Many people assume that Tony Stark and Robert Downey Jr are the same person. They both have larger than life personalities, both are very rich, and both have been the center of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. With Iron Man serving as both the jumping off point and connective film for all of the MCU, Downey’s opinion means a lot to fans. So, when he was asked which is the best film released by Marvel to date, you would expect the Stark in him to come out and name a film he starred in, right?
Entertainment Weekly is saying that in a recent interview with the Toronto Sun, Downey actually named GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY as the best film from Marvel Studios.
“[GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY] in some ways, is the best Marvel movie ever. It’s odd for someone with—on occasion—an ego the size of mine to actually say that.”
Robert Downey Jr certainly knows how to play the studio game these days, especially after the career revival that Marvel has represented for him, but he is right. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY has connections to the MCU as a whole, but it is also the first movie not featuring a major superhero and also not a direct thread to one of the AVENGERS movies. CAPTAIN AMERICA and THOR were both created with direct plots to THE AVENGERS where their sequels are leading right into AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON. GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY will interconnect, likely in Phase Three, but it has all of the hallmarks of what we love about Marvel movies and is an incredibly good time to boot.
With the film just crossing $500 million worldwide and close to surpassing CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER for top grossing film of 2014, GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY is riding high and Downey’s words are the cherry on top.