Cast: Robert Downey Jr, Gwyneth Paltrow, Mickey Rourke, Sam Rockwell, Scarlet Johansson, Don Cheadle
Director: Jon Favreau
Sophomore slump. When the follow-up effort is nowhere as good as the first. The Dark Knight and Spider-Man 2 are probably the only exceptions to this rule in the comic book movie world. (Maybe add in X2, but that’s it!) Iron Man 2 just cannot buck the trend. Despite having pretty much everything going for it.
Iron Man was a bigger hit than anyone expected. There was an idea, as Nick Fury revealed at the end. But what if the success was a flash in the plan. The main thing was to stabilise the plan. What better way to do it than a direct sequel?
Armed with a bigger budget and with the same actor-director duo, this was meant to be a stroll in the park. Unfortunately, writer Justin Theroux (Former Mr Jennifer Aniston, big package, et al) thought exactly the same. A good story was not on his mind, a lot more Iron Man. In this case, Iron Men.
Tony Stark (Downey Jr.) is discovering life after declaring that he was Iron Man. It is not all guns and roses. While he has a lot of people to fawn over him, he also has to deal with people who are jealous and want to usurp him of the Iron Man suit, like his business rival Justin Hammer (Rockwell). He also has to deal with a highly independent secretary-turned-CEO, who is also his girlfriend. In the middle of this comes Anton Vanko (Rourke), a Russian genius with a chip on his shoulder. He has history with Stark that he wants to sort out. And there is also the fact that Tony Stark is dying. The arc reactor keeping him alive is also poisoning him.
Robert Downey Jr. was spectacular in Iron Man. He had given his all to the role. As a result, he has nothing new to offer here. Mickey Rourke, in the height of his Wrestler renaissance, is quite well cast as a Russian genius. Of course, he has the physique to carry off the role. On the other hand, Don Cheadle is horribly miscast. He is such a good actor, but he cannot convince us he is a military colonel, much less the Iron Patriot. Marvel fired Terrence Howard due to payment issues. Sam Rockwell tries to bring some quirks. But they are all let down by a weak script.
With more money, Favreau could afford to splurge. The Monte Carlo sequence is quite impressive. The Iron Man suit is this time in a suitcase. Vanko’s electrified whips are definitely eye-popping, though it is interesting to note that the name Whiplash is never used anywhere in the movie. Also successful is the introduction of Natasha Romanoff aka The Black Widow (Johansson). This was a smart move and she leaves the best impact in the movie.
If there were on Avengers movies, no Phase 1, 2, 3, etc., no Marvel Cinematic Universe, then Iron Man would have ended a very average trilogy. But then the universe (as in Marvel Studios) had very different plans.
Stan Lee cameo: Stan as Larry David this time. Not as funny as in the first movie.
Post-credits scene: This is a thriller of sorts. Phil Coulson says he had to go to New Mexico earlier in the movie. By the time the credits rolled up, he had reached there and made a discovery of a carpentry tool. Goosebumps.
No comments:
Post a Comment