Iron Man Blu-ray Review
The movie of the summer is now THE movie to own on Blu-ray. Iron Man lands on Blu-ray in a few weeks, September 30, but we received an early copy to review. A full, longer review will be forthcoming — but here’s initial thoughts….
Iron Man is one of the best Blu-ray DVD releases. Images look truly high-def, crisp, with rich colors. If you want to impress your neighbors and friends with the power of Blu-ray, this is the DVD to own.
Not to mentioned a great script, acting and overall entertaining movie. What a blast! We love Batman, but brooding, darkness gets a little bit tired. That’s the diff — Iron Man is FUN…
It is obvious this Blu-ray was rushed (no commentary?!) — so I expect a fuller release to come out next year.
DVD to pass 90,000 titles
According to the DVD Release Report, the total number of DVDs available by the end of 2008 will pass the 90k mark. From now until the end of the year, a total of 90,440 titles are scheduled to be released. As far as Blu-ray goes, a total of 684 hi-def titles have been released, with another 191 coming in the end of the year. This includes high profile Blu-ray releases, including Iron Man, Indiana Jones, WALL-E, Sleeping Beauty, and the Godfather Trilogy.
Marvel Superheroes to Be Recast for Japan
The superheroes of Marvel Entertainment have been turned into toys, cartoons and, perhaps most profitably, live action films like “Iron Man” and the Spider-Man series. Now they are being adapted again — this time specifically for the Japanese market.
Marvel is teaming up with Madhouse, a renowned Japanese animation studio, to develop new versions of its characters for four anime series that will premiere in spring 2010 in Japan.
Rather than simply importing American characters and concepts, said Simon Philips, president of Marvel International, the goal is to create “something that is part of the fabric of society.” This means reimagining the back stories and redesigning the look of Marvel’s stable of characters to reflect Japanese culture. “It will create an entire parallel universe for Marvel,” he said.
“Marvel today is so open-minded,” said Jungo Maruta, the president and chief executive of Madhouse, through his interpreter, Alex Yeh, the chief operating officer of the studio, during a recent meeting in New York. “Marvel gives creators freedom to fly.”
- from NYTimes
Jon Favreau is at work on ‘Iron Man’ sequel
Just talked to Jon Favreau a bit ago, and he said that while there hasn’t been an formal announcement on the sequel to “Iron Man,” he’s begun developing it. “We’re working on it now,” he said, “which hasn’t been officially announced. It will be released in 2010.”
No surprise there, of course. The first film in the franchise has pulled in well over a half-billion dollars in worldwide box office and was met with strong reviews.
- from LATimes
Bring it on — Iron Man VS Batman!
First, there’s NYMag talking to Iron Man 2 screenwriter Justin Theroux:
Q. You’re writing Iron Man 2, right? Given the success of The Dark Knight, are you tempted to make it darker than the original?
A. There’s no temptation whatsoever. You know, I tremulously went and watched The Dark Knight myself, but it’s a totally different movie, like, you know that Tom Cruise movie where he played the race-car driver? What was that movie called … anyway. It’s like comparing that movie to Talladega Nights — it’s two totally different animals. We have a leading man who can sort of relish being a cad, and that’s a fun character to write for. We feel like we’re in the clear.
Then, Robert Downey Jr. spoke to Moviebutthole or something:
“Now Justin Theraux who wrote ‘Tropic Thunder’, is writing it and Jon and I are working on the story with him. It’s pretty great and I think it’s going to be cool. I think it’s going to appropriately well thought out so that we don’t forget what got us the response that we appreciated so much, which is, we didn’t say, ‘Great, now that this is like this, now we’re going to twist it and do this with it.’ It’s now; I’m not saying we’re going to do bits. I think more of the same; it is a very rich feel, because it was a very simple movie, if you ask me. It was an origin story.”
Which apparently was not the case with the other big summer movie “The Dark Knight”. “My whole thing is that that I saw ‘The Dark Knight’. I feel like I’m dumb because I feel like I don’t get how many things that are so smart. It’s like a Ferrari engine of storytelling and script writing and I’m like, ‘That’s not my idea of what I want to see in a movie.’ I loved ‘The Prestige’ but didn’t understand ‘The Dark Knight’. Didn’t get it, still can’t tell you what happened in the movie, what happened to the character and in the end they need him to be a bad guy. I’m like, ‘I get it. This is so high brow and so f–king smart, I clearly need a college education to understand this movie.’ You know what? F-ck DC comics. That’s all I have to say and that’s where I’m really coming from.”
