Iron Man 2 (2010)

Summary

Now that his Iron Man identity is known, Tony Stark struggles with demons (internal and external) brought on by his father's legacy.

Director

Jon Favreau

Downey Factor

High.

Character

Tony Stark, billionaire industrialist and superstar.

Looks

Hotter than ever, world-weary at times.

Performance

Covers the entire range of Stark emotion (which turns out to be slightly broader than you might expect).

Line

I serve the American people at the pleasure of myself. And one thing you can count on, I will pleasure myself.

Love & Sex

Continues to flirt with his long-suffering assistant Pepper Potts.

Dies, Gay or Villain

Any of these would be a delicious unexpected twist, but alas, no.

Cast

Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Mickey Rourke, Scarlett Johannson, Sam Rockwell, John Slattery

Connection

Jon Favreau in Iron Man, Iron Man 3, Chef, Spider-Man: Homecoming, and Avengers: Endgame.

Gwyneth Paltrow in Iron Man, The Avengers, Iron Man 3, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

Samuel L Jackson in Iron Man, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame and Hail Caesar.

Scarlett Johansson in The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Chef, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

Leslie Bibb in Iron Man.

Clark Gregg in Iron Man and The Avengers.

Don Cheadle in Iron Man 3, Avengers: Age of Ultron and Avengers: Infinity War.

Paul Bettany in Iron Man, Iron Man 3, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame.

John Slattery in Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Endgame.

Stan Lee in Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man 3, The Avengers, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War.

RDJ Says

The first one changed everything for me and with the second Iron Man there were certain aspects that were dissatisfying and disappointing to me but at least they lit me right ... There was an early cut of the movie where everybody hated Tony. We tested it for an audience and they had to wipe down the screen ... There are times when you know you're pushing it and you don't have a great vibe about where things are going creatively. You have to be collarbone-deep in molasses for four-months and just go, "I have no solace in my work whatsoever and it's 12 hours a day of cosmic punishment." ... I always thought, why is [Mickey Rourke] coming at me with "They tried to make me go to rehab." I'm here with my Chinese herbs, sitting in the corner ... The last time around, Tony Stark was a significantly cooler version of me. In a way, my calling in this one was to bring more of myself into it and more of my character defects. I brought more of my true challenged soul into the character this time ... Last time, we saw [Tony Stark] as this hapless, charming prick who has his ass handed to him, and turns it around and then is almost snuffed by the very person he thought he could trust above everyone else. Just because someone has a life-changing experience doesn't really mean they've changed. Tony is seeking solace in the archetype. It's one thing to say you're Iron Man and it's another thing to actually be a righteous person, and I think he struggles with that because he's not really all that different. This film really is about Tony's secret journey into his deepest fears, his sense of obligation, his sense of legacy with his father, a sense of brotherhood with Rhodey and his ongoing deep love and respect for Pepper... We wanted to do something just a little bit freakier than [a love triangle] and I believe we have succeeded. Black Widow is a great character because she is not what she appears to be. It was a great opportunity. I don't even know if it's so much a love triangle. Pepper is exactly what she appears to be, except there's a lot more going on under the surface, and that's brought to bear, this time.

Lit Reference

Marvel's Iron Man comics.

Time & Place

Present day (2010), Los Angeles, Monaco and Queens, NY.

Gossip

To keep details of the film from leaking, Iron Man 2 had several fake working titles including Murphy's Law, Rasputin and The Adventures of Angus McDonald.

As part of his method acting, Mickey Rourke visited a Russian prison, had crew members hold up photos of his deceased pets off-camera and would blast music, while filming, to help set his mood. Some of his song choices included Rehab by Amy Winehouse and Crazy by Gnarls Barkley. This is pretty much the opposite acting style from RDJ, who prefers to stay relaxed and does very little preparation the day of shooting.

Availability

Released in theaters 7 May 2010. On DVD/Blu-Ray in regions 1, 2 and 4.

Foreign Titles

Brazil: Homem de Ferro 2 (Man of Iron 2)
Estonia: Raudmees 2 (Iron Man 2)
Japan: Aianman 2
Lithuania: Gelezinis Zmogus 2 (Iron Man 2)
Vietnam: Nguoi Sat 2 (Iron Man 2)

Rotten Tomatoes

74% Fresh | 262 reviews

Critical View

A.O. Scott, New York Times: You might say that the movie has something for everyone, which is fine but also, in the end, not quite enough. You're left wanting more, but not quite the "more" Iron Man 2 works so hard to supply.

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: The billionaire industrialist still exhibits all the self-absorbed, antiheroic qualities with which Downey first delighted us in the role two years ago. So if this sequel doesn't glow with the same charm as the original ... the diminished satisfaction has less to do with the quality of the star's trademark catch-me-if-you-can energy than it does with a performance anxiety that now pervades the whole shebang.

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: We do have Downey, still exuding his irresistible loose-cannon vibe in a Hollywood product that'll whup every summer 2010 epic that dares to take it on. Downey is actually better and bug-fuckier than ever, even when the movie buries him in unnecessary clutter.

Does It Hold Up

It's probably the most forgettable Marvel movie with Robert Downey Jr.

2 Reasons to See It

1. The entire scene before congress and especially when RDJ and Sam Rockwell are in the room together.
2. Tony Stark's rock bottom channels the glory of Julian Wells with none of the retching, whoring or consequences.

Overall

Feels more like an installment in a Marvel miniseries rather than a standalone film, but underneath the muddled mess, there are still bits and pieces of everything people liked from the original Iron Man.

If You Like It

You might also like Iron Man (2008), Tropic Thunder (2008), whatever scraps that Marvel will throw your way.

Photos

Video