Hello there Gusties, how’s it going? I’m sure everyone is keeping real busy what with it being spring and finals fast approaching. No one’s checked out for the year, right? Well if you can bear to pull yourself away from your studies for a couple hours, if you are looking to put off studying one more night or if you just want to escape the beautiful Minnesota spring (it’s 40 degrees and raining as I write to you), you should consider checking out Iron Man 2.
Iron Man 2 is a sequel to 2008’s critically acclaimed Iron Man, and is the second film in a planned trilogy based on the comic book series from Marvel Comics.
Iron Man 2 picks up right where the plot of the original movie left off. Literally. The film opens with the closing scene of the original, a cut of the press conference in which Tony Stark, played by Robert Downey Jr., announces to the world that he is indeed Iron Man, the hero bedecked in a high-tech suit of armor responsible for saving the world from terrorists and his company’s own power hungry CEO.
Now let’s fast forward six months to where Iron Man 2 kicks off the real action. We find Tony on the eve of Stark Expo, a year-long festival drawing the greatest minds in the world together in an attempt to right the world’s many wrongs through technology. This is Tony’s attempt to continue his newfound philanthropic streak, turning Stark Industries around from the weapons manufacturer it was into a new, socially aware corporation.
Unfortunately for Tony, trouble is brewing. The U.S. Senate is trying to lay claim to the Iron Man suit, the very technology keeping Tony alive is slowly killing him and there’s a madman waiting in the wings to bring about a more abrupt demise for Tony Stark. Big surprise, things seem pretty bleak for our hero.
Despite all the tragedy, however, Downey manages to portray Stark as the cocky, cynical billionaire playboy he is. His performance just feels natural. Speaking of which, Iron Man 2 seems to have been written with specific actors in mind. The film is cast perfectly.
Mickey Rourke takes up the villain role as Russian prison-hardened, psychotic, parakeet-loving Ivan Vanko and delivers a truly stellar performance. Scarlett Johansson is the tantalizing assistant, with perhaps one or two unnecessary close-ups. Samuel L. Jackson gets an expanded role as the eye-patched, mysterious Nick Fury. Jon Favreau, who also directed, provides comic relief in the form of Stark’s chauffer/boxing coach. Oh yeah, the movie also co-stars Don Cheadle and Gwyneth Paltrow. There is even a cameo by Stan Lee, the comic book’s original author.
While movies that attempt to cram so many Hollywood egos into one package often suffer, Iron Man 2 excels. All the actors fit their roles perfectly, and their on-screen chemistry is actually realistic. The movie makes you think that these people might even get together on weekends.
The acting is not all that seems more realistic about Iron Man 2, either. The film departs from other comic book superhero movies in a very critical way: it has depth. If you’re looking for action from previews to credits, look elsewhere. Iron Man 2 does have fight scenes, which are exquisitely done. They leave you wondering how anyone could have envisioned such an innovative and dazzling way to blow stuff up. As someone in the row in front of me so eloquently put it during one of the final fight scenes, “Shit!”
The battles are more sporadic than you might imagine, though. The movie more than makes up for this with a lot of subtle humor and a plot which deals with issues ranging from the vulnerability which everyone, even superheroes, experience, to the bonds of family and friends, to excessive drinking (we find out that Iron Man can attend the call of nature without taking the suit off). The characters are believably human, with quirks and insecurities all their own, which only serves to enhance the profound story line that much more.
All in all, Iron Man 2 is an extremely well rounded movie that has something for everyone. Whether you are an action junkie, a comic book fan, someone who wants to enjoy some top notch acting in a surprising place or just a college student looking to escape studying, Iron Man 2 is sure to please. So if you’re looking for a way to unwind after studying, check it out. Don’t work too hard, enjoy your summer and I’ll see you next year. I give Iron Man 2 three crowns out of three.