At first blush, this has all the marks of the sort of tepid, respectful, boring prestige picture that's normally a huge turn-off. Director Gary Ross (Pleasantville, Seabiscuit) will reteam with Tobey Maguire for The Crusaders, a film about the lawyers who litigated the landmark 1954 Supreme Court case Brown v. Board of Education (of Topeka, but who keeps track?). That, of course, was when the Court unanimously held that racial segregation in public schools was unconstitutional.

Maguire will play idealistic young lawyer Jack Greenberg, who teamed with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and future Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall (Terrence Howard was rumored for that role, but that seems to have gone away) to fight the segregationists. This project has been kicking around for a while, and Topher Grace was previously attached to star in what is now Maguire's role.

Ross and Maguire's Seabiscuit, which I thought was precisely the sort of unimaginative, tediously reverent historical Oscar-bait that the Academy loves but anyone with any taste can't stand, bored the pants off me. This sounds like a similar sort of project -- though on the other hand, having spent significant time venerating Brown v. Board in law school, I'm curious to see what Hollywood will do with this story. Sort of in the same way a geologist might be fascinated with The Core, y'know?

One of the many nice moments in Iron Man comes as techno-titan Tony Stark (played by Robert Downey, Jr.) is consulting with his artificial intelligence majordomo, Jarvis, about the fabrication of the newest version of the high-tech power armor Stark intends to use to stop evil and protect the innocent. Looking at a holographic simulation of the proposed design of the glittering, golden armor -- which enables its wearer to fly, lift cars, shoot energy beams, withstand bullets and includes many other clever bits of engineering -- Stark makes a brief request regarding the color scheme: "Why don't you throw a little hot rod red in there?" Stark seems to be saying Sure, it's fancy and expensive and technologically majestic and wonderful, but a little style can still go a long way. ...

And as it is with the Iron Man armor, so it is with the Iron Man movie. Marvel Comics' first foray into self-financed film making has movie stars and impressive effects and a script where every plot point you would expect meshes with its neighbors as precisely as the plates and pieces of Stark's armor do, but it's the touches of style that make it truly sizzle. Director Jon Favreau does not seem like a choice you would expect as the director of a comic-book movie; Robert Downey Jr. does not seem like a choice you would expect as the star of a comic-book film. Between the two of them, they give us something different from the comic-book movies we've come to expect; a little swagger, a little strut, a touch of self-mocking humor that never undercuts the pleasures of the thing being mocked. It's as if someone snuck a hefty slug of bourbon into your cherry cola; all of the sugar and flavor and fizz you expect from a well-made comic-book movie are there, but there's something a little more grown-up going on behind them.

Who's excited about Iron Man? We are, we are! And we know you, like us, are counting the days -- nay, the hours -- until May 2, when Iron Man hits the big screen. In the meantime, though, we have this little behind-the-scenes tidbit from Moviefone's recent Unscripted interview with the Iron Man himself, Robert Downey, Jr., Jon Favreau and Terrence Howard, interviewing each other with your questions.

The clip above (which is not included in the full interview over on Moviefone) is short, but funny -- how can you not like a video that includes Robert Downey, Jr. talking in a Jersey accent and saying, "What?! You feeling froggy, bitch? Jump!" Oh, yeah. If only I'd been there myself for this, perhaps Downey, Jr. would finally recognize his long unrequited love for me. Oh, wait, I'm the one who's had a crush on him forever ... ah, well.

Forget about all the fantastic action. Dismiss the disarmingly smart, wry screenplay, and ignore the phenomenal supporting cast. Feel free to overlook the dozen components that make Jon Favreau's Iron Man the most uniquely entertaining superhero movie in a long time ... I've got the one main reason that this flick is worthy of your two hours and ten bucks right here, and that reason is named Robert Downey Jr. Like many movie fans of my generation, I consider Downey to be sort of an old friend. We all wept when Jami Gertz noticed his odd demise in Less Than Zero, we loved watching his evolution in films like True Believer and Chaplin, and we all felt pretty great when the guy finally kicked his well-publicized drug addiction.

Downey is a survivor, no doubt, and he's also a refreshingly engaging actor to watch -- and boy was I thrilled when Marvel announced that this would be the guy to portray Tony Stark. To those who don't know the Stark character from the comic books, let me just make it clear: Downey is the perfect guy to play a smug yet charming, sarcastic yet likable, and perpetually womanizing multi-billionaire mega-genius with a bum ticker. We all know the guy can play sly, snarky, smart characters, so much of Iron Man's early stuff is light lifting for the actor -- but when he starts getting angry? Noble? Heroic? The guy is aces across the board. Bottom Line: Downey has paid his dues, he's been through a lot of hell, and now he's a freakin' superhero who delivers the best popcorn flick performance since Johnny Depp first played pirate. Sometimes Hollywood actually works.

I hope you appreciate the sacrifices I make for my job; having managed to successfully avoid anything even remotely 'spoilerish' about Iron Man (I was so anal I was even not watching all the trailers just in case they ruined any surprises), I finally cracked and watched four behind-the-scenes videos for the big budget comic book flick. Luckily for me there wasn't anything too revealing, although one of the videos gives you a preview of what it takes to get star Robert Downey Jr. into that suit (and let's just say it suddenly doesn't look so high tech when it takes four costume people to wedge you into the thing).

Despite starting its road to production as a low-budget comic book movie back in 1990, Iron Man has become one of the most anxiously awaited summer movies (and that is hard to do when your competition is Indiana Jones and Batman). These videos are just the latest in a series of trailers and teasers for the film, hell; there was even a VH1 satire on the Fabulous Life of Tony Stark. But all the marketing will finally come to an end, and I'm pretty sure it is going to be worth the wait. Iron Man opens in theaters on May 2nd.

