Honestly, I can’t necessarily think of a better guy to direct The First Avenger: Captain America than the guy who directed The Rocketeer, can you? From the Hollywood Reporter:

“This is a guy who designed the vehicles for ‘Star Wars,’ who storyboarded the convoy action sequence for ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark,’ ” Feige said. “From ‘Rocketeer’ to ‘October Sky’ to ‘The Wolfman,’ you can look at pieces of his movies and see how they lead to this one.”

…and also directed Jurassic Park III, the only one in that series that’s any good. No, I’m not joking.

In any case, seems like Marvel has the director thing pretty locked down, huh? To wit:

Iron Man II – Jon Favreau
Thor – Kenneth Branagh
The First Avenger: Captain America – Joe Johnston

That’s a certain level of director who is very, very good at their craft, but not so big that they can push around the producers or cause problems. Plus, all three are reliably going to do a job, not throw tantrums (see: Punisher War Zone).

Oh, and one more thing you guys might have not heard over the weekend: J. Michael Straczynski is doing the rewrite on Thor. How cool is that?

As part of his four picture deal with Marvel Studios, Robert Downey Jr. is appearing as Tony Stark in THE AVENGERS motion picture, as well as reprising his starring role as the larger-than-life leading character in IRON MAN 2. Jon Favreau will return to direct the sequel to the blockbuster IRON MAN, which to date has grossed over $578 million worldwide, as well as executive produce THE AVENGERS.

Academy Award® nominee Downey was most recently seen in the summer comedy blockbuster TROPIC THUNDER starring opposite Ben Stiller and Jack Black. Before Iron Man, he was best known for his film roles in KISS KISS BANG BANG, WONDER BOYS and CHAPLIN, the film for which he was nominated for an Oscar®.

In addition to directing the first IRON MAN, Favreau has previously directed ELF, ZATHURA: A SPACE ADVENTURE and MADE. He is also well known for writing and starring in SWINGERS. He will next be seen acting in FOUR CHRISTMASES, I LOVE YOU MAN and COUPLES RETREAT.

DON CHEADLE WILL STAR AS RHODEY IN IRON MAN 2

Marvel Studios is pleased today to confirm that an agreement has been finalized with award-winning actor Don Cheadle to take on the role of Colonel James “Rhodey” Rhodes in Marvel’s IRON MAN 2 due in theaters on May 7, 2010. In casting Cheadle, Marvel replaces Terrence Howard who appeared in the role of Rhodey in IRON MAN.

Cheadle is also signed on to perform the same role in THE AVENGERS and subsequent installments of the IRON MAN franchise.

“We are very excited about working with the extraordinarily talented Don Cheadle as we expand the role of Rhodey in Iron Man 2. It has already become apparent as we prep the movie for production, that the dynamic between Robert and Don will take Iron Man 2 to new heights,” said Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios.

Cheadle is best known for his Oscar® nominated lead performance in HOTEL RWANDA as well as his role as Basher Tarr in the OCEAN’S franchise, CRASH and SWORDFISH.

Based on Marvel’s iconic Super Hero, IRON MAN 2 continues the story of this summer’s box office blockbuster IRON MAN, the first feature film produced independently by Marvel Studios. IRON MAN 2 will be produced by Marvel Studios’ President, Kevin Feige, and executive produced by Louis D’Esposito, Jon Favreau, Stan Lee, David Maisel and Denis Stewart.

In a movie event, THE AVENGERS will bring together the super hero team of Marvel Comics characters for the first time ever, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, the Hulk and more, as they are forced to band together to battle the biggest foe they’ve ever faced.

The highly anticipated sequel to IRON MAN will be released in theatres on May 7, 2010 and THE AVENGERS will be released July 15, 2011. Both films will be distributed by Paramount Pictures.

Cheadle is represented by UTA. Downey and Favreau are represented by CAA.

As much as fans will get a kick out of the insider references — like War Machine, Jarvis, the Ten Rings, the requisite Stan Lee (my favorite yet lol) — the bigger picture is that anybody can get into this movie. Whether you’ve seen Adi Granov’s CG work before or not, you’ve got to love the look of the Mark III armor; as great as it looked on Granov’s covers, it’s pretty spectacular seeing it in motion. Additionally, Iron Man’s character here is free of the complexities he’s taken on in the comics — which isn’t to say I don’t enjoy those complexities, just that they rightly don’t belong in his coming out party. And speaking of intros, the origin has been nicely updated to fit post-9/11, without becoming overly political.

Honestly I can’t even think of what I didn’t like about this movie… no Ghostface cameo? Any negatives are just nitpicking. Bottom line: this movie has everything you could really ask for in a summer blockbuster — high-speed action, great effects, and plenty of laugh-out-loud moments. And who doesn’t love big kickass robots?

This was such a fun flick I’ll probably pay to go see it again this weekend, and I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s going to see this movie multiple times. Look for Iron Man to make Marvel a ton of well-earned money. Congrats on the studio’s first solo outing.