Movie Review : Iron Man 2

Tony Stark is a narcissistic ass. Pepper Potts is a wailing banshee. So what else is new?

Iron Man is currently the only Super Hero on the horizon, and since he’s saving this world, he needs an enemy. Mickey Rourke nicely fits the bill, as Ivan Vanko, the son of the Russian prodigy who designed the Iron Man Energy Source – you know the circular shiny thingy fitted into Stark’s chest. Ivan’s Dad dies in penury, and he is incensed at Stark for not rewarding his Dad for his great service to the Stark Corporation. Hence, Ivan gets armed and dangerous, and Iron Man is about to find out that there are people who don’t like him . . .

I have to say that compared to Iron Man 1, IM2 falls a little short. IM1 brought us the birth of the Iron Man, and how cool is it to see him zip off, jump off, fly off, all for the very first time ? IM2 comes in with a set stage – The Iron Man suit has been improved upon and duplicated; Stark has a couple of them in different colors. Everyone likes a little variety – even the Iron Man. With the infrastructure in place, Stark is all set to deal with the bad guys. The “organic” angle already having been explored in IM1, you have to create problems to get IM2 going. It does get going though – it has action, car chases, mobile bolts of lightning, and a great big lumbering villain who looks like he could snap Iron Man in two with his bare hands, Daddy’s technology or not.

Now, as you all know, for all his posturing and gloating, Starky boy has a heart of gold. Strike that. It’s actually made of a radioactive material which is beginning to poison his blood, but I digress. Yeah, OK, what I meant was, he’s a softie inside, melting with love for the Potts lady. Pepper (Gwyneth Paltrow) too, for all her prissy ladylike demeanor and ineffectual shrieking has a soft spot for her boss. Love, you think ? Enter Scarlett Johansson as Natalie Rushman, ravishingly beautiful, small-time Stark Corp. employee with a penchant for skin-tight clothes. Will Stark sway from his undeclared love ? He is a cad, you know, the heart of gold talk notwithstanding.

So, there is the villain, the love-life, the blood poisoning. And then there’s Stark’s friend and sidekick Lt. Col James Rhodes (Don Cheadle), wheedling his way into the movie. Differences arise as they must, and the friends decide to part ways after a lot of broken glass and furniture. When the villain and the big bad world unite, will the friends see the error of their ways ? See the movie to find out.

Iron Man 2 is a decent action film. It could have used some oomph in the climax department, because that does have a been-there-done-that feel. The film runs about 2 hours, starts off well, and the end comes with thundering battles and the villain out in full form. In the middle the film gets a little flabby; meandering conversations and more of Stark’s gloating persona. Still an interesting watch, this one needs to be seen in theatres for maximum effect.