Techie
12:22 AM | Thursday | 06 May 2020

The first Iron Man movie was a huge success, and many fanboys and moviegoers (us included) couldn't sit still for the second installment. Last night, our long wait came to an end. True enough, Iron Man 2 did not disappoint. It lived up to the hype, did justice to the trailer, and oh yes, met our expectations.

Robert Downey Jr. reprises his role as the smooth and suave Tony Stark. Stark is pretty much the same I-don't-give-a-damn narcissist as he was in the first film, only this time he's more eccentric especially since he no longer keeps a secret identity. Downey pulls off the cocky role owning the Tony Stark/Iron Man character much like how he did Sherlock Holmes, and we're more than convinced that no other Hollywood actor could step in to fill his metallic shoes.

Ivan Vanko aka Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) plays Iron Man's nemesis in the movie. Rourke is terrific for the role, pinning down the Russian accent and the nothing-to-lose attitude of the tragic character. His scenes and lines, however, were limited because he shared the spotlight with another antagonist, Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell), the rich weapons manufacturer with whom he had to work with. Together, Vanko and Hammer form a bully-nerd tandem whose abilities complement each other, thus putting the odds in their favor.

Fortunately, Stark isn't alone as his brother-in-arms, Lt. Col. James "Rhodey" Rhodes (now played by Don Cheadle who replaces Terrence Howard), joins him in battle as the uberstocked War Machine. Cheadle is a little more stiff and serious compared to Howard, but he gives Rhodey's character a brotherly connection with Tony.

The females also played major roles in Iron Man 2; Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) is more aggressive this time as she plays an empowered woman who still wants to be loved (awwww). We won't divulge too much about her exploits, but suffice it to say that without her, Tony Stark wouldn't be as sane as he would be, especially toward the end of the movie. Same goes with Natalie Rushman aka Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), who proves that you could be curvaceous and not at all muscly and still be able to kick ass like you were a WWE Diva.

A big part of the Iron Man movies is comedy. And with an actor like Robert Downey Jr. and a director like Jon Favreau, you could expect to break out more than just a few laughs. Iron Man 2 is by far the most comedy-filled Marvel superhero movie to date. It's basically a comedy-action flick, and every scene, even those with heavy fighting, is an opportunity for Downey to showcase his impeccable comedic timing. Think Jack Sparrow but more sober.

Big-name news anchors like Fox News' Bill O' Reilly, CNN's Christiane Amanpour, G4TV's Olivia Munn, and a fake Larry King (played by Stan "The Man" Lee, no less) also added some reality-based humor to the film. After watching them on screen, a part of you wishes that what they're reporting is real.

As any hardcore fanboy knows by now, Iron Man 2 is so much more than just one movie; it's the start of something big. In the first movie, we were introduced to Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and SHIELD. In this movie, 2 Marvel mainstays teased their way into the screen with less-than-subtle clues. We won't ruin it for you, but keep an eye out for them during the "rebuild" sequence and the "secret" scene after the end credits.

Of course, no matter how great the movie may be, it will have its downsides, and the most prominent of them all is during the final battle. It's essentially the same as with the first movie, as it's a face-off between Iron Man suits. What's worse is that the clash between Whiplash and Iron Man and War Machine ended even before there was real tension. In simple words, it was anticlimactic, and that's something we really didn't like. Come on, all that build-up and it ends in 3 minutes?

In the end, however, Iron Man 2 is still a great flick. It's fun to watch and there's something for everyone – even the ladies. We just wish, though, that Olivia Munn and the Ironettes were given more scenes.

Iron Man 2 opens in theaters nationwide tomorrow, April 30.

Official movie site ironmanmovie.marvel.com

Images allmoviephoto