Review: Iron Man 2 has lots of iron, very little soul

Film: Iron Man 2
Cast: Robert Downey, Jr, Gywneth Paltrow, Scarlett Johansson, Paul Bettany, Don Cheadle, Samuel L Jackson, Mickey Rourke
Director: Jon Favreau
Certificate: U/A
Rating: * * *

Jon Favreau’s attempt to take the Iron Man series to a new high with this eagerly awaited sequel comes a cropper.

This one is not distinctive enough. The metal clanging is just a bit too overpowering and the action doesn’t appear to have achieved any new high.

The world is now aware that Iron Man is none other than Tony Stark (Downey, Jr) and everyone wants to know the secrets of his iron-clad success. From the rival Hammer Industries to the senate committee to arch villain Ivan Vanko (Rourke), the scheming continues in earnest.

Pepper Potts (Paltrow) and James Rhodes (Cheadle) don’t know that Iron Man needs some new-fangled invention to obliterate the high toxicity in his blood and survive the sinister machinations of his many enemies. But it’s all a bit too flamboyant, most tines trite and unconvincing.

Jon Favreau manages to increase his own screen time as Stark’s chauffeur and ropes in Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L Jackson to up the ante, but to no avail. Johansson gets a say in the action and Jackson gets to scheme mysteriously, but their personas don’t really make a mark.

It’s really Vanko, played ever so lustily by Rourke, who steals the show from right under Downey Jr’s overly expressive Tony Stark. His opening assault at the Monaco Grand Prix, twirling twin whips of mega voltage electricity, is a sight to behold. It’s one of the most lively and clever action set pieces ever filmed.

But the rest of the narrative doesn’t have the required perkiness. Too many plot lines threaded together haphazardly leave you distracted and disengaged.

Also, the scientific part is never clearly established. There’s a lot happening: the expo is a beehive of activity, James Rhodes's betrayal, Pepper Potts's takeover as CEO, Hammer’s tryst with evil and the climactic action sequence, all feel like they have been engineered by someone overeager to please.

The narrative appears long-winded and the all-too-brief moments of delight are strictly momentary. Even the snappy wit towards the end doesn’t raise the low-on-fuel enjoyment quotient.