'Iron Man' (PG-13): Robert Downey Jr. proves that he has the mettle to soar in a superhero role in "Iron Man," a dizzying spectacle that, much like its Marvel movie predecessors "X-Men" and "Spider-Man," benefits from both a smart story and brilliant special effects.

The film is a crowning achievement for director Jon Favreau, who fought to cast Downey, who is dazzling as Tony Stark, an eccentric billionaire weapons magnate who can be arrogant and reckless one minute and vulnerable the next.

Co-created by Marvel Comics icon Stan Lee and loosely based on eccentric industrialist Howard Hughes, Stark begins the film in a military caravan in Afghanistan, where he just demonstrated for U.S. troops the lethal force of the Jericho missile, the latest wonder from his weapons corporation Stark Industries. Ambushed while in transit, Stark is taken captive by terrorists and is forced to build a version of the Jericho that they can use to dominate the region.

Kept alive by another weapons genius (Shaun Toub) after he takes shrapnel to the heart, Stark covertly crafts an "iron" suit from the scraps the terrorists provides him, and in a blaze of glory, quite literally, he escapes his captors and returns home a changed man. That's because while in captivity, Stark made shocking discovery that weapons from Stark Industries were killing the very people that they were supposed to protect.

But Stark's stunning announcement about the new direction of the company meets resistance from his mentor and father's former business partner Obadiah Stane (a menacing Jeff Bridges), who goes to extraordinary lengths to stop Stark as he improves upon his metallic suit to fight the enemy and serve the greater good.

Backed by strong supporting performances by Bridges, Terrence Howard (as Stark's military confidant Col. James "Rhodey" Rhodes) and Gwyneth Paltrow (as Stark's loyal assistant Pepper Potts), Downey plays the eccentricities of Stark to the hilt in "Iron Man." He's a Scotch-swilling, womanizing, gambling man, who unlike other Marvel characters in the Marvel Universe, isn't blessed with special powers other than being a brilliant scientist.

But the force of Downey isn't truly felt until that bullet-proof veneer is peeled back to show the character's vulnerabilities, revealing feelings of isolation and the painful realization of the soulless person he has become. The great thing is, while the performance is complicated, it never gets lost on its audience, which stretches from ages 8 to 80 and beyond.

While his direction isn't as distinctive in style as Sam Raimi's or Bryan Singer's Marvel superhero films (the filmmakers helmed the "Spider-Man" trilogy and first two "X-Men" films, respectively), Favreau (who co-stars in the "Iron Man" as Stark's driver Happy Hogan) nonetheless establishes a powerful emotional connection with the audience with his characters in "Iron Man."

But even more impressive, the normally character-centric director handles his first foray into complicated action scenes with deft precision. From the brute force the character establishes in the escape scene, to the dogfight maneuvers the F-22s carry out as confront Iron Man, and confrontation between Iron Man and Stane's monolithic creation, the Iron Monger, the scenes are as exhilarating and explosive as it gets. It's a great movie.

DVD Features: The two-disc special edition release includes deleted and extended scenes; a seven-part "making of" documentary; a six-part featurette on the history of the character; Downey's screen test and more. (Paramount Home Entertainment)

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'Speed Racer' (PG): It's baffling how "Speed Racer" ran out of gas so soon in this summer's box office race, considering the enormous talent in front of and behind the camera. Directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski, the film contains the same sort of hyper-kinetic thrills as their "Matrix" films, which is complimented by a some stylized "Car Fu" (think karate, but with cars) and bold, neon colors throughout.

Adapted from the classic anime series, "Speed Racer" stars Emile Hirsch ("Into the Wild") as the title character, a natural-born racecar driven haunted by the loss of his older brother, Rex Racer.

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Even though he's loyal to his family's business -- his Mach 5 racing machine was designed by his father, Pops Racer (John Goodman) -- Speed considers a highly lucrative offer from E.P. Arnold Royalton (Roger Allam), the head of racing giant Royalton Industries. But as he turns down the offer from the company's honco, Speed becomes his enemy and the target of a scheme concocted by Royalton and his fellow moguls -- to fix races to make sure Speed never wins again. However, Speed isn't ready to ease up on the acceleration just yet: instead, he joins forces with his former rival, Racer X (Matthew Fox), to beat Royalton at his own game.

"Speed Racer" is a unique film for the Wachoski brothers in that it's the first time that they're not tackling a dark subject. True, corruption in the racing industry isn't about sweetness and light, but at the heart of "Speed Racer" is an uplifting feeling of loyalty and love for one's family, which in Speed's case, includes Mom Racer (a convincing Susan Sarandon), little brother Sprittle (Paulie Litt) and his girlfriend, Trixie (the beguiling Chritina Ricci).

Staying in-tact from the Wachowski team's previous efforts, though, is their endless imagination, realized by their mostly computer-generated world -- especially the race courses -- which are simply mind-blowing. But with an overlong, 2 hour, 15 minute running time, the action can get exhaustive, particularly for members of the kid set who used to your standard 90-minute family film. Perhaps too much going in "Speed Racer" for its own good, it's a far better film that its underwhelming box office take would imply.

DVD features: A tour of the movie set with Litt, "Speed Racer" production featurettes and more. The Blu-ray release includes a bonus disc -- the Speed Racer Crucible Challenge. (Warner Home Video)

'Made Of Honor' (PG-13) "Grey's Anatomy" star Patrick Dempsey and Michelle Monaghan's undeniable chemistry carries "Made of Honor," a fun romantic comedy that works despite similar films like "My Best Friend's Wedding" and "When Harry Met Sally" hanging over its head.

Dempsey plays a playboy named Tom, and longtime best friend of Hannah (Monaghan), a woman whom several are convinced is the right choice for the ladies' man. The problem is, he doesn't quite realize that he's in love with Hannah until she takes a business trip to Scotland, where she meets the man of her dreams (Colin McMurray).

Asked to be Hannah's maid of honor for the wedding, Tom tries desperately to get the message through to his longtime friend about his romantic revelation, which is complicated by, among other things, one of her bridesmaids who's one of his previous conquests.

Thanks to the natural charm of Dempsey and Monaghan and fine supporting turns by Kadeem Harrison as Tom's best buddy and the late Sydney Pollack as Tom's father, "Made of Honor" crosses the threshold as an above-average romantic comedy. Sure, the movie is utterly predictable, but it works. If anything, it's worth checking out for the shots of the breathtaking Scottish countryside. (Sony Pictures Home Entertainment).

'Run, Fatboy, Run' (PG-13) "Shaun of the Dead" star Simon Pegg gives a lively performance in "Run, Fatboy, Run," about an under-achiever who undertakes the daunting task of running a marathon to prove to his former fiancée, Libby (Thandie Newton), that he's capable of finishing something.

And that's a big deal considering that he left Libby at the altar, pregnant, five years earlier, and on the verge of marrying an upstanding American businessman (a great, love-to-hate him performance by Hank Azaria) who has struck up an instant bond with Dennis' and Libby's young son (Matthew Fenton).

Directed by "Friends" star David Schwimmer, "Run, Fatboy, Run" gets out of the blocks slow and is bogged down by stereotypical "training" scenes, but picks up the pace as Dennis' best friend (and "Shaun" co-star Dylan Moran) and landlord (Harish Patel) throw their support behind him.

The ending, which you can see coming from 26 miles and 385 yards away, still provides for several comical, as well as poignant and triumphant "Rocky"-like moments. And by adding that emotional weight, "Run, Fatboy, Run" becomes an inspired comedy that is worthy of a medal. (Warner Home Video).