Iron Man 2 (2010) | Movie Review

Added: 2026-05-19

[00:00:06]Hey there. Welcome back to another video. This time around it is my review of the 2010 comic book film Iron Man 2.

[00:00:15]Now, this is widely considered by a lot of people to not only be the worst Iron Man film, but one of the worst films in the MCU. And I don't get it. I actually really enjoyed Iron Man 2. Uh, I would say it's more underrated than anything else, but then again, I'm the guy who also really likes Age of Ultron, and a lot of people don't like that movie either. I saw this in the theater when it came out. I had a good time with it. Um, I did have some issues with it, but they didn't really uh hold the film back that much for me.

[00:00:57]And I will admit that over the years, you know, when I watched it more, I did notice more of the flaws and I did kind of join the the herd a little bit in terms of turning on the film. Uh, but not anymore. After watching it again after a while, uh I'm I'm definitely on the side of uh this movie. I think this is actually uh one of the better MCU sequels. And I think it's the best Iron Man movie. And not only that, I like it more than Iron Man. And I know that's a shocking opinion that's going to make that's going to floor some people, but I just have to be honest about it. I I think this is a better overall film than Iron Man. Now, before I get around to sharing more of my thoughts on Iron Man 2, I would like to give a special shout out to uh Ule for requesting this review. And if there is another film, TV show, or topic that you would like to see me discuss in the future, feel free to donate to either my PayPal, my Patreon, or my cash app. Links to all three are going to be in the video description down below, and I will try to get to your request as soon as I possibly can.

[00:02:17]Iron Man 2 returns John Favro as the director and I think he comes back and really establishes himself at this point as uh one of the better directors in the industry and one of the better comic book film directors because he took what he learned on the fly while he was shooting Iron Man and then made it a a genuine strength when it comes to his direction in Iron Man 2. And it really shows like you have some really great looking shots in this uh Iron Man's entrance uh at the Stark Expo uh with all the dancers. Uh that was an incredible looking sequence. Uh the uh sequence at Monaco is a magnificently shot. Uh just a a really wellshot scene in its entirety. the finale, especially uh the scene with the the cherry blossoms with uh War Machine and Iron Man uh and and the spinning camera work and then the whole the way that entire sequence was set up when uh War Machine and Iron Man take out those drones and then ultimately fight uh uh Whiplash.

[00:03:47]That is one of the best looking shots in the entire MCU. And then you have all the scenes with Black Widow, especially uh the sequence uh when she's u taking out uh a bunch of uh guards at um Hammer's u building.

[00:04:04]Those sequences uh are great. They're very well shot. Uh and I think the framing here is more consistent in terms of its quality, in terms of each scene. the the fact that there's more action, there's more spectacle really stretches Favro and and shows that he doesn't really have a lot of limitations. It shows that he can handle these bigger uh uh scenes in terms of their size and scope with more uh extras and with more visual effects and with more going on and still make them have a certain, you know, epic feel to them. And I I I really like his direction for this film. I thought he did a fantastic job with it. how he worked with the pans and the zooms and the camera movement and uh just how he showcased uh the thrill of of the film. And you could definitely tell that he was just really uh uh having a blast directing this as well. I mean, even in scenes where Iron Man isn't really even doing anything except eating a donut inside of a giant donut, that scene looked amazing. So, yeah, I think Favro's direction in this is not only something that the film does not get enough credit for, I think it's honestly one of the best instances of direction in the entire MCU. I genuinely think that highly of Fabro's direction in Iron Man 2. Now, Iron Man 2 is written by Justin Thorough, and a lot of people think this script should have been thrown in the trash. I'm not one of those people. Uh I I actually think it's a pretty good script. I do think it could have been better and that's why I don't think it's a great screenplay, but I do think that it takes the formula, it takes the elements of Iron Man that worked and applies them to Iron Man 2, but then fleshes things out more.

