Movie Brief: Iron Man 2

By Arda Koyuncu for Thechicspy.com

Director Jon Favreau, who also directed the first Iron Man, did a good job putting all the pieces together. The film has a well balanced pace, and thanks to Industrial Light and Magic (ILM), the visual effects are spectacular. Not much negative can be said about this film. However, at times it bordered on annoying with the over-the-top humor and dialogue.

A Drone

Casting could not have been better, except for the addition of Don Cheadle as Col. James Rhodes. It was really hard to say if Cheadle was in the movie. He showed up two or three times and his lines were short and neutral. In this regard, Terrance Howard was a better choice for the role; he was a more solid actor than Cheadle in this movie. Otherwise, there is no doubt about the talent of the cast with four Oscar nominees and an Oscar winner.

Don Cheadle as Col. James “Rhodey” Rhodes

Robert Downey Jr. as billionaire industrialist Tony Stark

Robert  Downey Jr. delivers an amazing performance once again, showing that he is the perfect guy for the protagonist, Tony Stark. His great charisma and humor is fun to watch and he nails every single scene.

Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko in “Iron Man 2”

Mickey Rourke also delivered a great performance and made a great villain as Ivan Vanko. There is a strong supporting cast as well. Scarlett Johansson was hotter than ever and was superb as the Black Widow character for sure, and Sam Rockwell was amazing, too.

Scarlett Johansson as Natalie Rushman (aka Black Widow)

Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) presents the Drones

The fight scenes were well choreographed and the dialogue was well written. But, this is not a social flick with lots of twists and turns, it’s definitely an action movie. Simple works better sometimes. The soundtrack was made by AC/DC so it definitely will help you get in the right mood.

Overall, “Iron Man 2” is definitely a must see; it is a lot of fun starting from the first scene to the ending, even after the credits.

Release: May 7
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke, and Sam Rockwell
Directing: Jon Favreau
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 2 hr. 5 min.

MOVIE Q&A

Guest movie reviewer Arda Koyuncu is a 3D artist who has a background in designing characters, environments, and texturing. Here’s what he had to say about the film in a one-on-one interview with The Chic Spy:

The Chic Spy: How did “Iron Man 2” compare to the first one?

Arda Koyuncu: The first “Iron man” was better. The character design was better, too. Sometimes people forget that action movies are not comedy movies.

TCS: What did you think of the “Iron Man 2” costume versus the one from the first film, or were they too similar to judge?

AK: The costumes were very similar. They adjusted the design some. Small tweaks made it work. I don’t think huge changes were needed.

TCS: How does this film measure up compared to other similar comic book adapted films such as “Batman” (The Dark Knight) and Transformers?

AK: “The Dark Knight” is a different story. It is a social movie not a superhero movie. “Transformers” is also a different story. I do not think it should be compared to “Iron Man 2” because they are totally different concepts. But visually, conceptually, and looking at the whole movie, “Iron Man 2” was better than “Transformers” but not even close to “The Dark Knight.”

TCS: Do you think there will be an “Iron Man 3,” if so, are you looking forward to another sequel?

AK: There is an “Iron Man 3.” It is a trilogy — from the after credits scene, it looks as though it is going to be about Avengers, Thor, and S.H.I.E.L.D.