Marvel Studios and director Jon Favreau present their ‘Iron Man’ films as if they are the inmates taking over the asylum. The film division of the comics label went into business on its own a few years back, using the Hollywood system (Paramount) to distribute its films, but maintaining creative control. The word is that they are sneaking fan-aimed subversive entertainment past the Hollywood establishment. That word is false. Based on their first three films (Two Iron Men and one Incredible Hulk), they are completely full of shit.
Don’t be fooled by the fact that everything surrounding this film talks about “fun”. This movie is trying to position itself as the breezy, knowing and witty answer to the seriousness of ‘The Dark Knight’ and ‘Watchmen’. But ‘Iron Man 2’ is as cynical a film as any sequel ever was. It uses “fun” as an excuse for not being about anything, as justification for lazy craftsmanship. It’s a movie for those who “get it”, those who can “lighten up”. Not for people who feel the need to think about what they’re seeing. It offers one-liners in place of dialogue, caricatures in place of characters, being in mortal danger in place of character development. And just in case you get bored, it doubles everything. Two villains. Two love interests. Even two Iron Men. And just to be sure it tops the finale of the first movie, which absurdly involved only a good guy and a bad guy, this one ends with two good guys against an army of robots. How they managed to sneak through such cutting-edge concepts as making a sequel bigger is a mystery.
The worst that can said of the first ‘Iron Man’ film is that it was a so-so movie, made watchable by the charm of its cast, particularly Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark aka Iron Man. With ‘Iron Man 2’, that is the best that can be said. What should be said, though, is that it is a very poor film. The charm is almost entirely gone. It is badly written, badly directed and atrociously paced, sloppy, unfocused and featuring some really poor performances. On the plus side, it has some good one-liners and a funny turn by Garry Shandling. Huzzah. I was bored by its pyrotechnics, dismayed by its storytelling and depressed by its cynicism. ‘Transformers 2’ has more integrity than this garbage.
SHLOMO PORATH