[00:06:13]It adds more depth. It adds more intrigue. It makes things more uh compelling overall when it comes to the narrative. Um, I like how it starts off with Ivan Vanco after the death of his father who worked for for Stark Industries and you see him building another miniature arc reactor and he's building his whip and you get a sense that he is going to be targeting Tony.

[00:06:47]And then you flash forward uh to six months later and Tony is, you know, being flashy uh and he's showing up at the Stark Expo in the Iron Man sho iron man suit with, you know, all these different dancers in the background and fireworks.

[00:07:06]And I I really love that scene, by the way.

[00:07:10]I think that is a great just a grand scene in a multitude of different ways.

[00:07:17]I mean, the way it's shot, the way that it's set up, and I mean, the music choice, of course. I mean, AC/DC's Shoot the Thrill was just a perfect song choice.

[00:07:30]And I like that you see a lot of Stark's excess in Iron Man 2. You saw a bit of that in Iron Man, but you see more of that in Iron Man 2. And I think for some people, they think it's too much. I think it's a measured amount. I think it's a good amount of his excess. I think his excess is necessary. uh especially when it escalates uh after he realizes that it that he's potentially dying because of the arc reactor that's poisoning him slowly to death uh because of the palladium. So, he's having this uh serious health issue that's becoming debilitating that's poisoning his blood and it leads to him acting rashly and and doing a lot of uh very dangerous, immature, and and honestly kind of wild things. and almost to the point where he starts to have a death wish. And he's not only trying to check things off his bucket list, but he's also trying to maybe, you know, do something that's risky or do something that, you know, uh, could potentially kill him so he can end it earlier, like get behind the wheel of a race car. And yeah, he does act like a jackass and he does treat roads like at points and and doesn't treat Pepper that well either. And I can see why that can be something that makes people uh not really into watching Tony in those scenes. But I think it's compelling. I think it's it's it's it's refreshing. It's different to see, you know, Tony up like this and him, you know, making all these mistakes and then ultimately it pays off because he makes up for them in the end. And it also helps that there's justification for his behavior. You understand why he's going to these extremes because he's in uh a rut, because he's mentally not in a good place, because he thinks that he's dying.

[00:09:50]And I just think the search for the cure, that is a really compelling thing that adds some added tension that was completely absent during at least half of Iron Man. And I also really like the trial scenes with Senator Stern. I think they're hilarious. I think it's great to see Stark uh in that setting. And like the back and forth between Stern and Stark is just really witty and a lot of fun. And you also have just the the moments when Stark is just taking things too far and and just those are also really entertaining to me. It's really entertaining to see Stark decide, you know what? I'm gonna I'm gonna get behind the wheel of this race car and start racing in Monaco and then ultimately have to get into a battle with Whiplash.

[00:10:52]And yes, is it absurd that Whiplash survives multiple rams of a car into his chest? Yes. But it's a comic book film.

[00:11:04]this isn't real life, so it didn't really that doesn't really bother me that much. Uh, and I think the scene as a whole is still really good. Like I don't understand a lot of the criticisms that people have for the Monaco scene.

[00:11:18]Like it's some uh shitty sequence and like I don't really get it. I think it's actually a pretty well put together scene and I think it has some great shots in it like the the shot of Whiplash uh cutting uh Tony's car in half and then you have that awesome uh scene where Tony suits up uh with the the briefcase suit. That's honestly one of I I would say actually that's my favorite Iron Man suit up moment in an Iron Man movie.

[00:11:50]And I think Veno as a villain, he gets a lot of because, you know, he's jokey, you know, uh I want my bird and he doesn't really seem to have, you know, much of a motivation to uh go after Stark. And I think that's misunderstanding Venko. He does have a motivation. His motivation is purely revenge, but his motivation is to get revenge for his father and for how Stark Industries treated his his father. Now, I do think that that is something that isn't as strong as it could be because there's a the the script kind of cops out on that a little bit because then it tries to throw in a line that Ivan's father was actually in the wrong and he was kicked out for a reason. And and I don't really think that's how it should have gone. I think it should have stuck with the fact that Ivan's father was used by Stark Industries and by Howard Stark and then essentially thrown away when he was no longer useful and he was an intricral part in creating the Ark Reactor, but there was a falling out between him and Howard and that led to him getting pushed out of uh Stark Industries and disgraced.

