Iron Man 2

Review by Jason Donner

It seems like only yesterday that Tony Stark strutted onto the screen and blew our minds as he showed us just how much fun being a rich playboy superhero can be.  Sure, the brooding variety billionaire playboy superheroes are fun in their own way, but Tony had is own style and, as Iron Man, he brought that style and kicked evil's butt with it.

Of course, since Iron Man made a load of cash, it was only a matter of time before Iron Man 2 rocketed into theaters to once again wow us with the adventures of the irresponsible rich boy in metal underpants.

I am not wowed.

In every sense of the word, I am not trying to imply that Iron Man 2 is a bad movie.  It's quite good as your usual Summer fluff goes, but there lies the problem... it's typical Summer fluff with none of the originality or pizzazz that made the first Iron Man special.

To be honest, I think that this sequel overdid it.  The first movie had a simple story and a focus, but this one appears to be all over the place with the appearance of Mickey Rourke as Whiplash, Sam Rockwell as a smarmy competitor of Stark, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, a meatier and more pre-credits part for Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury, and Don Cheadle taking the role of War Machine.  There's also a story arch about Tony getting some kind of metal cancer, his father leaving clue from the past, Tony and Pepper finally confronting their feelings for each other, an army of Iron Warriors, Tony acting out, the government wanting control of the Iron Man suit, and lots and lots of other stuff.  It's too damn complicated and too damn crowded.

Of course, there are standouts in Iron Man 2, namely Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark who takes the normal civilian role and makes it every bit as interesting (if not more) than the Iron Man scenes.  At least with Stark this interesting, I didn't find myself bored with the scenes in his civvies.

The ending of the movie is so anticlimactic that you almost don't even believe that the movie is over until the credits start to roll.  Then you're all like, "Whaaaaaat?"

I know the movie isn't bad, but it is a frustratingly average follow up to a movie full of such style and originality.  While those qualities are present in Iron Man 2, they are muted and, alas, so is the movie as a whole.