So, I FINALLY saw Iron Man this weekend, after hearing all kinds of good reviews on the general awesomeness of RDJ & etc...
And, yeah, I enjoyed the movie (especially considering my current fascination with any kind of cyborg...) but admittedly, I was annoyed by (at least) ONE aspect of the movie:
Why are female characters (most notably Gwyneth Paltrow's "Pepper Potts"--don't get me started on that name, either---) always these static, wooden stereotypes in movies that seem intended to be guy-centric? (It also annoys me that movie execs assume that women dig sappy love stories and men dig action flicks--I LOVE sci-fi, hate anything to do with Nicholas Sparks (*gags*), and think female characters deserve better treatment in action films, comic books and the like...)
Granted, as an actress, I think Ms. Paltrow tends to play the same character over & over & over again (usually a prim & elegant lady of some kind--yeesh!), which bores me silly. I DO like Shakespeare in Love, but in general, I find her perfomances incredibly dull. However, I'm not sure another actress could have made this character any less boring & cliche.
I wish I'd liked the movie more. Three out of five stars, y'all. Sorry!
P.S. Yes, Robert Downey Jr. was excellent. I expected no less, really.
the final stretch
1 day ago
2 comments:
I completely agree with you here and I'm always disappointed by the whole "I'm smart and competent but you'll never notice me unless I take my glasses off and put on a backless dress" - um? WHAT?
I do love me a romance now and again, but even then I want to see some growth and depth of character.
Other actresses who play the same role over and over: Julie Roberts, Reese Witherspoon and Meg Ryan.
Oh! Julia Roberts's presence in a movie pretty much guarantees I won't like it...Meg Ryan, too (*shudders*).
As for Reese Witherspoon, a while back (before she started doing these "southern belle / daddy's little princess" type roles), she made a movie called FREEWAY with Kiefer Sutherland that I definitely recommend. It's totally twisted, and she's kind of a badass little red riding hood. (What can I say? I'm a sucker for odd retellings of fairy tales.) You might want to check it out!
Admittedly, it's the only Reese Witherspoon movie I can think of that I actually like...
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