While not perfect, its still great entertainment. The story is strong enough to not be drown by all of the special effects, and its easy to follow. No dead ends in the plot, and, of course, the openers for a sequel. I would recommend seeing this in the theater due to its larger than life intensity. The special effects are flawless. Robert Downey Jr. does a great job as the hero, and Terrence Howard has a couple of shining moments as well. Jeff Bridges is out of his usual character, but is good none the less. Gwyneth Paltrow has never been on my favorites list as an actor, and her performance didnt change my mind. And if you want to see Samuel Jackson, wait untill the credits are done rolling. As comic book movies goes, not my favorite but right up there with Batman Begins and slightly above any of the X-Men movies. Probably on par with Spider Man 2.