Well clearly Downey isn’t about to do anything for DC Comics anytime soon. “You know, you’re never too old to burn your bridges because I believe I have offended everyone,” he says, laughingly. “I think I’ve got a couple more. ‘I’ll burn that bridge when I come to it’ is my favourite phrase I’ve ever coined.”
Iron Man Blu-ray News
(Related Flashback post — our 2006 Interview with Jon Favreau)
Friday August 8th 2008: The news we’ve been waiting for — Iron Man is coming to Blu-ray! Delivering non-stop action and excitement from a Super Hero who boasts not only unique powers, but also irresistible charm, penetrating intelligence and a wry wit, Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures’ worldwide box office sensation IRON MAN soars onto DVD and Blu-ray on September 30, 2008. Kicking off the fourth quarter, Paramount Home Entertainment presents spectacular Ultimate Edition two-disc sets on both DVD and Blu-ray, as well as in a single-disc DVD. IRON MAN thrilled both critics and audiences around the world with its captivating story and stunning visual effects. Called “spectacular” (Rolling Stone) and “a thrill-a-minute blockbuster” (”Reel Talk”), the film features an all-star cast including Academy Award(R) nominees Robert Downey Jr. (Zodiac, Chaplin), Jeff Bridges (The Contender) and Terrence Howard (Hustle & Flow) and Oscar(R) winner Gwyneth Paltrow (Shakespeare In Love) and was directed by Jon Favreau (Elf).
Earning over $315 million in the domestic box office to date, IRON MAN lifts off with high-speed, high-flying action when jet-setting industrialist Tony Stark survives an unexpected attack in enemy territory and escapes by building a high-tech robotic suit of armor. When he uncovers a nefarious plot with global implications, he dons his powerful armor and vows to protect the world as Iron Man. Straight from the pages of the legendary comic book, IRON MAN is a hero who is built — not born — to be unlike any other!
The IRON MAN Ultimate Edition two-disc sets are super-charged with hours of explosive bonus features that take viewers inside the suit of self-made Super Hero Tony Stark and his invincible alter ego. The sets offer the ultimate IRON MAN experience with extensive explorations of the origins of the character in a six-part featurette, as well as a seven-part in-depth look at the making of the film, a revealing documentary on the stellar visual effects, Robert Downey Jr.’s original screen test, deleted and extended scenes, a photo gallery of concept art and behind-the-scenes images on the set and more.
DVD:
The IRON MAN Ultimate Edition two-DVD set is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 televisions with Dolby Digital English 5.1 Surround, French 5.1 Surround and Spanish 5.1 Surround with English, French and Spanish subtitles. Total runtime is 125 minutes. Bonus features include: Disc 1: — Feature film — Deleted/Extended Scenes Disc 2: — I Am Iron Man — The Journey Begins — The Suit that makes the Iron Man — The Walk of Destruction — Grounded In Reality — Beneath the Armor — It’s All in the Details — A Good Story, Well Told — The Invincible Iron Man — Origins — Friends & Foes — The Definitive Iron Man — Demon in a Bottle — Extremis and Beyond — Ultimate Iron Man — Wired: The Visual Effects of Iron Man — Robert Downey Jr. Screen Test — The Actor’s Process (scene rehearsal with cast) — The Onion “Wildly Popular Iron Man Trailer to be Adapted into Full Length Film” — Image Galleries
Soaring Hi-Def Features on Blu-ray:
One of the most anticipated releases of the year, the IRON MAN Blu-ray presentation offers even more exclusive content for an incredible entertainment experience including a “Hall of Armor” that allows fans to enter the Stark database to zoom in on any of the three Iron Man suits — or Iron Monger. They can then activate the digital 3-D schematics to check out every weapon and the full high-definition renders let users fly around each suit to explore each of the armors in comprehensive detail.
The “Iron Man IQ” is a user-friendly web application that lets users create and share new multiple choice quizzes based on clips from the film. Fans can also download other users’ challenges via BD-Live.
The IRON MAN Ultimate Edition two-disc Blu-ray is presented in 1080p High Definition with English 5.1 Dolby True HD, French 5.1 Dolby Digital and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital and English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Brazilian Portuguese subtitles. Bonus features include: Disc 1: — Hall of Armor — The Invincible Iron Man (HD) — Origins — Friends & Foes — The Definitive Iron Man — Demon in a Bottle — Extremis and Beyond — Ultimate Iron Man — Deleted/Extended Scenes (HD) — BD Live: — Iron Man IQ Disc 2: — I Am Iron Man (HD) — The Journey Begins — The Suit that makes the Iron Man — The Walk of Destruction — Grounded In Reality — Beneath the Armor — It’s All in the Details — A Good Story, Well Told — Wired: The Visual Effects of Iron Man (HD) — Robert Downey Jr. Screen Test (HD) — The Actor’s Process (scene rehearsal with cast) (HD) — The Onion “Wildly Popular Iron Man Trailer to be Adapted into Full Length Film” (HD) — Theatrical Trailers (HD) — Image Galleries
Single-disc DVD
The IRON MAN single-disc DVD is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 televisions with Dolby Digital English 5.1 Surround, French 5.1 Surround and Spanish 5.1 Surround with English, French and Spanish subtitles. Bonus features include the deleted and extended scenes.
