REVIEW: Iron Man 2

Iron Man is the only Avenger to get two movies in Phase One of the MCU, and the sequel largely builds upon what made the first movie so successful: Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, quick, quirky dialogue and some pretty cool action sequences. And while there are many highlights, the movie on the whole, feels overstuffed.

Iron Man 2 (2010) picks up largely where we left off with our physically and intellectually gifted, yet emotionally tormented protagonist after he proclaimed "I am Iron Man" at the end of  the first film as he prepares to host the Stark Expo, a tech summit that his dear ol' dad held in the glory days of the company.

Stark's showboating sets off our first villain (one of at least three in this film), Ivan Vanko, played by wrestler Mickey Rourke, a brutish, bitter man who thinks Stark has stolen his arc reactor technology from his father. While Rourke is amusing as a Russian tatted-up bully, hell-bent on revenge, he's far less believable as an engineering genius able of recreating Stark's Iron Man suit, complete with his own electric whips. Still, it's hard not to laugh at Rourke's emotional attachment to his bird ("I want my bord!") or his staccato responses ("drone better") to Sam Rockwell's Justin Hammer (more on him in a minute). As far as a villain though, his motive is little more than stereotypical revenge and his persona (supposedly 'Whiplash,' though I don't think the name is ever uttered in the film) is largely forgettable.

The second, although minor, villain we meet is the bloated Senator Stern (Garry Shandling), who wants Stark to turn over his Iron Man technology so the military can use it as a nuclear deterrent. Stark resists, arrogantly proclaiming no one else is as smart as he as and therefore, no one else -- not even his rival weapons manufacturer Justin Hammer -- can possible possess this kind of technology. Shandling feels forced into this movie a bit, but I'll give credit to Marvel for introducing us to him and setting him up to be a bigger villain in later movies in the franchise.

Shandling tries to use testimony from James Rhodey (Don Cheadle replaces Terrance Howard from here on out as Stark's military buddy and really feels right in the role) against Tony, but it blows up in his face. That is until Vanko starts thrashing his arc reactor-powered whips around the race track at the Monaco Grand Prix, slicing cars in half and nearly killing Tony in the process. He's arrested and whisked off to jail.

Enter our third villain, Justin Hammer, who is arguably the most entertaining of the three (although Rourke has his moments). Honestly, I could watch Sam Rockwell chew scenery in just about anything and he's in his prime here -- effortlessly switching between wry humor and a querulous whiner who seems in over his head. I'm fairly certain he improvised a good portion of his stuff, and the scene where he's showing off his weapons might be the best it gets. But aside from being a business rival, and the fact that Tony can be is an asshole, his backstory about why he has it out for Iron Man is never really fleshed out.

The last villain is more metaphorical -- Tony is fighting with his own mortality, as we learn the arc reactor in his chest is powered by a super rare element that's also slowly killing him. That does give us the opportunity to see Tony try to do the right thing by handing over his company to Pepper Potts. But as is the case with his character, he's a bad boy trying to do the right thing and often mucking it up. Still, that gives us something - or rather someone - to root for.

The transfer of the company and Stark's erratic behavior also give S.H.I.E.L.D. a reason to bring in Natalie Rushman AKA Natasha Romanoff AKA Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson). Unfortunately in this film, she's mostly used as a sexy prop, flipping her god-awful wig of red hair as she kicks bad guy ass in a skin-tight suit. Romanoff initially is an enabler, but toward the end of the movie isn't afraid to put Stark in his place. As a character, it feels a little inconsistent, but then again, she's also a master spy, so perhaps she's being intentionally manipulative. My bet though (since it took us a full 9 years after this film to get our first female-led Marvel movie in Captain Marvel), is Marvel didn't think viewers could/would/should take a female superhero seriously.

If that weren't enough plot already, throw in some old Kodak films of Howard Stark that eventually lead Tony to create a new element to fix the death box in his chest, swoop in and save the day. Rhodey, now suited up in a Hammer weapons-enhanced version of Tony's earlier Iron Man suit, eventually helps Stark defeat Vanko in a final battle scene seems a little far-fetched. The pair have enough time for playful banter while dodging supposedly some of the most sophisticated weapons out there. But that fits with Marvel's tone: finding the fun in between the serious superhero moments.

Overall, I think there are a lot of good elements here, but Marvel was a little overambitious in its sequel, not allowing what was good here to breathe and become great. Still, it's a fun follow-up to the OG that started it all.

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐.5 / ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