[00:13:20]That to me is what they should have stuck with and I think that's what they were trying to go for and or the writer was trying to go for. But I don't know what happened uh with that whole thing. I'm wondering if that was a studio thing or if Marvel came in and was like, "No, no, no, no.

[00:13:38]We can't make Howard look that bad. So, we need to that kind of makes the whole thing the redemption arc for Howard look a little uh sketch or we're not really as impactful as we want it to be." Uh, but I still think it still would have carried a lot of weight, Howard's uh, redemption arc, especially specifically when it comes to Howard and his son. Uh, because that's another aspect of the script I really like. I like how Tony finds this new element thanks to his father from beyond the grave. And in the process he also finds not only a new heart for himself but he finds a new reason to love his father which is something that had been missing in his life for many many years because he felt that his father was just neglecting him and his father didn't care about him even up until his father's death.

[00:14:37]Now, I know some people will complain that, oh, well, he created the element too fast. And I'm like, it's not any faster than it took him to create the mini reactor in Iron Man. So, I don't really think that's an issue for me. Uh, and yeah, I really liked the Palladium arc where Tony is slowly getting poisoned and he's he's doesn't want to tell Pepper that he's dying because it's so Tony and a lot of this really added more depth to Tony that was sorely lacking in Iron Man. And yeah, a lot of people don't like the stuff where he's acting a fool like when he's drunk at the party. I actually really like that scene. And I like the scene between him and Roads when Roads puts on the suit and and tries to corral him. Uh there's a great moment where where Tony while he's drunk, he's like, "Excuse me, I got to go uh whip my friend's ass. Gonna go beat my friend's ass." Uh like like there was a there's some great moments all throughout this screenplay and that's definitely one of them. I will admit, you know, for a while I was disappointed by that because I thought, you know, it echoes the demon in a bottle story line from the Iron Man comics and it doesn't really fully uh uh go through with it. But over the years, I've just I don't I've just come to accept what they were trying to do with it and realize that because of what Robert himself went through, maybe it's kind of not in the right taste or maybe not the best idea to make Robert go through a story like that. And I think that was a big reason why the demon in a bottle thing wasn't utilized so much is because I think it was Robert's choice. He was like, I'm not uncomfortable doing that. And what you got is is a nice compromise to me. And I and I think you still see a a little bit of that. You still still see Tony unhinged in this like in the birthday party scene and it's still quite effective.

[00:16:52]And I also really like the the Hammer stuff. I I actually think that despite the fact that uh Justin Hammer in a lot of ways is really just similar to Stain uh and the way that Obadiah Stain was written in Iron Man.

[00:17:13]Sam Rockwell brings so much to the role and just the just the the whole cockiness, the whole bravado, just the everything about Justin Hammer. Even though it's kind of a character that almost feels like it could be a throwaway guy or he's not really that big of a deal, uh I I still think that there's a certain aspect to that character and his rivalry with Tony uh that is enjoyable and entertaining and and I and I buy the rivalry a lot between Tony and and Hammer and I love how it was incorporated in the trial scene.

[00:17:55]when Tony, you know, hacks into the different cameras of the different test pilot footage of these different Iron Man suits and shows Hammer's failed prototype in action and embarrasses Hammer in front of the entire committee.

[00:18:12]And it's moments like that that to me honestly make Hammer, even though the character is very similar to Stain in the way that he was written in the previous film, still feel like an upgrade.

[00:18:27]And I also like the fact that no, Hammer is not intended to be the main villain all along. Even though he hires Veno, Whiplash is still the main villain.

