Several people have noted with many superhero movies the second movie is the best. The obvious examples are Spiderman 2 and The Dark Knight. The theory goes that the first movie has to provide all the back story of how the superhero became the superhero. The second movie can just let loose with the conflict from the beginning.
Except Marvel is not interested in letting Iron Man just be Iron Man. We're still getting more backstory. And while the backstory for Iron Man was well done in the first film. I am less interested in the back story for Thor, Nick Fury, and the other characters which are coming. It bogs down the movie.
Which ultimately makes Iron Man 2 a bit of a frustrating experience. Because the elements for a great movie are there. Robert Downey Jr and Gwynneth Paltrow are as good as before, not surprisingly given their talents. Mickey Rourke, Scarlett Johanssen and Sam Rockwell are all interesting actors. There are some very good action sequences, especially when Rourke's villain disrupts a car race in Monaco.
But there should have been more of that. For example, the movie opens with Senate testimony, in which Downey declares he has privatized world peace. Instead, we should have seen him creating world peace. Show us, not tell us.
There is enough here to recommend the film. It is well made, as was the first. But the flaws make it a good film, not a great one. Grade: B-
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment