Iron Man 2

For me when I go to see a sequel it is always interesting in the buildup to the movie actually coming out to see where the vision is that htey are going to take the movie. Especially in the superhero genre because for the most part the first movie ends up being an origin piece that gives you the backstory. Iron Man 2 did not disappoint me with the directon the Iron Man franchise is going in.They picked up right where the first movie left off  and carried it on in true sequel fashion and even improved on a couple of flaws of the first one. In order for any character franchise to survive each film must be able to stand on its on and Iron Man 2 passes this test with flying colors.

While I know there are those out there that felt like this did not have enough action, they are undoubtedly those that have to find something to complain about no matter what and would have complained about too much action if the writers would have gone the way of Transformers 2 and decided to not give the film a plot. For me there were some great action sequences, but what really made this film so strong in my mind was that of the fact that they made this a film where it does not cram in too many characters which is the cardinal sin of so many sequels but instead is a movie that is all about Tony Stark. It is his story and is about him glibly declaring "I am Iron Man" and what that means for him and those around him.

Robert Downey Jr IS Tony Stark, though less of a playboy following his "change of heart"(figuratively and literally) in the first movie, but still the same wisecracking, smirky eccentric. He shows that wisecracking eccentric CEO right out of the gate while before congress he states "I did you a big favor. I have successfully privatized world peace." Downey and the rest of the cast just have a great chemistry together. Everyone is so natural in there parts that you truly believe that they are not acting but that is who they actually are. The female characters are played impeccably by Gwyneth Paltrow and Scarlett Johanson in that while they are women they are no damsels in distress. For me Paltrow's portrayal of Pepper Potts is spot and really comes across as the most real character of any in the film.

One of the great things that was done was to use two villains that actually enhance Tony Stark. Justin Hammer is who Stark was before he was ambushed in Afghanistan, the other side of his personality is the inventor/grease monkey side and that is represented by Whiplash. Rockwell in his portrayal of Justin Hammer does a great job because this character really had all the makings to be a silly one dimensional villainous caricature, but manages to be a well rounded scumbag of a corporate competitor, providing some excellent comic relief while still presenting a credible threat to the hero.

Now, Vanko's (played by Sin City's Mickey Rourke) is a truly tragic tale. It is easy to pass him off as a "darth maul" type character with no other purpose than to provide the hero with a powerful opponent for the mandatory climax. But to the more attentive viewers, one can see how Vanko is basically the dark opposite reflection of Tony Stark. Both are geniuses, both are where they are because of their respective fathers yet different circumstances in life brought them down entirely different paths. The parallels between his origin story of creating the "whiplash" powered armor from scrap, getting captured(in a similarly explosive manner) in order to develop weapons for one man to bring down his competitor all the way to his cunning escape plan and his mistaken impression about his dearly departed father are all uncannily similar to Tony Stark's experiences in the first movie that led up to his debut as the hero Iron Man and his mistaken impression about his own father.

The script is just layered with great witty banter, intelligent jokes and "easter eggs" for the long time comic book fans. Writer Justin Theroux does a great job and really gives us movie full of different themes, but none is as strong as that of the theme of legacy. It is interesting to see how Tony Stark himself struggles with wanting to know what he will leave behind and how others will perceive his legacy.

With as many visual effects companies that were used in this film it is no surprise that the visual effects and CGI were absolutely stunning and seamless.

Anytime I movie is able to successfully implement AC/DC into the music as part of the soundtrack it can not go wrong. I am giving Iron Man 2 four buckets of popcorn out of five. This movie is successful because while it does give a good dose of action it does not use the action to be overbearing and instead actually tells us a story. This is a must see in the theaters and be sure to stay through all the credits for clip after the movie, that while short is well worth staying to see.

-The Movie Man-