[00:18:37]Whiplash is still the one that uh is the mastermind. Whiplash is still the one that turns Hammer's drones against Hammer and against Stark and then ultimately builds his own suit and uh is uh uh trying to destroy Iron Man and War Machine and ultimately Stark Industries and I and there are certain quotes of the Veno that I really love like the one where he's talking about you know if you make the hero bleed you know That's that's that's something that is very uh uh powerful. You know, you know, he I he doesn't even necessarily have to kill Tony. He didn't have to kill him at the racetrack, but just to show that he can bleed is powerful. And it does make it a little bit disappointing in terms of how Venko doesn't have more screen time or more depth to him. It's there, but it's not as established or as as uh firmly uh in the screenplay as it should be. Uh, and I think that's a big part of why Mickey Ror was disappointed with uh the film himself is because a lot of his scenes were cut out. But he's not he's far from alone when it comes to that because the same thing happened to uh Jeff Bridges in Iron Man with Stain.

[00:20:07]But the finale at the Stark Expo with all the drones and everything, I think is honestly quite exciting and a blast to watch. Uh, it's great to see Iron Man have to deal with all, you know, the different drones and also have to fend uh off Whiplash at the same time and then have to deal with his friend Roads who is controlled by Whiplash for a good chunk of the finale until Black Widow is able to disable the the uh um the programming. And speaking of Black Widow, I actually really like the addition of Black Widow. I've seen people critique Black Widow. Like, Black Widow doesn't need to be there. Why is Black Widow here? And it's just um for sex appeal. And like I I disagree. I think there's a clear reason for Black Widow to be in this story and to be a part of this film. And I think she adds a lot to it. Not just when it comes to sex appeal. She has the best fight scene in the entire movie. She adds a lot of much needed extra action to the film when it comes to uh uh the scene when she uh essentially assaults Hammer's uh uh um building, you know, to get into the computer room and, you know, deactivate the drones.

[00:21:35]And I think a lot of ways with the drone stuff, the screenplay is ahead of its time because before Iron Man 2, you know, there wasn't really a ton of stuff with drone unmanned drones being involved in war. But now that's a very very common thing. In fact, that there's more unmanned drone warfare that's going on than there is people on the ground uh when it comes to combat. So, the film was ahead of its time in that regard.

[00:22:08]And I just love seeing Iron Man and War Machine team up and do some damage. It's my favorite scene in the entire Iron Man trilogy by far.

[00:22:22]Now, this being said, the finale does have some limitations and does have some problems. Mainly, how quickly Whiplash is defeated. like that was a joke. I don't know what went on there. The the battle between Whiplash, uh, War Machine, and Iron Man should have gone on longer than it did. Uh, and they should have found a different way to defeat him than some kind of cheeky call back to their scuffle uh earlier when Tony was drunk. Like, I don't really think that that was necessarily the best approach at all. and it did make Whiplash look weak, but prior to that, Whiplash actually, I thought, looked pretty strong. It's just the the way that Whiplash was written in the finale and the final battle, that's what made him a weaker villain. Not necessarily everything building up to that. And I don't agree that he's just Iron Man again. I don't think that's really accurate in terms of how to describe Whiplash.

[00:23:25]Now, the stuff with Pepper and her becoming a CEO and all of that, that was just kind of eh.

[00:23:32]Uh, and I was really kind of surprised that they tried to do the whole like, oh, are they a couple, are they not again? Because it seemed like it was pretty obvious that they were a couple at the end of Iron Man. Uh, but that's really the only major issues I have with uh Iron Man 2 is the stuff with Pepper and you know what goes on with uh Whiplash at the end. Yeah. I mean, it would have been maybe nice to have seen Hammer maybe see something with Tony taking out Hammer, maybe punching him or something. Uh, we didn't really get that kind of thing. There was there isn't really a ton of catharsis when it comes to Tony's rivalry with Hammer, but that doesn't really, you know, hurt the film that much for me.

