There to tout the latest and greatest weapon manufactured by his company, Stark Industries, Stark finds himself kidnapped by insurgents. Wounded by shrapnel that damages his heart, he's saved by a fellow prisoner (Toub) and then compelled by the power-seeking insurgent leader Raza (Tahir) to build precisely the missile he was showing off at the time of his capture. Instead, Stark cobbles together a crude suit of armor, one tricked out with guns and flamethrowers and thrusters that enable him to fly, which he promptly uses to escape.

Rescued and returned to the States, Stark is a new man, a man on a mission. He wants his company out of the weapons business, a notion that doesn't go over too well with his longtime friend, mentor and business partner, Obadiah Stane (Bridges), and it also throws off his loyal pals Pepper (Paltrow) and Rhodey (Howard); she's Stark's prim assistant and he's Stark's military liaison. In fact, as Stark sets about crafting a more refined iron suit, Stane maneuvers to steal control of Stark Industries.

Ultimately, Stark realizes what Stane's been up to, and Stane gets wind of Stark's latest invention, thus setting the stage for an explosive showdown.

Familiar, but still fun

Iron Man, frankly, shouldn't be as good as it is. It's not like we haven't seen these origin movies before. We have, again and again, and there's a sameness to them. However, Iron Man soars, and for several reasons.

For starters, Stark uses his own ingenuity to transform himself into a superhero; no genetically enhanced spiders, intergalactic gamma rays or deals with the devil here. Then there's Downey, a ballsy casting choice who pays huge dividends. Downey's one of the most engaging, enigmatic actors in Hollywood, especially when he's jazzed about the material. Viewers can often tell when he's not, but he obviously loves Iron Man. He takes a basically unlikable character and makes you like him, and then, as Stark evolves, he convinces you to care about and root for him. It's a hugely entertaining performance.

So far as the other star turns, Bridges is bald and bold, stealing every scene he's in, though Stane's fairly sinister from the get-go, which tempers the impact of his descent into villainy. Howard and Paltrow both register fine, but it's clear that Rhodey and Pepper are being introduced with the promise of more to come in subsequent Iron Man adventures.

On other fronts, the script touches on enough nuggets from the comic books to please the Marvel faithful while updating the story sufficiently to make it feel current. Jokes are kept to a minimum, thankfully, but the Afghan insurgents don't receive their due; are they really just in it for power? Do they truly not notice that Stark is building a costume rather than a missile? And though the film could have benefited from a few trims—it runs 126 minutes, and the two major costume-building sequences are not only repetitive but drag on—Favreau generally moves things along at a steady clip. ILM contributes stellar visual effects, while Ramin Djawadi's score complements the proceedings without overwhelming them.

And, of course, be on the lookout for Stan Lee's requisite cameo.