Iron Man 2 Movie Review

Iron Man 2 is a Marvel Studios film and is the third installment in the MCU as Jon Favreau returns to direct the sequel. While the first film was good, this film wasn't bad, but nowhere near as great as the first one was.

Robert Downey Jr. returns and Tony Stark and once again he is amazing in the role as he owns the role. Gwyneth Paltrow also returns and once again does great as her chemistry with us powerful and chaotic at times. Don Cheadle stars as James Rhodes who replaces Terrence Howard and he was great in the film and also owns the role. It was cool to see him as War Machine. We also see Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow who steals the show, Sam Rockwell as Justin Hammer, Mickey Rourke as Whiplash, and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury who was all perfectly cast for the film and stood out.

The film is about the US government wanting Tony Stark to hand over the Iron Man technology as his health is slowly declining, while Ivan Venko and Justin Hammer want to go against Stark. The film had great action scenes when they happened and did good building the tension between the characters. It was also cool seeing Iron Man and War Machine together and more hints of what is to come in this Marvel Universe as it sets up some stuff. And a plus is that it played AC/DC.

The film has several flaws though as it suffers from the world-building it's trying to do. It seems to focus is setting up the universe at times. There are also too many plot lines from Tony slowly dying, Whiplash wanting revenge, Hammer wanting to embarrass him, and the US Government. Another flaw is the villains as Mickey Rourke was a bit underwritten which he was upset about. I think he should have been the main villain and not Hammer.

But honestly, even with those problems, I did enjoy it. I found it enjoyable for what it is. Worst MCU film? No, but it is near the bottom of the list.

Rating: 7.5/10

Grade: B-