BY NITHINPROKILLERZ
The story follows a similar arc as the original: Man develops suit of iron. So does another man. They compete. Also, long-suffering Pepper Potts, played by Gwyneth Paltrow, now runs Stark Enterprises. In the sequel, we learn of Tony Stark's fatal flaw, and Mickey Rourke is a bad man. Don Cheadle, Scarlett Johansson, and Sam Rockwell play supporting roles.
Reviews are mixed. Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times is a fan, giving 3 out of 4 stars and his opinion, calling it "a polished, high-ozone sequel." Which he then follows with this moderated praise: "Not as good as the original but building once again on a quirky performance by Robert Downey Jr." He adds, "The superhero genre doesn't necessarily require good acting, but when it's there (as in 'Iron Man' and 'The Dark Knight'), that takes it up a level." Indeed.
Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gives the movie a weak C+ and complains that the sequel "doesn't glow with the same charm as the original." Schwarzbaum wants more of what the first one delivered: the "zingy repartee" and "attitude." She does enjoy the two female characters: Gwyneth Paltrow, promoted to CEO of Stark Enterprises ("radiant, ponytailed...bright as a penny"), and Scarlett Johansson, the new assistant who reveals her true identity and "does a passable superheroine martial-arts crouch in a skintight bodysuit." Nuff said.
Metromix's Matt Pais gives the flick a weak 2 ½ out of 5 stars for "twice the snark, half the fun," and adds, "Part one thrived on Downey Jr.'s bad-boy attitude; the sequel has little to offer besides that. It never takes off."
Sean O'Connell from Filmcritic.com disagrees. His glowing 4-out-of-5-stars review compliments the Marvel Comics character for spending more time out of costume than in it. He explains that it's "Downey's captivatingly honest examinations of his character's inherent flaws...that permit the actor, and not the effects, to carry the drama."
