It’s important to kick off the summer movie season with a bang. No one wants to get their summer off to a bad start, especially if you’re a movie studio. Iron Man 2 is arguably the most highly-anticipated film this year and it’s expected to break box office records in its opening weekend. While it should easily meet the demands of a weekend gross, you should rest assured that it doesn’t fall short on quality either. Robert Downey Jr.
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Still charming as hell? Strong supporting cast? Bigger and better action sequences? As tightly constructed and paced as the original Iron Man? (Errr) Enjoyable time at the movies? Iron Man 2 may not be quite as good as the first film, but it’s still a strong lead-in to the march of the summer 2010 blockbusters.After revealing himself as Iron Man to the entire world, Tony Stark (Downey Jr.) has defied expectations by becoming even more of an egomaniac. Declaring himself the savior of mankind, a one-man nuclear deterrent, and so brilliant that it would take decades for someone to recreate the Iron Man technology, Stark is riding highexcept that he’s dying.
The Arc-Reactor energy core he used to save his life is now slowly killing him. The reactor core is burning out its Palladium power source and leaving Tony with the gift of blood poisoning.
The fact that the Iron Man suit is also powered by the mini Arc Reactor means he’s using it more than he has to just so he can show off and dazzle the world as Iron Man. His ego is literally killing him.Of course, his ego will have to get in line. Government wants Tony to turn over the suit, rival weapons industrialist Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) wants to create a line of Iron Man-like suits for a fat government contract, and Tony’s friend Col. James “Rhodey” Rhodes (Don Cheadle) is being forced to betray his pal in order to save him.
Oh, and there’s a very angry Russian physicist named Ivan Danko (Mickey Rourke) who is building his own Iron Man-like suit in order to kill Tony.As you can see, there are a lot of little storylines coming at Stark in this movie along with the mandatory Avengers set-up that has to come in and remind us that Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and his agent Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) are part of a bigger universe that’s coming together over several films. Iron Man 2 manages to hold everything together, but the film is stretched so thin that it begins to lose some of its energy midway through. But nothing can overcome Downey’s performance and before the flick begins to fray, director Jon Favreau charges into the third act and brings the house down (in this case, the house is the size of several square blocks).It goes without saying, but I can spare the digital ink: these movies would not work without Robert Downey Jr. In the hands of a less-talented actor, Tony’s arrogance and self-indulgence could easily have the come off as obnoxiousness.
With Downey, arrogance becomes bravado and self-indulgence becomes eccentric. But you can’t praise Downey without praising Gwyneth Paltrow, who plays his beleaguered assistant/confidant/love-interest Pepper Potts. They play off each other so well and their quick and easy banter is unique in the realm of superhero movies.I was a little worried about Rourke and what he would do with such an odd character who is a physics genius/Russian prisoner/bird-lover, but he makes it work. Johansson doesn’t get to do much except look sexy (and she’s very good at that), although her one action scene drew cheers from the audience. As for Cheadle, he took over the role of Rhodey from Terrence Howard after Howard’s contract negotiations with Marvel fell through. Cheadle’s a little stiff in the beginning, but as the film progresses, the role seems to fit him better and by the end, he’s happily kicking ass and making quips alongside Tony. It’s amazing what a world-saving suit of armor will do for one’s personality.But the performance people will walk away talking about is Rockwell.
We all knew Downey would be great and he doesn’t disappoint. Fans of Rockwell know he’s great in just about anything he does. But during the second act when the film begins to sag and Tony become isolated, Rockwell picks up the slack and leaves his mark on the film. His performance as Hammer is like if a used car salesman one day got promoted to run a global weapons manufacturer. Hammer is Tony if Tony wasn’t gifted, brilliant, moral, and charming. Rockwell had me laughing at almost every single one of his lines and he keeps the film fun when the film is running low on energy.It’s important to mention the performances first because that’s where Iron Man 2 places its priorities.
Despite the numerous mini plotlines, Iron Man 2 is ultimately a character-driven film. However, Favreau did not forget the lessons of the first film when it came to staging action. Every set piece in the sequel far outdoes the climactic battle against Iron Monger (Jeff Bridges) in the first film. In fact, the climactic battle of Iron Man 2 could use a little bit of a trim, but it’s staged so well that it doesn’t really matter.
People will argue over which action scene they liked the best, and that means they all worked of them worked (well, almost all;there’s a mano-a-mano fight between Stark and Rhodey that feels sloppy and poorly-staged, especially when compared to the other action sequences).Iron Man 2 doesn’t manage to out-do the first film. If you’re thinking back to how the sequels for X-Men and Spider-Man were better than their first installments, remember that the first Iron Man was and still is the best superhero movie debut. It’s a tough act to follow. Unfortunately, the simple structure provided by the origin story is no longer around to provide a solid backbone and the movie falters at times as a result. But when it works—and it works most of the time— Iron Man 2 is a highly-enjoyable time at the movies and a great kick-off to the summer.Rating: B+.
Although I grew up a comic book fan, I was never an Iron Man reader. I knew all the main points about him from the Avengers and various team ups, but I was never really interested in a rich guy with a drinking problem that flew around and fought Commies during the Cold War. Iron Man didn’t have the villains that Batman had, he didn’t have the humor that Spiderman had, or the cool universe that the X-Men lived in. He was mediocre at best.The comic book movie genre has been like an abused puppy that has taken so much crap, that even the smallest acts of mercy resonate. Many an adapted movie was judged not on whether it was good or not, but rather on how little it sucked. If it wasn’t too terrible, it was graded on a curve, and was generally considered passable- look at 2003’s Daredevil. The movie was terrible in many ways- the acting was ridiculous and the roles were badly cast, the music was awful, and the whole thing felt like execs from MTV were quietly making suggestions on how to make it more “hip”.
