Good, not great

Rating: 7/10 (5 May 2010)

Let me say it straight – Iron Man 2 is good, not great. I definitely liked it but nowhere as much as the first film.
Specifically, Iron Man 2's plot does not seem that interesting and as such the narrative relied on special effects for impact in certain scenes. No matter how fantastic or bombastic action and effects could get, they just don't help the storytelling very much. The new antagonists – Justin Hammer and Whiplash – are both weak and not compelling. They both pale in comparison to Obadiah Stane (brilliantly played by Jeff Bridges) in terms of personality and antagonism. Don Cheadle as Col. Rhodes/War Machine never felt like he belonged in the film and the more he appeared on screen, the more I wished Terence Howard was back.
I also felt that the comedy in this film seemed forced. While the first flick made me laugh or smile, the sequel did not amuse me very much. While Robert Downey, Jr.'s performance as Tony Stark is worth praise, I find it weird that Stark now seemed more psychotica far change from the conflicted man he was before.
Aside from Downey's stellar performance, the other big redeeming value was the film's adaptation of character elements from the critically acclaimed Iron Man comic storyline Demon in a Bottle. In that storyline, Stark was portrayed with an addiction to liquor and this concept was nicely portrayed in Iron Man 2. Expect to see Robert Downey, Jr. drink and drink a lot.
Having waited two years for Iron Man 2, I felt a bit disappointed. I tried to like the film. It is not a bad movie, but more of a less compelling continuation. The distraction scenes (leading to the Avengers) and the improved action scenes simply could not lift the film's weak story. Adding insult to injury, the final battle with Whiplash is totally unsatisfying to watch.
As long as you don't set your expectations very high, Iron Man 2 can be enjoyable. Clearly its presentation is different from the first film, and that made it less enjoyable for me. While you watch Iron Man 2 in the theater, I'll just replay Iron Man on my DVD player.
Score: 6.5/10