Movie Review: Iron Man 2

I finally saw it last night, and now that I've had my fill, I can finally tell you guys... IRON MAN 2 is the movie to watch this season, and I say that with the utmost conviction as a big fan of the character. This may be my first impression and I'm still due to see a couple more screens of the movie, but I'll go along with this review anyway and be as brief and as spoiler-free as possible. If you're one to shy away from other people's opinions and experience everything yourself, please stop reading this review right now. I'm due to see this film numerous times in the next few days, and it goes without saying that this superhero movie kicks the summer beat into high gear... but does it payoff substantially for those looking for a big bang repulsor blast? Read on and find out.

Movie: Iron Man 2

Starring: Robert Downey Jr. Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke, Samuel L. Jackson, Scarlett Johansson, Sam Rockwell

Directed By: Jon Favreau

The world knows that Tony Stark is Iron Man. Going public with his heroic identity, the "strutting his stuff" billionaire industrialist has concentrated all of his resources into making sure that the Iron Man armor does not fall into the wrong hands, preferring to defend the world on his own terms. His friends worry about him a great deal, especially his secretary Pepper Potts, who tries to manage his business affairs after Tony appoints her the new CEO of Stark Industries. Col. James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Stark's other confidant and liaison to the United States Military, tries to keep his best friend in check by keeping watch over his flamboyant activities, which have become erratic as of late due to a secret Tony's trying desperately to keep from everyone he holds dear. With problems growing and pressure to turn over his technology to the government, Tony's life is everything but peachy, and it's about to get worse when sins from his family's past comes back to haunt him. With the new threat out on the open and competition mounting from a scheming business rival, Tony must come to terms with himself and his legacy if he wants to emerge from the ashes and show just what a self-proclaimed "Iron Man" can do.

Straight into the review, I'm gonna say outright that this movie isn't just a good popcorn flick, it's a straight out comic book light show come to life. Yes, I said "light show", and I'll get right into that in a bit. Truth be told, I was expecting a lot more from the sequel, but I only came out decently satisfied. Since the origin tale is gone and done, Marvel Studios and Paramount focus now on Tony's other escapades, including his personal issues and the way the "Iron Man" has affected his life and the people around him. I'm sure glad Jon Favreau is back in the director's chair for the sequel. He did more than just a stellar job introducing Iron Man into the world of cinema, he practically nailed the entire concept on the coffin and gave a vision of the hero everyone could pretty much relate to. His decision to cast Robert Downey Jr. in the role Tony Stark was sheer brilliance the first time around, and that role revitalized the actor's career in a great way. He returns in sequel with flying colors, bringing his stellar work ethic and work ethic into making the character as interesting and flamboyant as ever... with a unique twist only he can deliver. Of course, even if everything revolves around Tony, he's got his supporting cast worried about his every move. Pepper Potts, once again played by Gwyneth Paltrow, tries to manage the business side of Stark Industries as the newly appointed CEO, but even a composed figure like her can succumb to pressure when more problems come crashing down your table in a literal sense. Col. James Rhodes also returns, with actor Don Cheadle replacing Terrence Howard from the last movie. Rhodey's role is expanded outright, and as you saw in the trailers, he eventually dons his own armor, has it upgraded, and becomes the War Machine. While I was at first bothered with the change in actor, Cheadle's performance wasn't bad at all, and he brought more life and fight into Rhodey than what I saw in the character in the first flick. Aside from the returning supporting cast and characters, new ones enter the fray to give Tony something else to worry about. One of course is the presence of business rival Justin Hammer, played by Sam Rockwell, who's as young and passionate as Stark was in the weapons business, yet lacking the creativity and moral convictions the other has. In fact, Nick Fury and Black Widow, played by the talented Samuel L. Jackson and the lovely Scarlett Johansson respectively, appear in this movie to add more heroic flavor to the mix. By far, the inclusion of Mickey Rourke as Ivan "Whiplash" Vanko only adds more fuel to the burning star power the film already has by giving us a brilliant amalgamation of two popular Iron Man villains. While he may be lesser known villain to the majority compared to the other foes in the comics, people who see this movie will come to appreciate the Whiplash character even more, who's seen as a sympathetic villain like Doc Ock, but becomes increasingly menacing as the movie unfolds. Oh, and director Jon Favreau also gets more screen time, playing once again the energetic bodyguard of Tony Stark, Happy Hogan!

Of course, after describing character relations, that's pretty much what the majority of Iron Man 2 story covers, and that's probably where my problem with the movie lies - in the pacing itself. Unlike in the first movie where you have a straightforward origin story and you move up to the good guy emerging to take on the bad guys, there are several subplots scattered around the sequel that will leave some dazed and confused. Sure, the beginning was fine and we are introduced to Whiplash and his ties to the Stark Legacy, but towards the middle of the flick, I felt things starting to drag, with too much time spent on Tony's inner turmoil and the subsequent steps he made to solve his personal problems by himself. I felt a lot more things could have been done at this point to give the movie a little more "omph", but concentrating on multiple character development within a two hour period is pretty hard to do. That aside, with the final product out in the open, you work with what you got, and for all intents and purposes, Iron Man 2 is still a decent flick I'd recommend to the Marvel fan. There's lots of great special effects, and anybody who's a fan of the Iron Man suit and the other armors will get a kick out of what they see here. Personally, I enjoyed seeing the Mark V suitcase armor, and that's something you all gotta see here. True, it's not as epic as the first movie where we got to see the evolution of the Iron Man armor in smooth transition, but you get a lot of eye candy and action on this one, with sparkly repulsor and Arc reactor powered technology flying around, hence my description of a "superb light show" earlier.

Of course, those expecting ties to the upcoming Avengers movie can rest easy. There are several references comic book fans with a keen eye will notice right away, as well as some name drops and cameos true blooded comic fans will be pleased to see. Also, please please PLEASE stay with the movie until after the credits role, for like in the first flick, there's something extra afterwards. With all that said, I end my review for Iron Man 2. It's no The Dark Knight, but it's no Revenge Of The Fallen either. Knock it away and enjoy the show, Shellheads!

Rating - 4/5