Mini-Review: Iron Man 2 (2010)
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Starring Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke, Gwyneth Paltrow, Sam Rockwell, Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson, Jon Favreau
Directed by Jon Favreau
Expectations: Low.
I’ve tried to write something about Iron Man 2 for the past week or so and every time I get a couple of paragraphs in I lose interest. This is an adequate analogy for the film as it’s fun while you’re watching it, but there’s absolutely no substance backing it up. It’s a blockbuster, so I don’t necessarily need substance but Iron Man 2 fails to make it up with the killer action sequences and mind-numbing explosions that you expect. It has its share to be sure, but none of them are all that great. Probably my favorite moment of the film was watching Robert Downey Jr. work with his holographic hand-controlled computer interface, which was a fun advancement on the tech seen in Minority Report.
Overall, I liked the cotton candy of Iron Man 2 though. Mickey Rourke, despite a poor accent, is a great addition to the cast. It’s unfortunate that his part in the film is rather minor, as he has to share the villain limelight with Stark’s failing heart. As much as I love Don Cheadle, he is a step down from Terence Howard for this role. Cheadle seems much too soft, but does come into his own by the end of the film, when both Downey and him are suited up and ready to go. Scarlet Johansson is another wasted person, completely superfluous to the film and the story. It’s nice to lay the seeds of The Avengers movie within this film, but for me the S.H.I.E.L.D. stuff was pretty forced. Fuck it though, Sam Jackson as Nick Fury was fairly fulfilling and promises good things to come.
If you liked Iron Man, give this one a go with your brain set to mild indifference. If you go in riding high, you will only be disappointed with this sequel. It fulfills the childhood dreams of watching dudes in robot suits shoot lasers and shit, but not much else. The character relationships are incredibly shallow here and seem to marginally move past what was laid out in the first film. It’s fun and I enjoyed it quite a bit, but it definitely leaves you wanting.
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Silver Emulsion 
What the fu–!?!?
Why didn’t you idiots tell me you guys had a movie review blog? Well, its too late now because I found it and am reading it. And you know what? I love it!!! Thanks for the site guys! I enjoy the entries regardless of the fact that the layout is the worst I’ve seen since the geocities.com days. Its as if a blind person put together the visual layout and also never left 1994.
Im not criticizing you, just being completely honest; just vocalizing what the readership is thinking… MORE NEW RELEASES!!!
I’m going through the whole archive its so fun! Anyways… much love. Mike D.
Hahahaha, glad you found it Mike! Droppin’ bombs in a thunderous debut comment! I tried to tell you about the site last time I saw you but you were fairly unreceptive at the time and I didn’t press it.
I hear you on the site design and you will be glad to know that it will be changing around the new year if I can get it all going. I take total responsibility for the 1994 sensibilities, as that’s about where my skills ended. Also this theme is a number of years old and lacks a lot of customization options.
And also, how does authorship system work? Everything that says by Uncle Jasper is by Uncle Jasper and everytihng that doesn’t is by the other of two reviewers?
Yeah everything that says Uncle Jasper is him, everything that says Will is me. Just us 2.
This film could have used more Rourke and less Rockwell.
You said it man. Very succinct description of the film!
Disappointing sequel, I didn’t think it was a bad movie but it was really a simple re-hash of the first movie and more of a trailer for The Avengers than an actual real sequel.
Disappointing from a substance perspective, but overall I enjoyed it. The Avengers stuff does seem forced and I think they have an uphill battle trying to make that work on-screen. Especially working Thor into it. Should be interesting to see how they handle him and his mythology.