Monday, May 10, 2010

Iron Man 2: afterthoughts in the form of a review

I'm glad I watched Iron Man 2, but I'm not sure why.

All the objects blowing up, I imagine--the special effects. Iron Man 2 is heavy on action and light on characterization. No, that's not right--plenty of character is projected, but for what purpose, I'm not sure. Usually some normality is expected in a superhero movie--to provide a foil for the superhuman exploits of the main characters. In this movie, too much over-the-top characterization lessened the impact of the story.

Why does Tony Stark decide to dress up in his suit and get drunk?

Why is Pepper a hot and cold shower of emotion?

Why is Hammer such a complete ignoramus yet also, apparently, a brilliant weapons developer?

Why does Ivan Vanko decide that mayhem is the answer to his woes?

Why is Natalie/Natasha so mysteriously eccentric? (Even Tony Stark asks this.)

Who and why, for crying out loud, is Nick Fury?

Lt. Colonel Rhodes seems to be the only character who acts in a somewhat predictable manner. He tries to be loyal to Stark and to his country. His reactions seem to come from an identifiable source: concerned, protective, and reluctantly intervening actions regarding a friend who is out of control.

Perhaps the best compliment to the cast of acting greats is that the actions of the characters--if not believable--are at least interesting and watchable. I believe the characters are who they are. I just find it difficult to believe they all ended up on the screen together. My "willing suspension of disbelief" got bent.

Watch the movie--yes, I did. It was a hoot--and I think it's better than G.I. Joe. How's that for setting the standard high?

Copyright 2012 by Thomas L. Kepler, all rights reserved

7 comments:

  1. Just to throw it out, Ivan Vanko swore a vendetta against Tony. That is why he is trying to kill him.

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  2. And why He swore it, you might ask is because:

    His father was once Howard Stark's partner but when the ARC Reactor was built, he saw it as a way of getting rich. But when Howard found out what Anton was planning, he had him shipped away to Siberia. Ivan grew up in the penal-colony land and eventually was arrested years later for following his father's path (by selling nuclear secrets to Pakistan). Many years later in a small Russian town in Siberia, Ivan and his ill father heard news that Tony was none other than Iron Man, and Anton soon died of his condition, leaving his son his knowledge passed down through the years, and the blueprints for the infamous ARC reactor. Now greiving his father's passing, Ivan began building his own power source from the blueprints. Planning to kill Tony in the end.

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  3. And nick fury is a security officer in many stories by marvel

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  4. Thanks,
    With the help of my friends, I'll eventually kept up on this alternative history!

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  5. And Natasha is an agent under Nick, so she has to be discreet.

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  6. Oh, and why Pepper is such a
    "shower of hot and cold" is because if you had to be the manager for a multimillionaire Playboy/drunk I think anyone would have mixed emotions

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  7. Working for Tony Stark certainly would be a hot/cold situation--never lukewarm!

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