by Missy Thompson

STAFF WRITER

It seems comic books are easily transformed into good movies -- with the exception of "Daredevil" and "Elektra." Take the character of Spider-Man for instance. He's a little geeky, but is so cool because of his super powers. The list could go on about comic book series or characters being made into films -- the latest of these brilliantly made films being "Iron Man."

This is the type of movie that everyone can love, not just fans of the comic book. That may be because one expects films like "Iron Man" to be slightly exaggerated. If the action, acting and film style is under done, the movie wouldn't be nearly as good.

To go along with the acting, you need the perfect cast in order to pull off a good comic book movie. Tobey Maguire pulls off Spider-Man wonderfully. Now the same can be said of Robert Downey, Jr. playing Tony Stark, or Iron Man. I am so glad he was the one cast in this role. The little intricacies of the character shine through with Downey's own personality.

The "assistant" characters in comic book films tend to be heavily overshadowed by the main character. In "Iron Man," however, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts holds her own. It may be because she's well-known or the character has a more significant role in the film. Jeff Bridges is another actor who could have easily outdone his role as the evil Obadiah Stone. I've never thought of Bridges as a "bad guy" actor, but he really pulls of this role and oozes with viciousness.

The direction of "Iron Man" is a breakthrough for Jon Favreau who previously directed "Zathura," "Elf" and "Made." Taking on a big-budget, highly anticipated project like "Iron Man" is a huge step for Favreau who pulls through with a spectacular film so many will enjoy.

Sometimes the dialogue in movies like "Iron Man" can feel stilted or awkward. That's definitely not the case in this film where writers Mark Fergus, Hawk Ostby (who wrote "Children of Men" together), Art Marcum and Matt Holloway took the characters created by Stan Lee creator of Marvel Comics to make them sound authentic. Well, as authentic as possible considering Tony Stark makes a suit out of iron using very few tools in a shack.

In "Iron Man," Tony Stark is the owner of a successful weapons company that manufactures a variety of missiles, guns and other ammunition products to the United States military. While on an expedition in Afghanistan, the vehicle he is traveling in nearly explodes from a roadside bomb. He is captured and held in a makeshift war camp for several months. During that time he builds a friendship with Yinsen (Shaun Toub) a doctor who keeps Tony alive by making an electro-magnet powered by an arc reactor that protects his heart from the shrapnel embedded in his body.

Raza (Faran Tahir) is the ringleader and wants Tony to build an extremely powerful missile. Instead, Tony works on making an iron suit of armor so he can fight his way out of the camp. The magnet that protects his heart is what allows the suit to function. Eventually he makes it out of the camp alive and back to California where he learns that his business partner Obadiah Stone has been selling under the table to the enemy.

Tony decides to use his knowledge and technology to fight against evil. Everyone, including his friend Jim Rhodes (Terrence Howard) thinks he is going crazy for not wanting Stark Enterprises to have anything to do with military weaponry. They are unaware of what Tony has created, but he is also in the dark about what Obadiah has up his sleeve to destroy Iron Man.

Although "Iron Man" is a little long, stay through the credits. After the credits finish rolling, there is a short scene between Tony Stark and Nick Fury (played by Samuel L. Jackson) setting up for an Avengers movie. For fans, this is the icing on an already fantastic movie.

This is a film for people of all ages. Kids, teens and adults will find something to like about "Iron Man." There is just enough humor to match up with all of the action, drama and romance to keep people interested in what's going on during the movie. I thought "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" would be a great way to start off the summer season, but "Iron Man" -- which made $104.25 million in the U.S., according to the-numbers.com, in the opening weekend -- certainly earned that spot instead.

missy@tooeletranscript.com