A Geeky Orgasm

Did you ever meet a girl in high school that just blew you away with her looks? Did you ever get close enough to talk to her and find out she had brains as well? Do you remember the feeling which said you just met bliss in human form? Well, take that feeling and add a sister that’s just as hot and just as smart. This is what watching Iron Man 2 felt like for me.

Forget all the crap you read about this acting job or that acting job. It’s not relevant in this debate. Why? Because the movie kicked ass from beginning to end and you couldn’t wait to see what happened next. Sure, I could sit back and point fingers at Sam Rockwell’s lackluster performance, but did it detract from the movie? Nope. Not at all.

I’m more convinced now than I was before that comic book movies have finally found the balance between keeping the movie true to its roots and adding just enough Hollywood to make it entertaining for a large audience. Case in point: I was surrounded by 20 teenagers while watching this film. Most of them had dates, so I assumed they were not comic book readers. I was right. Four of the guys (who didn’t have dates) were actual readers of Iron Man. They all admitted they became readers of it when the first movie came out. About five of the guys who did have dates also told me they had at least picked up the Iron Man comic book due in large part to the movie. The girls were there for the popcorn and to see Robert Downey Jr. with his shirt off. It was kind of disappointing, but not highly unexpected.

This movie rocked. It was slightly (and I mean slightly) not as good as the first one, but it is a transition movie. This means it is going to be sandwiched between what we were introduced to and what is going to happen next. Knowing this it could’ve made a lot of excuses to be lousy and just set up the next adventure, but director Jon Favreau wouldn’t allow it. In fact, I’m on record as to saying I have a man crush on Favreau. His movies are hot!!

Two Actors Converge In One Movie

I wouldn’t be a proper movie critic if I didn’t mention two actors in this film that made headlines from the start. The first is Mickey Rourke. I’ve been a Rourke fan for a long time. When he made his comeback in The Wrestler, he didn’t have to prove a thing to me. His performance as Whip Lash was superb. He didn’t take the character for granted at all. He actually put some thought into how best to play Ivan Vanko. His effort was well recognized.

The second is Don Cheadle. I’m an even bigger Cheadle fan. When he was named as Terrance Howard’s replacement, I had mixed emotions. I felt terrible for Howard, but I also felt Cheadle would do Rhodey justice. And he did. He’s a great actor. Besides, Cheadle’s not the one who fired Howard. Why blame him for any of it? Now I think it’s safe to say we have moved on with Cheadle as Rhodey.

Balancing Act

One aspect of this movie that continued to catch my attention was the constant roller coaster that is Tony Stark. Downey and Favreau do a fantastic job of making us care about Stark. Let’s face it, they could write, shoot, and edit a film that has nothing but action sequences with Iron Man from stop to finish. Instead, they let us enjoy Stark’s playboy lifestyle with his witty one-liners and his more intelligent side. There is even a dramatic moment or two. If this element was left out of either film, it simply wouldn’t be as good and both Downey and Favreau understand this. Kudos to both of them.

Final Thoughts

This movie is a comic book geek’s orgasm. It is well-written, very well-acted, and the direction is top notch. In fact, I’m having a hard time justifying Favreau returning to acting since his direction is so good. He simply consumes himself with the script and, in turn, consumes the audience. This is not an easy task.

As always I highly recommend you stay until the credits finish rolling. It is a nice set-up to the upcoming Avengers movie. I don’t think they can play that up enough, but they also know they better deliver on it. My early vote is that Favreau direct the Avengers movie. So far, he has made two killer Iron Man films and impressed me the most out of all the Avengers. Keep in mind I will hold off final judgment until Thor and Captain America come out, but it will be hard to top Favreau.

Now I go back to my boring, geeky world and I have nothing to look forward to for the rest of the summer. Like the girl who blew me away in high school, I will likely go back for another round of Iron Man 2. This time I might bring the tissue. Too obvious?