Iron Man not invincible as sequel stalls

When Iron Man made his debut in 2008, the film - in which Robert Downey Jr plays a reclusive billionaire turned super-hero - was lauded as a refreshing change to a wave of dour post-9/11 films.

It was also hailed as an escapist antidote to the Noughties' other superhero films - Batman, Spider-man, The Incredible Hulk and Superman Returns - whose East Coast protagonists were overwhelmed by self-doubt and burdened by their special powers.
 
By contrast, Downey Jr's Californian industrialist playboy Tony Stark suffered no such identity crises as, dressed in his iron suit, he took on a group of Afghanistan-based terrorists using that old-school deterrent, superior firepower.
 
Cinema-goers rewarded Iron Man's feel-good storyline by making it the second-highest grossing film in America in 2008, just behind Christopher Nolan's second Batman film The Dark Knight.
 
Unfortunately the goodwill earned by Iron Man's first outing looks set to evaporate for the sequel. New writer Justin Theroux's script sets the bar disappointingly low: what is at stake in Iron Man 2 is not the end of the world or the rise of a new superpower, but the race between rival arms dealers to win a new defence contract.
 
Admittedly the first half of the film cracks along with good dialogue and dramatic action scenes - including a breath-taking multi-car pile-up at the Monaco Grand Prix - as Downey Jr takes on his nemesis, a muscle-bound Russian villain played by Mickey Rourke.
 
But the second half flags and the CGI fight scenes are disappointing. Meanwhile an A-list supporting cast - including Gwyneth Paltrow reprising her role as Stark's assistant Pepper Potts, Don Cheadle as his sidekick and Scarlett Johansson in slinky Avengers-style catsuit - are woefully under-used.
 
WHAT THE CRITICS ARE SAYING:Tom Huddleston, Time Out: "As the film plays out, it starts to look likely that all the rumours of reshoots and recuts weren't just online rabble-rousing. Characters appear and vanish. Seemingly important plot details surface and are swept away. And this feels increasingly like a film which got lost in the edit." (3/5 stars)
 
Brian Lowry, Variety: "There are enough fun moments in Jon Favreau's playful direction and Downey's performance - a tycoon who's equal parts Warren Buffett and Kid Rock - to satisfy a weekend audience, but one needs a forgiving nature to get past the flabby mid-section."

Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter: "Well, that didn't take long. Everything fun and terrific about Iron Man, a mere two years ago, has vanished with its sequel. In its place, Iron Man 2 has substituted noise, confusion, multiple villains, irrelevant stunts and misguided story-lines."
 
Nick de Semlyen, Empire: "Little emotional heft [but] fortunately there's still plenty of charisma. When he's out of the suit – and Favreau has the good sense to keep him out of the metal mankini for as long as is superhumanly possible – Downey Jr continues to be unstoppably likeable."  (3/5 stars) ·