And so the summer begins with a superhero movie. However, this is a much better film than last summer’s bloated Spiderman 3.

It’s well-made and exhilarating origin story that’s mostly enjoyable thanks to a terrific turn by Downey Jr. and able support from, in another atypical casting move, Gwyneth Paltrow. That the film rises above cheese is thanks to the charisma of the leads.