The following post may contain spoilers, so beware!

The entire Iron Man crew are currently making the press rounds (they'll be in NYC on Sunday, so expect a slew of quotes to come flying next week), and already director Jon Favreau knows exactly where he wants to go with the Iron Man sequels -- so much so that he's dropped a bunch of hints in the first film, due out May 1. He tells Rotten Tomatoes, "I've got another two movies in my head; I'm ready to go and I know the cast feels the same way," he said. "Now it's out of the hands of us, of the filmmakers, and it's even out the hands of your readers. I know all the people who have been following this for two years are going to go and see the movie, and maybe they'll see it twice and I'm very grateful for that. If everybody comes out to see the movie and it's successful, then I'm sure Marvel's going to want to do another."

Be careful with that RT article because they do spoil some stuff, like whether Samuel L. Jackson actually shows up in a cameo role as Nick Fury. But perhaps the biggest set up for a sequel -- spoiler warning -- comes when Jim Rhodes (Terrence Howard) glances at Stark's Mark II Iron Man suit and says to himself, "Next time baby." It certainly looks like the second film would involve Rhodes in costume, possibly as War Machine, but as IGN points out, Rhodes first dons another suit in the comics. Howard told them, "If you've read the comics you'll know that that is the next phase, but there is another intermediate phase in there where he would have to put on his best friend's suit for a period of time."

Two new (and final) Iron Man posters have been revealed, the first of which is an international poster (seen above) and then a domestic poster (seen after the jump). There's not much of a difference between the two, except the international features a full length Terrence Howard and Robert Downey Jr., with helicopters in the background instead of the jets pictured in the domestic version. I totally geeked out over the last trailer that was released, and Iron Man has now officially hit my "Holy crap am I anticipating this flick" meter - just after The Dark Knight and just in front of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Oh yes, I'm giving Favreau the benefit of the doubt and itching to see this one just a little bit more than I am Indy. How about you?

Iron Man hits theaters on May 2.

[via Impawards and Richard]

A whole crop full of new photos from Iron Man have arrived online (via Gizmodo); two of which clearly show director Jon Favreau in full suit, as a bodyguard of some sort for Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.). The photo above shows Stark at a casino table with Jim Rhodes (Terrence Howard) and Favreau, while the photo below shows Favreau carrying Stark's clothing. (Is it just me, or does Favreau look as if he's auditioning for Men in Black 3?) Among the other photos, there's a pretty cool one of Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges), and then more of Stark in various Iron Man suits. Check out a bunch more after the jump; Iron Man arrives in theaters on May 2.

Pickings are a bit slim on the indie DVD shelves this week, but here are three titles that sound like they're worth checking out.

"Instead of grousing or hand wringing" about its topic -- why the US government hasn't been able to locate certain war criminals -- Jeffrey M. Anderson said that The Hunting Party "becomes a spry, surprising and intelligent comedy." Richard Gere stars as a reporter who convinces his former cameraman (Terrence Howard) to join him in tracking down an infamous war criminal. Richard Shepard wrote and directed. The DVD features an audio commentary by Shepherd, deleted scenes, a "making of," and interviews with the journalists featured in the magazine article that served as source material for the film.

Laurent Tirard's Molière "uses the titular French playwright's life as a jumping-off point for a fanciful tale of romance, duplicity, and acting, Acting, ACTING," according to Nick Schager. "What's missing, alas, is a greater sense of surprise that might keep the film from feeling somewhat rote." Still, it's hard to find eye candy that looks better than this cast: Romain Duris stars as the playwright; with Ludivine Sagnier and Laura Morante also featured. The DVD includes an audio commentary with the director and a "making of" feature.

If you're in the mood for an off-beat doc, Confessions of a Superhero (pictured) should cure what ails you. Our own James Rocchi says that the film examines four would-be actors making ends meet "by dressing as superheroes and posing with the tourists outside Graumann's Chinese Theater." (When I lived in Los Angeles, I always wondered about those people.) He felt that the film "never loses sight of pop culture or personal struggle, and sticks with you thanks to a careful mix of big images and small moment." The DVD includes a commentary track, deleted scenes and extended footage.

The Amateurs (formerly The Moguls), the directorial debut of writer/director Michael Traeger, is an underdog comedy about a group of small-town losers who decide to raise money by making a porno film. It's got a wonderful supporting cast that includes Joe Pantoliano, William Fichtner, Tim Blake Nelson, and Lauren Graham. Cinematical recently attended a press junket with the film's stars -- Jeff Bridges and Ted Danson, who were interviewed separately. Needless to say, meeting The Dude and Sam Malone in the same day was kind of a big deal! First up was Mr. Bridges...

What attracted you to the The Amateurs and the role of Andy?

Jeff Bridges: Like most of the movies I get involved with, I resisted it as long as possible. I always try to figure out why I shouldn't do it, and with this one there were plenty of reasons not to do it. What attracted me to it in the first place is that it was so unusual. It put this porn aspect and this Frank Capra aspect together, and I thought that was really interesting, very ambitious. But I didn't know if this guy who had never directed a film would be able to pull it off. Also, I've done movies in the past that have a lot of characters, and I find them hard to follow and you wind up not caring about any of the people, and I thought that might be the case with this one. But my representatives kept telling me I should do it, so finally I said "Alright. I want you guys to organize a reading, and I want you to see that this thing's not going to work at all." So we had a table read, and it just flew, it was just great. I think it works very well.

When the release started to get delayed, did any of that old skepticism start to come back, like maybe something did go wrong?

JB: No, I didn't really get all the ins and outs of why it didn't get released, it's very convoluted and I haven't heard all the sides and the stories, but it wasn't because of the nature of the film or anything like that. I think it was more business type stuff.