But it had a good story based on Frank Miller’s excellent run on the comic, so it was ok.On the other hand you have movies like Joel Schumacher’s Batman and Robin, a movie so bad that it seemed to be a test- a psychological experiment of sorts- to see how far comic book fans could be pushed before they snapped. The character of Batman is a gritty urban warrior, tortured by personal demons that lead him to take justice into his own hands in order to make the world a better place.
Schumacher gave him nipples and ice skates and sent him after villains that should have tasted the sweet relief of a sniper bullet in the first 12 seconds of their appearance – and saved us the time. Anyone involved with the decision to add nipples to the bat-suit should never be allowed near another genre movie. Under penalty of death.Comic book and genre fans in general are fiercely loyal to the source material. They don’t need Shakespearean depth, they just need a certain level of respect for the material that helped shape them from childhood to the present. Is that so much to ask? Is it really that hard to make a comic book movie and not immediately fall into a series of horrible puns? Yeah, you are called Ghost Rider and your head is on fire- we get it, we don’t need to hear a fire joke inserted into every piece of dialogue.
It doesn’t make fans laugh, it just makes them irritated and convinces them that the filmmakers don’t get it. Yeah Sam Raimi, we get that you don’t like Venom, but really- dancing emo Spidey? Just because the material is from comic does not mean that it should be written for an exclusively 12-year-old audience.So when a movie- or a series of movies- like Iron Man comes along, we hope for the best, but are prepared for the worst. Perhaps that means that things that might otherwise draw criticism get a pass.
The sequel has a few flaws, but overall it is treated with respect, and handled with care by talented filmmakers that seem to really want to do their absolute best- not just for the fans to avoid their ire and milk them for the box office cash, but also to legitimize the story and prove that the genre has as much merit as any.When the original movie was released, I was cautiously optimistic because of the people involved, but I was prepared for the worst. I left the original movie both impressed and appreciative of the character.
The origin story ate up more time than I would have liked, but that was not surprising for an introductory movie. So when the sequel was announced, I expected big things.For the second movie, I wanted more than the first. I wanted to believe that a dude in an iron suit could fly around, and would inevitably get into some incredible fight where everything nearby exploded, even things that aren’t in any way combustible, like bicycles and trees. As long as the explosion looked good and the story had me interested, physics be damned. I wanted action, I wanted characters I liked, and most of all, I really really hoped that it would not suck and potentially ruin The Avengers.I am happy to say that I was not disappointed.Iron Man 2 is a movie that fulfills all the requirements of a Hollywood summer blockbuster sequel.
It is flashy, the women are beautiful, the effects are impressive, and stuff blows up real pretty. What sets these movies apart from many others is the level of care the sequel and the original both adhere to.
The actors, director, and all involved ground these movies in a sense of realism that keeps the more impossible parts of the movie realistic.There is a level of class to this story despite the comic book origins, and despite that it is a summer blockbuster movie. There are- just for example- no giant robots with huge metal testicles that clang around and make you wonder how many people were high, and what drugs they were on, when they approved those type of scenes.First, the good. The quality of the movie remains consistently high.
Favreau is a good director that competently works in a mix of effects and live action pieces with just the right amount of character work to keep us engaged and never bored. He also keeps the movie going at a pace that the audience never has to stop and think about plot holes too much (and there are a few, but none are truly major). The special effects are also just as good as you would expect from a sequel with a big budget.Robert Downey Jr. Simply chews up the screen every time he is on it. Mickey Rourke as the villain Ivan Vanko disappears in the role and you quickly forget exactly who it is that you are watching on screen. Sam Rockwell, Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, and Samuel L.
Jackson all turn in solid performances too. Scarlet Johansson well, she looks good. Her role is fairly small and under used, so much so that I assume her Black Widow will be back for the Avengers. She does a fine job with what she is given. If there had been any bad acting jobs in this movie, they would have stood out quickly.The movie is simply fun. Tony Stark is free of the dark and gritty world that Bruce Wayne lives in, and he is not weighed down by the responsibilities that haunt Spiderman.
He is a guy in a suit that is a superhero because he loves being a superhero. A new subplot shows Stark wanting to do more for the world and his own legacy, but for the most part, he is a guy in a high tech suit that can do pretty much anything he wants, and he does. Stark has fun being himself, and that is a refreshing twist in the dark and broody world of superheroes.The biggest issue with this movie is a minor one, but it is one that the original shared.
The villains in both movies are somewhat ambiguous in their morality. If you only knew the Tony Stark character from how the world might see him- as an irresponsible, drunken womanizer with the power to level cities at a whim, you might actually be rooting for the bad guys. There is never a scene when you consider the villains to be “eeeeeeevil”. They never stop to kick a puppy or anything that makes the audience eagerly wait for their inevitable ass kicking, and their reasoning for attacking Stark is usually understandable, even if it is not justifiable.
It is only through Robert Downey’s performance, and the fact that we know Tony Stark has a heart-of-gold that causes us to root for him. In both movies, the climatic end fight is more of a personal battle between Stark and the villains than a save-the-day affair. That isn’t a big deal, but it makes the victory for the good guys a bit hollow. In both movies the end fight seems a bit rushed as well.
Maybe that is just a result of the lack of build up between the hero and the villain, but the final fights were over very quickly, and with a minimum of fuss.Iron Man will not win over any converts that hate the superhero genre, nor will it steal money from the art house crowd. For everyone else, it is an entertaining two hours and a fun summer blockbuster movie that should keep the momentum going for Thor and Captain America next summer, then the Avengers the summer after. Iron Man 2 is a good movie that does exactly what it sets out to do. The acting is solid, the story is good, and the movie looks great.
Buy your popcorn, sit back and enjoy.Editors' Recommendations.