Iron Man 2 gains critical admiration in theaters

By James Hill III

Two years after the surprising $585 million box office success of "Iron Man," "Iron Man 2", the inevitable sequel, has been released with much fanfare to lead off the summer movie season.

Iron Man starred a resurgent Robert Downey Jr. as the charismatic Tony Stark, who, at the end of the film, announced to the press that he was, in fact, Iron Man. The movie contained a strong cast, witty script and engrossing action that made it one of the best superhero films in recent memory.

*SPOILER ALERT* I try not to delve into the entire film's plot here, but there are some details that need to be discussed. If you haven't seen Iron Man 2 and don't want to spoil anything, skip to the last paragraph *SPOILER ALERT*

This time around, Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow return as principal cast members, with their banter a constant highlight of the screenplay. Paltrow's frazzled Pepper Potts has been promoted to CEO of Stark Industries by Stark (Downey). Meanwhile, Stark tries his hardest to drown his worries in excess, distraction and alcohol.

Don Cheadle has replaced Terrence Howard as Lt. Col. James Rhodes, who obtains an earlier model of the Iron Man suit upgraded to the War Machine suit. Samuel L. Jackson has an expanded role as Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D. New additions to the franchise include Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko, a deranged Russian physicist lusting for revenge against Iron Man for the perceived wrong committed by Stark's father against Vanko's.

Scarlett Johansson joins the cast as Natalie Rushman, Stark's new secretary who's clearly hiding more than she lets on.

In a lot of ways, "Iron Man 2" reminded me of the earlier blockbuster "Kick-Ass" in the sense that its pace never seemed to settle down. The opening scene seems out of place - all three of the people I saw it with chuckled at Rourke's cry of anguish - but the audience was quickly won over with the reintroduction of Tony Stark. Despite the better cast in this sequel, Downey Jr. still steals the show almost every time he's on screen.

As the plot jumps back and forth between a depressed Tony and an excessive Tony (with smatterings of other characters' arcs in between), the film never seems to find its groove.

Luckily, these scenes are interrupted by action sequences that are, admittedly, more solid than almost all from the first "Iron Man." An exciting scene set at the Monaco Grand Prix is especially well done, and the finale is much more fulfilling than the previous film's. "Iron Man 2" also packs enough pieces of fan service to keep the eyeballs of any observant nerd (such as myself) glued to the screen. Stark's power is in full force, with cameos by the likes of Oracle CEO Larry Ellison and G4 reporter Olivia Munn.

The presence of Nick Fury, the superspy from countless other Marvel Comic works, represents the use of "Iron Man 2" to lay the foundations for the upcoming "Avengers" movie, set to release in 2012, which will tie together multiple Marvel Studio franchises. "Iron Man 2" is full of references to other characters from the Marvel universe, such as the unfinished version of Captain America's shield seen in Tony's lab. Stark also cameod briefly back in 2008's "The Incredible Hulk," another example of the phenomenal job Marvel Studios has done of interweaving its story lines for "Avengers," the first of many Marvel movies to come--Samuel L. Jackson has been signed for an unprecedented nine films as the ubiquitous Fury.

*OK, SPOILERS DONE*

Overall, "Iron Man 2" is quite well done. There are definitely some groan-worthy lines in a script somewhat inferior to the original's (written by Justin Theroux, whose debut was 2008's Tropic Thunder), but nothing is egregious enough to warrant avoiding the movie. The action scenes are crisp and fun, never losing the spark that characterizes the Marvel franchise. Its cast shines, with everyone earning their screen time and not a boring character to be seen. The plot zips through its two hours with few dull moments. Is it movie of the year? Unfortunately, no; I'm still waiting for 2010's first truly great release. But is it a quality action movie that deserves acclaim and a large audience? Definitely.

By the way, stay until the end of the credits. Like in the first "Iron Man," Marvel has left another nod to their web of franchises, and this one won't disappoint.

Contact James Hill III at jhill@scu.edu or at (408) 554-1918.

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