Review of Iron Man 2: Too Much to Digest, but Some Great One-Liners

What is the purpose of an action movie? To display explosions, chase scenes, and special effects? Or is it to create big personas for a big story? Well, Iron Man 2, directed by Jon Favreau, has a multitude of big personalities; A-listers Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johannson, Samuel L. Jackson, and Mickey Rourke all turn in delightful performances in a summer action flick that has more flair in its writing than its action sequences. The script, written by Justin Theroux, makes up in wit what it lacks in gravitas. That makes Iron Man 2 my kind of action flick. Oceans Eleven, meet the superhero genre.

Some critics have praised the evident fun of Iron Man 2 but pointed out that the movie does not leave a satisfying flavor. Of course, the standard-bearer for the genre is now The Dark Knight, whose philosophical depth made it believable as a serious film. But consider Dark Knight-the personalities make the explosions significant, not the other way around. If Iron Man 2 does not have a fully satisfying ending action sequence, the fireworks of a kiss between Pepper Potts and Tony Stark are all the fire that this reviewer requires.

How does Robert Downey, Jr. do it? Thinking back on the movie, he so totally immerses himself into his role as Tony Stark that I could have cared less about the outcome of hand-to-hand combat, but I was on the edge of my seat waiting for his one-liner after it was over. I wanted to see the story of Stark's defensive narcissism maturing into responsibility and a "stable-ish relationship" is what kept my attention.

This said, Iron Man 2 does not have enough threat in it. Although watching Mickey Rourke play an aggrieved Russian physicist is a joy, his character does not particularly menace the film. In The Dark Knight, Heath Ledger's Joker actually killed innocent people. Iron Man 2 keeps the proceedings PG-13, and what is lost is believability. The crescendo is a letdown, while Samuel L. Jackson's character fulfills the expectations of the comic book fanboys instead of rounding out the plot of this particular film. In Iron Man 2, we are in the space of the $200 million episode of an action-flick franchise, not a standalone movie brimming with ideas.

Although it doesn't seem to bother the cast, who revel in their comic-book characters. In the blockbuster summer action flick genre, one must take what one can get. And if "get" includes a gratuitous shot of a curvy Scarlett Johansson slinking up a flight of stairs, so be it. Let's praise Iron Man 2 for having its own distinctive flavor, if it's nonetheless not a fully realized film.