By Steven Loeb

Superhero movies were once a novelty; one would come out every few years or so and would most likely star either Batman or Superman, while the rest of our heroes remained on the page. Beginning with 2002’s “Spider-Man,” however, not only did superheroes become a staple in movies, audiences can now expect at least three or four of them to come out in any given year. Why the sudden change?

September 11 happened, making many people in this country afraid, not just for their own lives but also for the world in general. Hollywood’s answer: men with powers saving the world from the big bad men who want to destroy it. It might sound corny, but it worked. Just about every comic book hero you can think of has been given his or her own movie and there are no signs of them slowing down.

Not that that’s necessarily a bad thing, as long as all of them are as good as Hollywood’s latest foray into superheroes, “Iron Man.” The best and most enjoyable superhero movie since 2005’s “Batman Begins,” “Iron Man” is a movie that comes very close to finding that perfect balance of humor and action that few superhero movies, outside of “Spider-Man 2,” have been able to achieve.

The main reason it works so well is the pitch-perfect casting of Robert Downey, Jr. in the title role. While at first he may seem like an odd choice since he has been known more for his acerbic wit and less for his physicality, that is precisely why he works so well. Tony Stark is the part Downey was born to play; they are, in many ways, the same person.

Stark is a boy-wonder who wastes a majority of his life throwing away his gifts by using them to make weapons for the military, until his actions come back to haunt him when he is kidnapped by a group of terrorists, who use the very weapons he created. It’s not much of a stretch to equate this to Downey’s personal life and his very public cocaine addiction and subsequent arrests. Eventually, like Stark, he was able to clean up, but only after hitting rock bottom. That the two lives parallel each other so much not only allows Downey to put a lot of his own personality in the role without making it seem fake, but it also allows the audience a deeper understanding of Tony Stark.

The movie also works because it doesn’t seek to explain Stark by making his father abusive or anything along those cliche lines. In fact, it acknowledges that Tony Stark is actually a pretty fun guy. He may be irresponsible and lazy, but he doesn’t wallow in his own tears the way many superheroes do. “Iron Man” is fun because Downey has fun with the role and he’s not the only one who seems to be having a blast.

Gwyneth Paltrow and Jeff Bridges do some of the finest work they’ve done in years as Stark’s assistant and nemesis, respectively. Terence Howard also turns in a good performance as Stark’s friend, Jim Rhodes. It has become increasingly rare to see an actor actually embrace these kinds of parts, having fun with them but also taking them seriously. Every actor in this film is either an Oscar nominee or winner and it shows.

Unfortunately for “Iron Man,” as much fun and as well acted as it is, it falls just short of being great, instead remaining merely very good. It seems to be lacking that one indefinable thing that would have pushed it over the top.

But that’s perfectly fine; this movie will have at least one sequel, and that will give the filmmakers time to iron out (no pun intended) the minor problems that hold it back this time around. Since so few movies in the superhero genre can say that they were able to even approach greatness, as this one did, it is still one of the best comic book adaptations made.

Robert Downey Jr. (above right) takes his personal experiences and channels them into his role as the title character. The film boasts an A-list cast including Gwyneth Paltrow (above left). (allmoviephoto.com)

(allmoviephoto.com)