Iron Man 3 (2013) * *

Directed by:  Shane Black

Starring:  Robert Downey, Jr., Guy Pearce, Gwyneth Paltrow, Ben Kingsley, Rebecca Hall, Don Cheadle

Between three Iron Man movies and The Avengers, is there anything more that can really be done with Iron Man?    This third installment of the popular series suffers from a lack of energy, incomprehensible villains, and a bunch of action movie cliches rearing their ugly heads.   At least three times, the baddies have the hero dead to rights, but choose to talk or brag and give the hero a chance to get out of trouble.    That is known as The Fallacy Of The Talking Killer.    I'd love to take credit for that, but I'm afraid the term is a Roger Ebert original.

There are plenty of fights, explosions, and even Iron Man suits operated by remote control, but there isn't a lot of excitement.    It is all by rote.    I think I know the overall scheme the villain was trying to hatch, but maybe I don't.    His inspiration was kind of murky and his explanation even more so.    Visual effects can only carry the day so far.   

Tony Stark returns and is played by Robert Downey Jr. as a snarky hero.    He lays the snark on a little too thick here and when he reveals how much he loves his girlfriend Pepper Potts (Paltrow), it lacks conviction.    His relationship with Pepper, who is now CEO of Stark Industries, is the oddest I've seen in many a long day.    In three Iron Man movies, plus The Avengers, I don't recall seeing the two engage in even a kiss.    I don't know why their relationship is so chaste and I can't even speculate on it.     It certainly lacks oomph.   

The US is being threatened by a sinister bearded man named Mandarin (Kingsley), who issues dire threats via "unauthorized" TV broadcasts and speaks in a Walter Cronkite style.    He is not a million miles removed from Osama Bin Laden.   It appears Mandarin is in cahoots with Aldrich Killian (Pearce), a scientist who discovered a way to regrow limbs on amputee combat veterans and such a regrowth comes with side effects that turn them into human fireballs and bombs.    With a name like Aldrich Killian, you wouldn't expect Pearce to be a good guy.    Killian is a cocky, sneering creep with eyes on Pepper as a potential hostage or more.   

Stark apparently suffers side effects from his days with The Avengers.    The mention of New York puts him in a state of apoplexy, but not much else is done with it.   This appears as nothing more than throwaway dialogue acknowledging that, yes, The Avengers thing happened.    He also tells Pepper how he can't live without her and fears putting her in danger, but then arrogantly challenges Mandarin to a fight and gives out his home address in an impromptu news conference.    Brilliant thinking Tony.   Naturally, the house, which stores numerous Iron Man suits, isn't long for this world. 

Stark finds his way to Tennessee, where he befriends a young boy and repairs his damaged suit while investigating a terrorist bombing masked as a suicide.    He encounters some of Killian's henchmen, who have extraordinary powers yet also feel the need to shoot at Stark with handguns.    When they capture Stark, they of course tie him to a bed frame just long enough to explain their scheme to him and allow him a chance to escape.    Stark also commandeers the War Machine (Cheadle), who was rechristened Iron Patriot and used in the war on terror. 

The final fight sequence drones on endlessly.   There are about 10 Iron Man suits flying around, any one ready for Stark to jump or fall into it exactly when he needs it.   These suits also function as drones and appear to kick a little ass.    If I were Stark, I would let these drones do my fighting and spare myself the beatings.    There are also exploding fireballs which of course know exactly how high or wide to explode so as to avoid killing the hero.   And why is the final showdown at a shipyard?   Maybe so characters can fall from great heights, but I can't imagine why Killian's master plan comes down to hand-to-hand combat on 300-foot high scaffolding.   And how does a drunk character know all about Killian's plan anyway?

 Also in the epilogue, Stark puts himself through a surgery that could've spared him a whole lot of trouble and spared us from Iron Man 3.