Editorial
Front Page - Friday, May 14, 2010
The Critic's Corner
David Laprad
When “Iron Man” was a big hit in 2008, there was no doubt there’d be a sequel. But director Jon Favreau, actor Robert Downey Jr. and the rest of the team that brought the superhero to the screen had their work cut out for them. Out of the countless part twos to successful action or science fiction movies, only a few have achieved their own greatness. Today, fans speak of “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan,” “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,” “Aliens,” “Spider-Man 2” and “Terminator 2” with awed reverence. No one has the same regard for “Die Hard 2,” “Speed 2” or “The Fly 2.”
So, will “Iron Man 2” join the elite echelon of great genre sequels or be tossed into the trash heap of film history? The good news is Tony Stark isn’t going to be buried in a landfill; the bad news is he barely escapes that fate.
Stark has been busy since he took out Obadiah Stane in the first movie: in addition to single-handedly securing world peace, he’s established the Stark Expo, a year long celebration of technology. As he lands center stage at the expo in the Iron Man suit, fireworks exploding behind him and a roaring crowd in front of him, it appears as though there’s no stopping him – or his ego.
But there’s a problem. While Stark has been making the world a better place, the screenwriters of “Iron Man 2” have been working overtime to throw a few wrenches into the smoothly operating machinery of his life. For starters, the ARC technology that’s keeping him alive is also poisoning him, and will soon kill him if he doesn’t find a replacement. Stark’s success is also a thorn in the flesh of Senator Stern, who’s launched a campaign to force Stark to turn the Iron Man suit over to the U.S. government. Justin Hammer, a weapons manufacturer in competition with Stark, is also unhappy.
Then there’s Ivan Vanko, the son of the man with whom Stark’s father created the original ARC technology. As Ivan sees it, Stark’s dad took all of the credit and got all of the fame for the invention, while his father was left to die a penniless alcoholic in Siberia.
I’m already at the halfway point of this review, and I haven’t even mentioned that S.H.I.E.L.D. has planted an agent in Stark’s organization in an effort to keep an eye on him, or the tension between Stark and his personal assistant, Pepper Potts, or the strain between Stark and Rhody, played by Terrance Howard in “Iron Man” and Don Cheadle in the sequel.
Phew! When I take stock of everything that’s going on in “Iron Man 2,” I think of “Spider-Man 3.” That movie was a mess, mainly because the people who made it tried to squeeze too many villains between the opening and closing credits. The creators of “Iron Man 2” made a similar mistake, and as a result, the film has no central focus. Worse, the connection between various plotlines are thin and the motivations of many of its characters are sketchy.
For example, it’s clear why Vanko wants Stark dead – it’s the classic revenge scenario – but what about Hammer? I assume he’s jealous, but at no time is that made clear. And why is Potts so annoyed with Stark? Or Rhody so eager to turn his back on his friend and steal the War Machine suit? For that matter, why is the U.S. military so eager to join forces with Hammer? Too many things don’t add up.
There are other problems. Several conversations accomplish nothing, including the first chat between Stark and Vanko, and Favreau’s direction, which was as tight as a drum in “Iron Man,” is shaky at times. The birthday party sequence, during which Iron Man zaps bottles of champagne over the heads of his guests without hurting anyone, made me wince.
All of that said, Favreau and company still pull off an entertaining movie. There are moments when the dialogue crackles with humor and wit, and for the most part, the action is enjoyable, especially the sequence where Vanko tries to take out Stark at the Monaco Grand Prix. The audience even broke out in applause at one point near the end of the film, when Iron Man pulls an ace out of his sleeve to escape a tight spot, and the martial arts choreography during a fight between a new character and a hallway full of bad guys is super.
In the end, “Iron Man 2” delivers the goods but doesn’t come close to earning a place in the gallery of hallowed genre movie sequels. I still have faith in the creators of the series, though, and believe they can deliver a third film that will knock our socks off.
Email David Laprad at dlaprad@hamiltoncountyherald .com.
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