A fun watch but no Iron Man 1

Rating: 6/10 (8 May 2010)

This movie has all the makings of an amazing superhero action movie in the league of The Dark Knight, Watchmen, and even the original Iron Man movie, but unfortunately it didn't live up to that expectation. Don't get me wrong, this movie was enjoyable start to finish but it didn't have the emotional punch of the other movies mentioned. Really there is no heart here, and never once does the movie require you to think.
Without the great work of Robert Downey Jr. in the role he was meant to play, this would movie would lack charm as well. Iron Man 2 is close to two hours but seems to lose the time. Whiplash (Mickey Rourke), a truly great villain for Iron Man didn't have enough presence in the film. His final scene ended up feeling fairly corny.
It's hard to express everything wrong with a movie like Iron Man 2 but there just wasn't any meat here. Gwyneth Paltrow who was terrific in the first Iron Man is only allowed to play one note here until the very end. She's the party pooper to Robert Downey Jr.'s perpetual party.
Don Cheadle steps into Terrance Howard's shoes as Rhodey well enough but as with every relationship in this movie, the Cheadle and Downey Jr. story is underdeveloped. Scarlett Johansson plays Downey Jr's new assistant, hired on the spot. She adds some sex appeal to the cast, but again, it feels like we didn't see very much of her, and no bathing suit scene.
The main problem I have with this movie is that we don't tread any new territory. It feels like this movie just had to be made because it was going to make a lot of money. I wanted an Iron Man 2, but one that was more engaging. Jon Favreau does all he can with the uninspiring script and plays "Happy", comic relief and a bright spot in the movie.
In the end, this is a light, fun sequel that still leaves a lot to be desired. It seemed to be filler left on the cutting room floor from Iron Man 1. Iron Man 2 will not be selected for preservation in the National Film Registry, but it's going to make a lot of money. Probably pass the 400 million domestically and maybe even scratch close to the 1 billion mark worldwide.