[00:24:24]And I don't think it was as poorly paced as some people make it out to be. I also don't think that the it feels like an Avengers movie as much as other people do. Yeah, there's a scene with Nick Fury and Coulson, but I don't think and Black Widow is in it, but it didn't make me feel like it was part Avengers movie and part Iron Man. It still felt like an Iron Man story. And I I liked the inclusion of Nick Fury and Coulson. That was a great scene. Uh Coulson had a great uh hilarious uh line of dialogue, too, when he's threatening Tony. And I I like I said, I do really like the addition of Black Widow. So, I don't really think that's a problem for the screenplay. Uh, and I even really like the ending with Stern, you know, when uh he has to begrudgingly provide medals to Tony and to Roads and, you know, he makes sure to like push the pin in harder to poke Tony and and, you know, reminds him how annoying it is to have to deal with a, you know, a little prick. Like I there's honestly a lot of things that I genuinely really liked about Iron Man 2 at its screenplay. I think the only thing that prevents it from being a great script is more depth to Venko as a character.

[00:25:53]Don't do the whole thing where his father was actually in the wrong and was forced out for a reason. actually make it so he was screwed over by Stark Industries and delve into that more. Uh, and also when it comes to the finale, when it comes to the final fight between Whiplash and War Machine and Iron Man, have that go on longer. Have have him get in more shots. ha have have a a different way for Iron Man and War Machine to defeat him that doesn't make him look so weak. And with the whole thing with Pepper, you could still have her be the CEO or whatever if you want to go that route, but stop with the whole thing where they're not a couple.

[00:26:41]Uh her and Tony, like it's it just just just embrace that. Uh and I think, you know, if you do that, you you just change those things. just fix some of that and you got a great script and you got a film that I don't think a lot of people are going to be complaining about as much as they are. I think a lot of the hate for Iron Man 2 is really honestly down to how Whiplash just gets bitched out so much at the end of the movie. I really think that's the main primary problem that a lot of people have with the film. And I get it, but it's not bad enough that it completely makes the movie suck.

[00:27:23]So yeah, I I honestly even as it is, I think it's not a bad screenplay.

[00:27:30]And the cast, I mean, it's great. I mean, Robert Downey Jr. is once again an absolute blast to watch playing Tony Stark and he's having a lot of fun with it and just elevating the role to even greater heights in this because now he's showing even more layers and nuances of the character. You're seeing him, you know, being confident and cocky at the trial or at the Stark Expo at the beginning, but then you're seeing him be vulnerable and withdrawn and frustrated with himself when the with the world when he's dying of of blood poisoning.

[00:28:13]And you see him at his lowest, you know, when he's drunk at his birthday party and he gets in a fight with Roads. You see um him uh building himself back up after, you know, he regains his uh trust and his love in his father for helping him find this new element that enables him to be able to save his life and to continue to be a hero and continue to be Iron Man. And it's just a really strong performance. I think it's a lot better than people give it credit for. I I actually think it's an even better performance uh than his performance was in the first film. And that that's saying quite a bit because he did a great job in the first movie.

[00:29:04]Gwenneith Poutro. She's good as Pepper, but I definitely do feel that the writing for her character was a little limited. And there were some moments where she sounded kind of shrill. It felt like a different character compared to the way the character was written in the first movie. So, it kind of felt like it was a little bit of a step down performance-wise from her, but it still was fine. Uh, Don Cheeto I thought was an upgrade over Terren Howard. I actually really liked his acting in this and I thought he actually did have chemistry with uh Robert Downey Jr. U and it was some really good chemistry.

