I really really wanted to like Iron Man 2.
Iron Man was one of the pleasant surprises of two summers ago, a popcorn flick with depth and character, a blockbuster with a beating heart – the heart of Tony Stark, who we grew to like and care for, in spite of himself… a character who matured and grew into a responsible citizen of the world.
Gee, Tony, what happened?
All the growth in the character in the first movie is negated in the first 10 minutes of the sequel, where we get the impression that all the character growth was driven by his ego, not his altruism. He’s “privatized world peace” but this is all talked about and not shown – a cardinal sin in a visual medium such as film. When he talks about it, he feigns humility, in a way that is obviously egotistical. Tony is even MORE self-centered at the beginning of the movie than he was in the first film.
Why?
I think it’s a serious question, and one that lies at the heart of the problems of Iron Man 2. There is no reason for Stark to “revert to type” and the only reason that is given (he’s being poisoned by his own cybernetic heart) is cloying and rings false. At the end of the first film, he is an empathetic character. In this one, he’s a self-centered jerk who‚’s dying, and ends this movie… as a self-centered jerk who is no longer dying. Iron Man 2 is like a TV episode – it puts characters in dramatic situations and then resets the status quo at the last (ten) minutes.
Another frustration (not complaint – again, I WANTED to like the movie) is that Iron Man 2 is plot driven, not character driven. Things HAPPEN to the characters, they don‚’t drive the plot (Tony Stark spends a considerable amount of the movie doing, well, nothing). The most active Tony is in the first half of the movie is… well, he decides to drive his own race car in the Grand Prix.
Again, no “hero‚’s journey” here. And can we PLEASE stop having daddy issues in your movies, Hollywood? Seriously.
I could write abut what worked, and there’s a lot that does work in the movie (Sam Rockwell and Mickey Rourke do good work with some thin material, for example). But, in the end the movie generated no emotion in me – I just didn’t care about what I was watching, and so I don‚’t have any energy to give this movie faint praise. Movies are emotional journeys, when done right – they are “turn off your brain popcorn movies” when done wrong.
Well, if you‚’re a “turn off your brain and enjoy” kinda guy, then pop some corn if you’re so inclined – Iron Man 2 is the movie for you.
I wish it was the movie for me.