. He's also an immoral jerk.  In a very early scene, he brags about seducing 12 out of 13 of the year's Playboy (or magazine equivalent -- I can't remember) models. There is also at least one flashback scene of him taking a random woman home to his very expensive penthouse.  Now I don't think there is actually a scene of them rolling around in bed, but the clear indication is that the man is all about sexual conquest and personal pleasure and he doesn't care at all about the needs and cares of others.

 That changes fairly early in Iron Man.  He is captured by bad guys, various difficult things happen, and he becomes a (moderately) changed man in the form of the superhero Iron Man.  He apparently develops a conscience and starts serving and helping others.

  Iron Man 2, then, is a disappointment.  He decides he is going to die soon and reverts back to being a jerk for most of the movie.  It is really annoying, tiresome, and irritating.  Finally, in the last 20 minutes of the film, he pulls himself back together.  And at the very end, he pledges commitment to Pepper Potts, the intelligent female assistant who has "had his back" the whole time. (Why Pepper goes for him is another question, as she has first hand knowledge of his general jerkiness.)

  Iron Man has a major role in the Avengers movie, and nobly and simply, saves the world.

 Iron Man 3 opens with a flashback scene where Tony Stark (pre Iron Man) is being a jerk again, and manages to cause serious problems for his future by seducing one scientist and being a mean bully to another. 

  Back in the present, Tony is struggling with post traumatic stress disorder after the events of the Avengers.  Tony Stark is a much more likeable character in this movie.  He is still committed to Pepper Potts (though they are having relationship problems, of course -- gotta have relationship problems to help with the plot) and he still wants to serve humanity. Lots of things happen, he does a bunch of noble stuff, and saves -- America -- at least, if not the world.

  So yes, Kevin and I both liked the 3rd movie quite a bit.  HOWEVER, there is one plot point to discuss and that is his whole relationship with Pepper Potts. I would say that Tony Stark's commitment to one woman is better than him bedding hundreds of women for the fun of it. But the reality is that his romance with Pepper has a problem -- they are sharing a house and a bed and sex but they aren't married.

 That is, of course, VERY common in the world we live in. American culture has largely accepted people living together, and having sex together, outside a marital relationship.  In movies, it is more common than not for handsome men and beautiful women to be living together.  So, why aren't they  married?  I would guess partly it is to provide plot tension.  In Iron Man 3, Pepper has another guy pursuing her and the fact that she is just Tony's live in girlfriend gives that pursuit a bit more spice (I guess.) 

  As  a Christian, I believe that sexual expression is meant exclusively for marriage. Sex is a beautiful gift from the Lord, no question at all.  But I think it is a lot like fire.  Fire is wonderful in the right place, very destructive in the wrong place.

  It is a sad truth that in superhero movies and action flicks, out of wedlock sex is portrayed exclusively as positive.  No woman ever gets pregnant when she doesn't want to, no one picks up nasty diseases, there is no expression of anguish and pain when a person gives him or herself physically to another person, and then is rejected or abandoned.  Nope, it is all just sexy and "fun".

  Now you can say, legitimately, that Iron Man is a movie and more than that, not a realistic movie.  And you are, of course, right.  As an adult, I think I can watch movies like that without it affecting MY worldview.  However, I don't watch many movies. I think if I filled my mind with movies where people are sleeping around all the time, complete with sex scenes, it would likely be a problem.  I also think we need to be cautious about what our impressionable teens watch.  Our older children are not ready for Iron Man.  We have let them watch Captain America -- he is really the most noble of the lot and we love that movie.  We've let them watch the Avengers, which has NO implication of sexual misconduct.  We even let the older 2 girls watch the Hulk movie, though there is a scene where the main male and female characters fall into bed and are only stopped from sex by fears that the male lead will transform into the Hulk (um yeah, that would be...awkward.)  We very specifically discussed that scene.

  The reality is that as our children grow and mature and eventually move out of the house, they will watch more movies and at some point, the movies they watch will be their decision, not ours.  We've not guarded them from every movie out there, obviously.  We TALK about movies a lot.  Our parenting style where media is concerned is to be quite restrictive (compared to most parents) but when we do allow movies (or TV shows) we talk about problem themes.  We likely aren't getting it all perfectly right. Well, we aren't, because we're not perfect. We ARE being intentional, not just letting the chips fall where they may.  And I think that is good.

 Well, this turned out to be more than a movie review, there is some parenting philosophy mixed in.