Movie Chatter: ‘Iron Man 3: What Should Have Happened…’ by Adam Frazier

Adam Frazier, aka FamousMonster, of Geeks of Doom wrote a quick story of what he thinks Iron Man 3 should have been and I have to say it is music to my ears. His writing plays out like a movie in your head especially since we are already familiar with all the characters. He begins by summarizing his bitter distaste towards Iron Man 3 and then shows us what potential it had not only as a sequel to the Iron Man series but a direct aftermath story to the events of Avengers. As someone who could not be more excited for Iron Man 3 and then leaving the theater feeling completely duped, I actually felt the excitement I wanted to feel just reading what Frazier wrote. I wanted to share his story to other Iron Man and Avengers fans too in the hopes that they appreciate it as much as I did. It’s not a complete story and he fast forwards through the details so it is not a long read. He just gives you a gist of a story. It’s just for his piece of mind to show that there was so much potential and for others like myself who don’t have the imagination nor the knowledge of the comic books to piece together a superior story than what Shane Black and Drew Pearce could come up with. Here is a small sample of what Frazier offers but please take the time to stop by Geeks of Doom to check out his original post.

Instead of Malibu, Iron Man 3 should have picked up in Manhattan at Stark Tower, referred to as Avengers Tower now thanks to the single A on the side of the building. Tony Stark and Bruce Banner are at work on unlocking the secrets of inter-dimensional travel, wormholes, space aliens – you know, genius stuff.

Meanwhile, overseas, Iron Patriot (Don Cheadle) is fighting a one-man war against The Ten Rings, a terrorist organization using a stockpile of Stark Industries weapons to kill innocents and spread fear. The Ten Rings are lead by a mysterious warlord known as the Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) – a master of deception who sits in the shadows and threatens the American people with Al-Qaeda-like taped messages.

Sounds pretty good so far, right? Iron Patriot busts up a terrorist cell and destroys a stockpile of Stark weapons only to get captured by the Mandarin, whose special powers are glimpsed briefly. The Mandarin releases a video showing James Rhodes held hostage, the Iron Patriot suit dismantled like a cheap plastic plaything. The Mandarin reveals himself, stepping out of the shadows, with a gun pointed to Rhodey’s head. This catches Tony’s attention, who has been consumed with his work at Avengers Tower.

As for Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) and Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau), they’re still around – but they’re not a huge part of this story. They’re back in Malibu, where Pepper is running Stark Industries. Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) and the Extremis storyline could still work here but, in all honesty, I just don’t care about yet another industrialist with a grudge against Tony. Let’s get back to the cool stuff, already.

The Mandarin waxes poetic on the American military-industrial complex and the Iron Patriot, who he compares to Captain America – pure propaganda. The Mandarin considers Patriot a cheap knockoff; he wants the real thing: the Avenger. He challenges Iron Man to reclaim his patriotic puppet. If Stark doesn’t show up in 24 hours, the Mandarin is going to execute Iron Patriot on national television…

Intense stuff right? It gets even more so. Head over to Adam Frazier’s full post to get the whole story. Drop a line if you enjoyed it as much as I did!

Don’t forget to follow @AdamFrazier.

-@DarrylMendo

Related Article: ‘Movie Review: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang’ directed by Shane Black (Iron Man 3)

iOS Tip: Alternatives to iOS Stock Apps for iPhone & iPad

Apple’s core iOS apps are good enough for what they are intended for but there are much better apps out there that can improve your iPhone or iPad experience. A lot of them are free and the others are worth the price tag. Here I will offer a list and short review of each.

How To: Change Your Wi-Fi Name & Password on Xfinity or Comcast

Ever get annoyed at the ridiculously long and confusing password for your wi-fi network given to you through your internet provider? Usually when you get your internet installed the wi-fi name and password is predetermined for you and the password is annoyingly long and often difficult to remember. It’s even more embarrassing when friends come over and ask for your password and you have to play the game of reading it slowly for them to type it into their device. Fortunately, there is an easy way to change the wi-fi name and password. The following directions are for Xfinity or Comcast.

How To: Set Xfinity or Comcast Remote to Control Volume on a Surround Sound Device

When you get cable installed the installer usually programs your cable box remote to also control the power and volume for your TV. However, if you use a surround sound system for audio then you still need a separate remote just to control the volume. There is a way though to have the volume buttons control your surround sound system rather than your TV or cable box no matter what mode your remote is on – CABLE, TV, or AUX. These simple instructions are for Xfinity or Comcast users.

Movie Review: Evil Dead (2013)

For fans of the original and for the younger generation horror fans, I am here to give my approval for Fede Alvarez’s new take on The Evil Dead. He has a clear understanding of what the “spirit” of The Evil Dead is and crafts a stellar and worthy upgrade. The marketing campaign claims that this will be “the most terrifying film you will ever experience,” which is not too far from the truth. Each horror fan will have their all-time fave but what you expect horror films to do Evil Dead does superbly. You will jump, your heart will race, you’ll cover your mouth and your eyes, and your brain will twist and twist. Maybe it won’t be the hands down most terrifying film you will have ever seen but it will definitely be one of them especially in the past five to ten years.

Movie Review: Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

With writing credits for the first two Lethal Weapons, the Last Boy Scout, and the Long Kiss Goodnight, Shane Black made his directorial debut in 2005 with Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. This detective noir has the perfect mix of dark humor driven by Robert Downey Jr. perfectly. Shane Black has teamed up again with Robert Downey Jr. in the upcoming Iron Man 3 so I thought this would be the perfect time to review this sleeper hit.

Robert Downey Jr. plays Harry Lockhart who is a small time crook from New York City. After a robbery goes wrong he finds himself running from the police. He makes his way into a random building and barges into a room where auditions for a movie are taking place. Mistaken as an actor he begins to audition for the role. With the state of mind he is in mixed with the type of role he is “auditioning” for, he completely mesmorizes the casting crew. Immediately, the casting director wants to send him to L.A. As for the police, an officer stumbles into the room but doesn’t recognize the “actor” as his perpetrator and even wishes him good luck.

I usually post the movie trailer with my reviews but I felt that this trailer gave away a key scene. Instead, here is the clip of Harry Lockhart eluding the police.

Movie Review: [REC]

Knowing that [REC] is the movie that Quarantine was based on, you may be hesitant to go see this movie. I’ve already gone over the difference between the two and reviewed the sequel which continues right from where this movie left off so it’s about time I finally reviewed the original.

I consider myself a horror movie connoisseur as I’ve been watching horror movies since I was a kid. I understand that the standard for judging horror movies generally have to be lower than other movie categories and that really good horror movies are few and far between. Then you have those guilty pleasures where you know it’s an enjoyable movie because of the killings and horror scenes even though the story itself is really nothing special. I just love that roller-coaster ride of fear and panic that a good horror movie can send you on.

All that being said,  I really have to admit that in my opinion [REC] is the scariest movie I’ve ever seen. Once everything started spinning out of control my heart was racing and by the end of the movie I was literally up off my couch freaking out.