Iron Man 2 Has Character

Iron Man 2 is not the same movie as its 2008 predecessor like you might have expected it to be. Even though it does find ways to just strap big ass rockets and machine guns to everything, it doesn't sacrifice any backstory for the sake of a cheap rush. It's simple to make an action movie 'splode all over the place with no real depth, but it takes real finesse to balance a great character piece with a high-octane thrill ride, and Jon Favreau handles it perfectly.

The story is a little thin in the good guy vs. bad guy department, and maybe even in the science department, but Iron Man 2 thrives in the character progression department. Tony Stark's body is being

poisoned by the palladium used in the arc reactor embedded in his chest and he's not-so-slowly dying from it. But that doesn't stop him from being witty to no end and determined to have a good time before he finally kicks the bucket. Only problem is, no one knows that he's slowly deteriorating from the element that ironically is both killing him and keeping him alive. He's alone and his only solution is to set himself on a path of self destruction, inadvertently alienating the only people who care about him, Rhodie and Pepper.

That's the story you need to listen to. The story you're there to feast your eyes upon is the aforementioned good guy vs. bad guy stuff. A pretty standard revenge story with a bit of science whisked in to help thicken it up, Ivan Vanko, an amalgamation of Whiplash and Crimson Dynamo from the comics, is looking to get back at Tony for a generation old grudge between their fathers. When Ivan teams with rival weapons manufacturer Justin Hammer, things get ugly.

With two very different story lines it would have been easy to lose sight of the real personality of the story in lieu of including more lightning whips and war machines. However, the movie is like a near perfectly shuffled deck of cards; maybe there are a few too many on top, and maybe there are a few too many on bottom, but for the most part, the cards fall into place alternating perfectly one to the other. It's not a faultless film, but when the cards were dealt everyone got a pretty good hand. Who wants to see how long I can keep this metaphor going?

Whiplash is by far the most interesting new character and his badassery knows no bounds in Iron Man 2. The relentless comeback of Mickey Rourke continues as he's somehow found a way to fight his way back into the film industry looking like a hulking mutant that spent the last ten years with his face pressed against a running microwave. A lot of his time is spent walking away from big explosions in slow motion, but that's sort of how the character rolls. He's cool and calculating and he's been waiting a long time to get his revenge, so the slow motion sort of adds to his slow motion personality. As mentioned, the story line is a little thin, but Rourke's menacing charm keeps the film afloat.

Sam Rockwell shows up as Justin Hammer, the smarmy rival who could not have been played better. Rockwell always brings his best stuff to the table and every time we get something new from him. Gwyneth as Pepper Potts works better here than in the original, and even Jarvis, Stark's at-home and in-suit digital assistant has his own big personality.

At the end though, you're left with the ever burning question, what the hell is going on with S.H.I.E.L.D.? It's not that a full on explanation of the agency is necessary, that's coming with The Avengers, but a little bit of a deeper look into what it is they're planning (we all know already for cripe's sake, so it's no secret) would certainly help fuel the the fire for the inevitable merging of multiple super heroes into one movie. IM 2 had an opening for this to happen with Scarlett Johansson's Natalie Rushman sent to bring information on Stark back to S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury. One instance of Fury and Rushman trading information would have made her character less shoe-horned into a somewhat crowded cast and given a little more validity to her motivations.

The science behind Iron Man 2 I'm sure would be sound if they bothered to even attempt to explain any of it. Stark's mad genius persona is supposed to negate an audience's need to fully comprehend atoms and particle accelerators and all that mess, but it's hard to follow along when he seemingly pulls solutions out of thin air, basing them on the shape of a decades old model of the Stark Expo center. A bunch of flashy graphics zooming around does more to make me envious of the technology than it does keep me apprised of what's actually happening.

What you all want to know is how entertaining Iron Man 2 is, and since most of you are in it for the action, you should know that this movie 'splodes real nice. Indy cars getting chopped in half while traveling at break neck speeds, hot Iron Man on Iron Man action, and a whole lot of uber kinetic flying around makes IM2 as big as it needs to be to satisfy. It doesn't open with a huge explosion and a terrorist sect abducting anyone, but slowly builds on the characters' motivations until the pure anticipation of it finally makes situations explode. Deck of cards well shuffled indeed.

Iron Man 2 isn't so much an action movie with good characters as it is a character movie with good action. Comic books are RICH with characters and story and Jon Favreau wasn't afraid to make a movie that stuck to those laurels instead of just dropping bombs on stuff. The thinness of the baddies was made up for in full by the dynamic of Tony and Pepper, and the science, while maybe a bit too glossed over, seems believable enough as long as you aren't thinking too hard about it. The few hang-ups are far from downfalls and can easily be overlooked.

Jon Favreau is clearly made of swords, machine guns, tits, cheese, elks, and win, since there's no other explanation as to how he could be so awesome. Iron Man 2 is expertly crafted, witty, and an all-around enjoyable film for everyone. Great characters, awesome action, a weak story line or two but it's whatever.

4.5 Stars

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Comments

[Jewelie]

"like a hulking mutant that spent the last ten years with his face pressed against a running microwave" hahahahahhahaha I love it.

My only real problems with the movie involved Samuel L. and that AWFUL cheap porno sounding music outside the donut shop. And I was kind of irritated with the "vrrrt vrrrt vrrrt" noises when Tony moved in the suit, but I get it. I just wouldn't be able to handle listening to them all the time if I was wearing a suit like that.

Which I will some day, and then I will finally be able to crumple people.

[Kristin]

Wil really likes your copious use of the word 'splosions...he thinks you should trademark that haha