[00:29:45]Uh Scarlett Johansson was drop deadad gorgeous as Black Widow, great when it comes to the the fighting and the u um action and really was a very mesmerizing pre uh presence in her own way. And not just because of the eye candy stuff and the, you know, the low cut tops and all the other uh those other things. I mean, it does help, but it's not the main reason why she was so compelling and just an instant uh uh iconic performance like as Black Widow. Uh there there's a lot more to it than just sex appeal. like she showed that she can also be more than just a sex object. So, I don't really understand that criticism towards her in this. Sam Rockwell was awesome. He stole every scene that he was in in as Justin Hammer. He was just so much fun to watch. The scene when he danced in on stage to to show off his new drones uh at the end of the movie at the Stark Expo was hilarious. And there's a lot of moments with him that is just really fun and I loved his performance so much. I wish we got to see more of him. I wish we got to see more of Justin Hammer uh later on in the MCU.

[00:31:14]And then Mickey Ror. I actually really liked Mickey Ror's performance. I know a lot of people are indifferent or they're not really that big on it. I thought he did a great job. Uh he definitely had a very strong intimidating presence to him and he left an impact. Even though he went out with a whimper, I I still felt that he was ultimately a better villain than Stain was in uh Iron Man and one of the better MCU villains. I mean, even after this, he was still one of the better MCU villains. I mean, especially compared to a lot of the more recent MCU vill I I will take whiplash over a lot of the more recent MCU villains from uh you know, some of the newer MCU films.

[00:32:01]And of course, you got Nick Fury, you know, Sam Jackson once again just being great in the role. And John Fabro had more screen time as Happy and made the most out of it. And I gotta give extra added props to uh you know, Clark Greg, of course, you know, returning as Coulson, but really I wanted to take the time to to give some props to Gary Shanling as Senator Stern because he was hilarious. He was so he played such a prick. But Shandling is a brilliant comic. He is a great comic actor and he was just really uh a great addition to this film. And he's another big reason why I like it so much cuz every scene that he was in I just loved cuz he's just so good at playing these kind of roles of playing these arrogant prick characters but in a way that's still charming despite them being absolute douchebags.

[00:33:10]And I also felt that the cinematography by Matthew Libetitech, I thought it was actually an improvement of over what he did in Iron Man uh in quite a few different ways. I thought the editing by Dan Levenl and Richard Pearson, I thought that was an improvement as well.

[00:33:29]I thought the two of them worked well together. And I thought this was a really well-edited movie. uh especially when it comes to uh the action scenes and even when it comes to some of the scenes where there isn't any action, I thought it was well edited. Uh and I think it's a big part of why I thought it was pretty fast-paced, even though it gets a lot of criticism for being slow.

[00:33:53]I never really felt that way at all while I was watching it. I thought it was actually pretty tightly paced. And I think the editing is a big part of that.

[00:34:01]And the music by John Debney I actually really like.

[00:34:07]John gets a lot of flack for his score for this for some reason. People say it's generic and it's forgettable and you know blah blah blah and typical.

[00:34:16]Yeah. And it works. It when it comes to the action scenes, when it comes to the scenes are supposed to have thrills or tension, the score really works in those scenes. it doesn't feel as out of place when it comes to maybe the more ambitious or more unique score from the first movie. Uh, and I I I honestly think, you know, it might not be one of John Debney's most memorable scores, but I think it's very fitting for Iron Man 2. And then really the main soundtrack for this movie is AC/DC. And AC/DC just fits like a glove when it comes to this movie. and just to Iron Man in general.

[00:34:59]And it adds an added attitude that the first film definitely lacked. Like I thought you were going to hear Iron Man by Black Sabbath more in that movie, but you didn't really hear it at all until the end credits with an instrumental.

[00:35:12]And here you got Shoot the Thrill and that just was a perfect song for Iron Man. and then all the other AC/DC tracks that they picked definitely did fit very well for Iron Man and added a lot to the movie. So overall, I like it. I I do I think Iron Man 2 is not really that bad. I don't think it's a bad sequel, and I don't think it's a bad movie.

[00:35:45]Uh, but uh that's just my thoughts on Iron Man 2. And as always, I'll see you later. See you.