Marketing Support:
Paramount Home Entertainment will support the debut of IRON MAN with a comprehensive campaign designed to reach a wide range of consumers. The multi-million dollar blitz will include television, print, radio and online advertising, as well as an array of viral promotions to generate consumer excitement and anticipation leading up to the release. Innovative and engaging displays will be deployed across retail outlets to create an event atmosphere at street and extend the excitement into the holiday season. Additionally, promotional partners including Southwest Airlines, Kragen Auto Parts and Perdue will further extend the IRON MAN message to millions of consumers across diverse retail locations.
About Marvel
With a library of over 5,000 characters built over more than sixty years of comic book publishing, Marvel Entertainment, Inc. is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in licensing, entertainment (via Marvel Studios and Marvel Animation) and publishing (via Marvel Comics), with emphasis on feature films, television, DVD, consumer products, video games, action figures, role- playing toys and promotions. Marvel’s strategy is to leverage its franchises in a growing array of opportunities around the world. For more information visit http://www.marvel.com.
About Paramount Home Entertainment
Paramount Home Entertainment (PHE) is part of Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed entertainment. PPC is a unit of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), a leading content company with prominent and respected film, television and digital entertainment brands. PHE is responsible for the worldwide sales, marketing and distribution of home entertainment products on behalf of various parties including: Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks Studios, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central, CBS, PBS and Hasbro and for providing home entertainment fulfillment services for DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment. For artwork please visit: phepromo.com IRON MAN Street date: September 30, 2008 Runtime: 125 minutes U.S. Rating: PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence and brief suggestive content Canadian Rating: PG for violence
Robert Downey Jr. Talks Iron Man 2
“Our goals are more of the same. The idea that he said he’s Iron Man in part 1…it’s one thing to say it, and it’s another thing to actually evolve to the point where you can live in a heroic fashion. You know, they say, ‘The superhero movie always needs to follow…’ and I said who is that guy? Get him out of here! We want to do what worked for us last time, in a way that evolves. We’re talking about a guy who is put in an extraordinary circumstance, and the people that are around him, and how that creates a sense of family, and how that disrupts whatever forces that we have to say that are working [in his life]. I like the idea of an Iron Man 2 that you’re able to understand various points of view. You’re able to touch on some subjects that are a lot more far reaching, while still grounding it in entertainment.”
- from IESB.net
Iron Man Special Collector’s Edition Blu-ray news from Paramount, kinda
So when we talked to Jon Favreau way back in 2006(?!), who would’ve thought that Paramount’s Iron Man would’ve been such a big hit? Well, we did, because we think Jon Rocks — and Iron Man Rocks — so of course it would be an excellent fun summer flick. So we’ve been watching our clock, tapping our toes, waiting for the news on the Blu-ray Iron Man release.
Via the Amazon.com preorder page, there’s news of an Iron Man (Special Collector’s Edition) [Blu-ray] (2008) — with a release date of September 30th. No specs or anything else, just that the Blu-ray Disc Iron Man is listed at $39.99. Nothing officially has been announced on Iron Man Blu-ray news from Paramount, and trust me, we tried contacting everyone there.
Since we’re such good friends with Jon Favreau, perhaps we’ll drop him a note and dig for answers. Stay tuned.
Update: OK Ok! Here’s the official Blu-ray news from Paramount: Iron Man Blu-ray News
Theroux to write ‘Iron Man’ sequel
From Variety:
Marvel has handed the armor over to Justin Theroux, who will pen the sequel to “Iron Man.”
The comicbook giant’s film division is close to a deal to bring back helmer Jon Favreau and star Robert Downey Jr. for the pic it hopes to release in April 2010.
Theroux, a thesp-scribe best known for roles in “Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle” and HBO’s “Six Feet Under” and miniseries “John Adams,” most recently wrote the DreamWorks comedy “Tropic Thunder,” which Paramount will unspool next month.
In addition to writing and appearing in “Tropic Thunder,” Theroux also exec produced the laffer, which stars Ben Stiller, Downey and Jack Black. He recently made his directing debut on “Dedication,” which the Weinstein Co. distribbed.