The Movie
The sequel to the surprise mega-hit Iron Man was rightfully much anticipated. No one predicted the impact that ol' Shellhead would have in 2008, a year that could have been all about a certain Caped Crusader, so what new excitements would Iron Man 2 have in store? Well, the movie is a lot like Tony Stark's infamous suit of armor: Full of himself.
The first film was justly lauded for its balance of action, drama and humor, so of course the sole credited writer this time (Justin Theroux, one of the scribes on IM1 as well as star Robert Downey Jr.'s interim full-on comedy, Tropic Thunder) took that success as an invitation to add as many gags as possible, with a "we-can't-miss!" attitude. But I found myself groaning more than laughing.
Part of the problem is the crude fusion of all these would-be yuks with a pretty dark storyline. Stark (Downey Jr., smugging for the camera) is dying from complications due to the power plant in his chest, and now not one but two very different rivals (Mickey Rourke and Sam Rockwell) are gunning for him, one literally. Individual scenes can end somewhat abruptly, almost randomly, and taken together they seem cobbled into a rushed effort.
Which is not to say that the pacing is consistently brisk. Director Jon Favreau can get to the point of a given scene fairly quickly, but then lingers a bit too long at times. And pity Oscar winner Gwyneth Paltrow in the thankless role of mother hen Pepper Potts, so shrill and tedious as to become the Jar Jar Binks of this movie.
Also be sure to read Joe Lozito's review of Iron Man 2.
The Picture
Some early scenes are quite shadowy, and so I was troubled by instances of noise and grain, but I needn't have worried. In general this is an absolutely gorgeous 2.4:1 master, revealing crisp nuance even in the finest weave of cloth, and right down to all the various complexions of the actors' faces. Colors--notably Iron Man's gold and hot-rod red--are vibrant, while the extensive special effects are a vision to behold. This is some of the finest work ILM has done in years, and it plays as well in the home theater as on the big-big screen.
The Sound
The DTS-HD Master Audio track for Iron Man 2 is as high-energy as an ARC reactor. There's plenty of action, particularly when someone puts on a suit of armor or begins cracking a pair of electric whips. Formula One cars whiz by during a race gone bad, crashing, while the public address speakers are barking. Virtual butler Jarvis (voice of Paul Bettany), who only exists in the speakers, has a distinctive tonal quality whenever he talks to Tony.
At one point an army (and Navy and Air Force and the Marines) of heavily armed flying robots attack, for an extended sequence that'll wake the neighbors (it's even set at night), but it's the 360-degree nuclear reactor that epitomizes all that is good about 5.1: seamless surround reinforced with bass power. Crowds are also lively and deep, and so many different environments are brought to life with discrete touches. Terrific on every level.
The Extras
We are given not one but two well-realized Bonus View options for the feature film. "Previsualization and Animatics" overlays a collection of pre-production artwork, static and video, onto appropriate scenes. The S.H.I.E.L.D. Data Vault then serves up elaborate graphics overlays and branching (which adds about three minutes onto the running time), also allowing us to view all its text/video/etc. contents self-guided, which looks like it could eat up the better part of a day in exploration. This is one of the most exceptionally produced bonus features we're likely to see this year. These are in addition to Jon Favreau's audio commentary, which runs all the way through to the secret bonus scene at the very tail end.
Disc Two (another Blu-ray) kicks off with the four-part "Ultimate Iron Man: The Making of Iron Man 2" on the vast production and how the movie sought to broaden the scope of the Marvel Comics universe on screen (87 minutes, in 5.1). The six additional featurettes cover everything from specific sets and props to the three new supporting heroes: Black Widow, War Machine and Nick Fury (about a half-hour all together). Eight deleted, extended and alternate scenes offer optional commentary by Favreau (17 minutes total). All of these video extras are in HD.
Disc Three is a hybrid DVD carrying a standard-def copy of the movie as well as a Digital Copy for iTunes or Windows Media. There's no BD-Live to be had, which would have been fun if Marvel Studios wanted to eventually replace the images of Ed Norton with photos of Mark Ruffalo.
Final Thoughts
New characters and new suits of armor lead to... new toys! Be careful, filmmakers: This particular type of greed helped sink the Batman franchise in the '90s. Another draft of the script, another pass in editing might have made Iron Man 2 fly a little higher, but as a demo disc and a wicked interactive experience, this Blu-ray hits the stratosphere.
Product Details
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