Well, that's it. The backlash has begun. Against the Iron Man franchise (although not the first movie, which is apparently unimpeachable), against Marvel's slow build to The Avengers (which is really only touched on twice in the new film, briefly) and against Robert Downey, Jr. himself, who is apparently too obnoxious, although they may have him confused with the character he plays. I'll admit that I had my own doubts going into this second installment since I do recognize the greatness of the original and since Marvel hasn't had the best luck with getting their comic book characters firmly established as film characters on par with the likes of James Bond, Indiana Jones and Harry Potter. But from the perspective of a long-time, die-hard fan of ol' Shellhead, I thought director Jon Favreau, screenwriter Justin Theroux and RDJ and the rest of the cast delivered a sharp, entertaining follow-up despite some cracks in the armor.

Tags: Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Jon Favreau, Mickey Rourke, review, Robert Downey Jr., Sam Rockwell, Scarlett Johansson

Perhaps the most pleasantly surprising thing about Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Homes is that it is by no means an origin story. Considering that there have been over a hundred Holmes films made since the start of the century, making this reboot an origin tale would have been a waste of film anyway -- especially when the excellent Young Sherlock Holmes already exists. But equally surprising is the fact that we are joining the characters of Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and John Watson (Jude Law) at the end of their partnership, when they already have a legacy of cases behind them, and the two are headed in different directions. The fact that Ritchie makes this "end-of-an-era" tale work for fans and laymen alike is a testament to the film's accessibility and to Holmes' enduring legacy.

Tags: Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, review, Robert Downey Jr., Sherlock Holmes

Usually, nobody gets in to see the Wizard -- not nobody, not no how. But he may make an exception for Robert Downey, Jr. The back-on-top actor is reportedly in talks to play a younger version of the great and powerful Oz, and the story has been burning up the Internet, for at least three reasons we can think of. 1) It's RDJ. 2) It's The Wizard of Oz, which hasn't had a live-action sequel or prequel since 1985's Return to Oz. (Theatrically, anyway. Syfy's Tin Man showed a future Oz.) 3) Just the idea of RDJ as a young charlatan traveling to Oz via hot-air balloon makes us smile. We're so gleeful about it, in fact, that we decided to come up with other Oz prequels we'd like to see, exploring other beloved Oz characters with A-list actors in the roles. Here's our over-the-rainbow wish list.

Tags: prequel, Robert Downey Jr., Wizard of Oz

Are you in need of an Iron Man fix? It's been two months since the DVD came out and you've already found the Easter eggs and watched it often enough to make your significant other put Iron Man underpants on his or her Christmas shopping list. How else are you supposed to get your fix? Filming hasn't even started for the sequel! Have no fear, my jittery friend. Relief has come through in the form of Jeff Bridge's personal photo diary, Making Iron Man.

Tags: Iron Man, Jeff Bridges, Jon Favreau, Obadiah Stane, photography, Robert Downey Jr., Stan Winston, Tony Stark

The greatest Marvel superhero movie ever made -- you heard me, Spider-Man -- is coming to DVD. On September 30, you'll be able to get your hands on three different versions of the Iron Man DVD, and like the three different armors he wears in the film, each has bigger and better features than the last. Let's call them Mark 1, 2 and 3. You know, because we're all big nerds. (Well, I am.)

Tags: Blu-ray, DVD, Iron Man, Jeff Bridges, Marvel Comics, Robert Downey Jr., superhero movie

From the perspective of someone who works in an industry where most of the professionals couldn't tell you where their next job is coming from, most people in Hollywood are probably sitting around the dinner table tonight discussing how Robert Downey Jr. is like, totally set for life. The Iron Man actor has signed on to play Tony Stark in three more films. With Iron Man being, well, let's face it, the second-biggest movie of the summer, Marvel Studios nevertheless has about five hundred and seventy eight million ($!) reasons to get him back for a sequel. And while reports aren't out yet as to just how much of that juicy box-office gross they used to lure RDJ back, they got him, and not just for one sequel, but two. Oh, and also what could technically be called a spinoff.

Tags: Avengers, Captain America, comic books, Don Cheadle, Iron Man, Iron Man 2, Iron Man 3, James Rhodes, Jon Favreau, Robert Downey Jr., superhero movies, The Avengers, Thor, War Machine

A multitude of new video clips, trailers, set photos and posters have leaked out over the weekend for various upcoming films, and this is your one stop to find it all.

Downey & Law, Crimefighters: First up, JustJared published photos on Friday of Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes from Guy Ritchie's upcoming action film. He added photos on Sunday of Jude Law as Watson. They both look as dashing as you might imagine, all scruffy and in their period garb.

Tags: Benicio Del Toro, Che Guevara, Guerrilla, Jude Law, Punisher, Punisher: War Zone, Robert Downey Jr., Sherlock Holmes, The Argentine, Twilight

Did you know that Sherlock Holmes never said "Elementary, my dear Watson" in any of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's written works? The line pops up in movies, but the exact phrasing never shows up in the original stories. Why am I bringing this up? No reason, except that I just wanted to. In actual news, Variety is reporting that Jude Law is in talks to play Dr. John Watson to Robert Downey Jr.'s Baker Street detective in Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes. This will be a dramatic tale, not to be confused with the Judd Apatow-produced comedy starring Sacha Baron Cohen as Sherlock and Will Ferrell as sidekick Watson. My first thought is, "Man, the movie theaters are going to be chock full of Sherlocks." My second thought is, "I kind of wish Law and Ferrell would switch places."

Tags: Jude Law, Robert Downey Jr., Sacha Baron Cohen, Sherlock Holmes, Will Ferrell