Iron Man 3 review

The wait is over - Tony Stark is back in UK cinema screens as Iron Man 3 hit on Thursday and boy, have we all missed that self-confessed genius, billionaire, play-boy and philanthropist.

Being a massive Marvel and general super-hero fan, I could barely wait for the next addition of this adventure to arrive and I was not disappointed. At all. Here is the trailer to give you all a refresher of what to expect...
WARNING - probable spoilers below video.

Rating: 10/10
So we see the irresistible and wonderful Robert Downey Jr return in his fourth outing as Tony Stark/Iron Man - and once again I say whoever did the casting for the first Iron Man deserves a medal; absolute genius.  He fits the role so perfectly, you begin to wonder whether he is actually Tony Stark away from the big screen. It was another stellar performance from the main man - we see a totally different side to the cocky Tony Stark we are now used to seeing in the cinematic Marvel universe. We see Stark struggling to deal with the impact of his near-death experience in Avengers Assemble, and his worries to keep his assistant-turned-girlfriend Pepper Potts (the wonderful Gwyneth Paltrow) safe. It's actually refreshing to see another side to Iron Man, a side that when the first Iron Man arrived, that we wouldn't have expected to have seen but it was wonderfully portrayed by Downey Jr. But don't fret; you of course do see the confident side of Tony Stark we've all grown to love. The film still has all of the funny one-liners and great scenes - it just wouldn't be a Marvel film without them and once again, there are scenes which will have you in stitches. Look out in particular for the duo of Stark with his Colonel friend, James Rhodes (Don Cheadle), with wonderfully hiliarious scenes with the pair of them.

But we can't just mention the actors; once again, the script and the visual effects do make the movie as incredible as it is. I won't spoil it for those who haven't seen this but there is a MASSIVE plot twist - the villains aren't who you expect and it is wonderfully written, with the plot twist having you gasp in your seats. Mentions must go to the performances of Sir Ben Kingsley and Guy Pearce, as the Mandarin and Aldrich Killian - both were fantastic and put in performances that you would not expected had you read the press releases before the film. The twists and turns of this story are really something.

The visual effects once again are stellar - the scenes in particular where all of Tony's Iron Man seats (majority of them unseen until now) arrive to fight, and also when Tony mind controls the newest suit (Mark 42) to attach to him. It's amazing stuff - that is one major part of what makes the film so incredible. The choice of director must also be applauded - the fact that Shane Black had worked with Robert Downey Jr before the film Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was always going to work out well, and it really was a good performance from the director. He has made a quite frankly 'awesome' film, which can be viewed as one for all of the family to enjoy.

And I loved this film so much, I have rated 10/10. So if you are into Marvel films, or just like Robert Downey Jr or like the look of the trailer, I implore that you go and watch this film immediately. It is not one to be missed.

Iron Man 3 is out in UK cinemas now, and opens in the USA on the 3rd of May.

PFA Player of The Year nominations

You know that the football season is nigh, when word comes through of who has been shortlisted for this season PFA Player of the Year award in the Barclay's Premier League. This season has felt like it has flown by, but here we are again - facing another two or three months without Football; I don't know how we're all going to cope!

The six players nominated for the prestigious award are:

• Gareth Bale
• Luis Suarez 
• Michael Carrick
• Robin van Persie
• Eden Hazard
• Juan Mata

It's an interesting bunch, but one with not too many surprises - all have been stellar for their clubs this season. But who will win it?

In my view, I think this man without a shadow of a doubt will swoop the prize - and that man is Gareth Bale. Bale this season has been outstanding for Spurs, jinxing his way through opposition teams and scoring 17 goals, with half of them probably being goal of the season contenders. There's no doubt that this season has been one of Bale's best; Spurs will need to keep him if they want to aim for Champions League football next season, or if in fact they do qualify this year. Bale is like Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in ways - he makes dribbling and everything he does easy, with a venomous left foot and such grace and balance when he plays. It's hard to believe that Spurs were set to loan him out to Birmingham at one point earlier in his career - now the likes of Barcelona and Real Madrid are after his services. He surely will sweep the board and win this award and quite frankly, I can't think of a more deserving winner.

A note on the other contenders - it is nice to see Carrick nominated, a pleasant surprise. He has been outstanding this season, and having ousted his way back into contention for the England squads, it is very much deserved. He has been the unsung hero of United's campaign, with all of the limelight mainly on their star signing Robin van Persie - who's nomination is nothing than you expected but is equally deserved. Suarez has been stellar all season and profilic, whilst Mata and Hazard have been at the heart of Chelsea's campaign, the clogs in the machine of their midfield. One player that should have been nominated I felt is Swansea's Michu - he is one, if not, of the signings of the summer, and has been prolific since his arrival in Wales. Outstanding striker, and does deserve a mention.

Who do you think will swoop the prestigious Player of the Year? Let me know!

Odd Football ramblings

Football. I don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty sure I live and breathe it. I'd be so lost if I didn't play Football. It's odd how one sport can make someone have so much emotion towards just 22 players kicking a ball around, but we do. I do. And a lot has happened in the football world, which this blog is about - football ramblings!

First of, I want to extend my congratulations to everyone connected to Cardiff City FC - their players, staff, fans etc. I for one is pleased to see them in the top flight; they've deserved it for so long and they've got a good manager and squad. For a team that has been always challenging the top of the Championship, it's no more than they deserve than to finally end 51 years of hurt and go up to play with the big guns. 

I'm also sad to see Portsmouth relegated, a football club which has so much history. It's hard to believe that it was only in 2009 that they had top class players such as Niko Kranjcar and Kevin-Prince Boateng in their starting line-ups - now they have had big financial trouble, in administration and will be playing their football in League Two next season. I know it must be fantastic for Southampton fans that their arch rivals are down, but I'm sad for them and their fans. At least now, with Pompey's Supporters Trust in charge of the club, they can rebuild from stratch. I have no doubt that they will be back challenging in the Championship in no time, so keep the faith Pompey fans!

I come onto now the amount of violence and hooglanism football has seem to have over the last few days - quite frankly, I am appalled. For starters, I really don't see why some Millwall supporters (a minority may I add) found the need to scrap amongst themselves and the Police? It's done nothing but let their club down, who already have a bad enough reputation as it is. It was utterly stupid for them to behave like that, and I feel for their 'proper' fans - fans who were there just to watch their team. To then have the following day Newcastle fans riot in their OWN CITY was just disgraceful - again, was there really any point? Once again I say, all they have done is brought shame on their club - and once again I shall say this was a minority. I hope the authorites and the Football Association take swift action with both incidents.

And my final rambling focuses on the FA, and their lack of punishment for both Callum McManaman's horrendous challenge on Newcastle defender Massadio Haidara, as well as Sergio Aguero's two-footed stamp on Chelsea's David Luiz at the weekend. Both men should have received red cards for their appalling challenges at the time, and should have also received bans. However, thanks to the FA's rule, both escaped bans. Why? The FA say they don't 'have enough authority' to punish both, thanks to their ruling which states if a match official saw the challenge in question, yet didn't act on it, nothing can be done. Basically. Which is a load of tripe. The FA need to change their rulings or risk continuing to make themselves look like a laughing stock organisation, by letting horrific challenges such as McManaman's go unpunished.

And here, I shall conclude on my ramblings. As always, I would love to hear your thoughts - do you think the FA should change their rules? How do you think Cardiff will fare in the Championship next season? Let me know below!

P.s. I'm incredibly sorry for neglecting this blog for such a long time - I could give a long list of excuses but none would be acceptable... The obscene amount of second year uni work though may  be a factor.