Iron Man 3 (Shane Black)
I say without a trace of humour, sarcasm, or irony (although I guess that is a pun) that Hominem Metallum Tertius is a pretty fucking solid action movie with fluid storytelling, worthwhile characters with good chemistry, and humour that works. Even Tony Stark, who is noticeably shaken following on from his experiences in The Avengers, comes across rather sympathetic; his wisecracks, one liners, and snarky attitude are written so as to be desperate and pathetic in a way that really humanises the character, which is a great boon for a series I had not until now been enjoying very much. Maybe the first two movies would have benefited from such a treatment of the character, maybe they had lowered my expectations for Iron Manganese Lithium to the point that I enjoyed it just because it wasn't dull as fuck, but I think really this slow progression over the course of several features actually works out for the character very well.
A lot of people complained about the way the Mandarin was used in this film, but I thought it was hilarious. Ben Kingsley doing a sort of Russell-Brand-in-thirty-years'-time act (I thought it was particularly apposite how they had that character underlying a phony revolutionary figure who spouts very flimsy rhetoric and analogies) was the comic highlight of the film. He gets to showcase his chops and brilliant timing, and it was pretty clever how his phony accent slips a few times in the hijack broadcasts. Guy Pearce makes for a good slimy villain, at times reminding me of Kirk Douglas in Jacques Tourneur's Out of the Past, and his introduction was very understated and well acted enough that I didn't even recognise him at first. The plot, partly taken from a Warren Ellis Iron Man story (even before I read up about the source, the whole thing had a very Ellis feel to it), was neat, and its threads tied together across the 130 minute runtime very smoothly, and there was little that didn't make sense, although there were a few parts that seemed to be there just because bang zoom kaboom punch vagina.
I'd put it on par with Captain America: The First Avenger, much as it surprises me to say so. The guys behind the MCU are on a roll, it seems, so let the Odyssey continue.