A year of Robert Downey

This is (or will be) the year of Robert Downey Jr., and it's about time we had one of those, right? He is the sole reason I will rush to see Iron Man, which I hope is a big fat hit for him; his Iron Man character also makes an appearance in the Ed Norton Hulk sequel. He will play a homeless musician in Joe Wright's next movie, due out in November (hello, Oscar). And, most intriguingly, he plays a respected actor playing a black man in Ben Stiller's industry farce, Tropic Thunder. The trailer is delectable.

(Tom Cruise apparently has a cameo as a crazy studio executive, which is perfect, and the exact kind of role he needs at this point to start straining the radiation from the toxic fields of his career.)

Anyway...Robert Downey! We were reminded of his life force when Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang came out (you saw it, right? Why not? Asshole).

He's a natural onscreen, and I hope he continues to steadily work. We shouldn't expect any less -- the man steadily worked even while he battled a massive drug problem. I could go on and on about him, but there are things to do. I leave you with my first introduction to him: the charming, funny Heart and Souls, when he was a lad of 28.