Movie Review – Iron Man 2 (2010)
The next movie prequel to The Avengers (2012) and part of the massive Marvel Cinematic Universe is 2010′s hit film, Iron Man 2.
The first Iron Man movie came out of nowhere and blew audiences away with the arrogant yet fascinating genius of Tony Stark and his Iron Man powered suit. The end of that movie had Tony Stark admitting in a news conference that he indeed was the Iron Man.
In the amazing world of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the events in Iron Man 2 take place about six months after the first Iron Man film, and just after most of the events in 2008’s The Incredible Hulk.
Iron Man 2 begins in Russia where Ivan Vanko (played by Mickey Rourke) is tinkering with electronics and watching Tony Stark’s (still played by Robert Downey, Jr.) press conference.
Looking closely at the scene, we saw that Ivan had construction blueprints from Stark Industries, and his father’s name was on it along with Howard Stark, Tony Stark’s father. Vanko’s father is with him and dies shortly after the press conference. Ivan Vanko promises to extract his revenge against Tony Stark and Stark Industries.
Six months later, Tony Stark is busy jumping out of an aircraft in his Iron Man powered suit and making on hell of an entry for the newly re-instituted Stark Expo in Flushing Meadow, New York. He removes the suit and gives a speech to the crowd about how he’s responsible for world peace.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
Upon leaving the Expo, Stark is handed a summons to testify before a Senate Armed Services Committee the next day. Naturally, Tony Stark turns the hearing into a circus with his antics. Senator Stern (played by Garry Shandling) demands that Tony turn over his armored suit to the government as it’s viewed as a weapon. Tony refuses, claiming that the armored suit is his property and part of him, and turning himself into the government would be the same as indentured servitude.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
Tony Stark also adds that while other countries are trying to replicate the technology, they’re still years if not decades away from being a threat. Stark goes further and shows footage of Justin Hammer’s (played by Sam Rockwell) rival defense contractor company trying their version of Stark’s technology, and he’s even worse than other countries. Hammer’s company is made into a laughing stock before Stark leaves the Senate hearing.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
After the hearing, Stark returns home to his laboratory. We see that he’s slowly succumbing to blood poisoning caused by the palladium core in his arc reactor. Each time he uses the powered suit, the more poisoning enters his body. What’s worse is that Tony is running out of options and time to fix this critical problem.
We see Tony Stark act more and more irrational as he faces the grim reality of what is going to happen to his body. Acting for the future of Stark Industries, Tony appoints Pepper Potts (still played by Gwyneth Paltrow) as CEO, and Natalie Rushman (played by Scarlett Johansson) as Pepper’s assistant.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
While in Monaco, we see Tony act for himself. Stark Industries has an open-wheel racecar, and Tony replaces himself as the driver for the race. Pepper Potts and Justin Hammer both watch as Tony begins making laps around the twisty racetrack. Then they watch in horror as Ivan Vanko, disguised as a rescue worker, boldly walks onto the track and begins wrecking cars with his electric whips weapon. The whips are powered by an arc reactor very much like Tony Stark’s powered suit. Pepper Potts and Tony’s chauffeur, Happy Hogan (played by the film’s director Jon Favreau), race to Tony’s aid and give him a suitcase version of his powered suit. Tony becomes the Iron Man and defeats Ivan Vanko.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
Tony Stark questions Ivan Vanko after he’s arrested. He learns that Vanko is the son of his father’s old partner, Anton Vanko, who had helped Howard Stark build his first arc reactor. Anton was later deported back to the Soviet Union where he later died in poverty. Shortly later, Ivan Vanko escaped from prison thanks to the help of Justin Hammer. Hammer hires Ivan as chief engineer in his defense company.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
Back at home, Tony Stark throws himself a wild birthday party. He stays in his Iron Man powered suit and drunkenly entertains the crowd. His good friend, Air Force Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes (played by Don Cheadle), is forced to don his own power suit (becoming War Machine) from Tony’s laboratory and force Tony to end his party. Tony refuses and the two Iron Men fight each other. After Tony is defeated, Rhodes takes his powered suit and flies away to his Air Force base, giving the suit to the U.S. government.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
After things calm down, Tony Stark is approached by S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury (still played by Samuel L. Jackson). Fury reveals that Natalie Rushman is really a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent (known as Natasha Romanoff), and Tony’s father, Howard Stark, was one of the founders of the secret organization. Fury gives Tony his father’s old research material, telling him that he hasn’t quite thought of each possibility to his arc reactor problem, and the solution is still out there. After seeing a unique angle with his father’s scale model of the 1974 Stark Expo, Tony Stark furiously works and finds the solution to his problem.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
But there’s still more to go in Iron Man 2.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
While Tony Stark is solving his problem, another issue is growing as Ivan Vanko builds an army of HAMMER Drones for Justin Hammer’s defense company. The story heads back to the Stark Expo as Tony Stark faces Ivan again, fighting off not only the Russian mastermind but also his army of HAMMER Drones.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
The end of the first Iron Man movie had Nick Fury telling Tony Stark about something called the “Avengers Initiative.” Iron Man 2 takes that angle a little bit further as Fury reveals that agent Natasha Romanoff has been analyzing Tony Stark in preparation for his potential role in the Avengers. To Tony’s surprise, he’s not being recommended as a full-time member of the elite organization.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
However, Tony Stark would be a consultant for the organization. What’s interesting about this scene is that the TV monitors are showing damage from the Hulk’s destruction at Culver University. This is just a small example of the cross-overs between films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
Earlier in Iron Man 2 we saw a prototype of Captain America’s shield again in Tony Stark’s laboratory. S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) asks Tony Stark about the shield when Tony realizes he could use it to level his sophisticated machine. As we later learn in another film, Howard Stark was responsible for the technology used to create the super soldier known as Captain America.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
A scene post-credits has S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson investigating a mysterious disturbance out in a desert in New Mexico. Of course, this sets the scene for Thor, the next movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Iron Man 2 (2010) – (c) Paramount Pictures
It seems that something God-like has been found in the desert . . .
Iron Man 2 (2010) – movie trailer
As a whole, Iron Man 2 was a pretty good movie. It’s not a great one, but it’s still decent and a lot of fun. The action scenes were a blast, Tony Stark’s personality was just as entertaining as in the first movie, and Ivan Vanko was an interesting bad guy.
But it didn’t feel like Iron Man 2 added much of anything new to the storyline. Most of the fun elements were things that we experienced in the first movie. While the angle with the Howard Stark footage was interesting (a clone of Walt Disney at the 1964-65 World’s Fair?), that and Tony Stark’s arc reactor problem didn’t add enough to really drive this story.
It would have been nice to have seen more of Ivan Vanko in the climax of the movie. It also would have been interesting to see how Lt. Col. James Rhodes already knew how to operate the powered suit despite not wearing it in the first movie.
AC/DC’s “Shoot to Thrill” music video with Iron Man 2 footage
Iron Man 2 was good but not great. There are a few fun connections to the other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but the movie doesn’t add much to the overall storyline.
Tony Stark (speaking to a massive crowd at the Stark Expo) – “I’m not saying Uncle Sam can kick back on a lawn chair, sipping on an iced tea, because I haven’t come across anyone man enough to go toe to toe with me on my best day!”